Sumatra lowland forest shrinking dramatically<\/p>\n
Jon Afrizal, The Jakarta Post, Jambi<\/p>\n
Illegal logging and forest fires have been blamed for the rapid
\ndestruction of lowland forest on Sumatra island over the past few
\nyears, an environmental activist said on Saturday.<\/p>\n
According to World Bank data, lowland forest cover still
\namounted to 5.6 million hectares in 1985, but 12 years later the
\nforest area had shrunk to 2.2 million hectares.<\/p>\n
\"So, in other words, some 3.4 million hectares of forest had
\ndisappeared in 12 years,\" said the spokeswoman for the Indonesia
\nSumatra Bird Life group, Putriana Chandra.<\/p>\n
She said that the area of lowland forest was continuing to
\ndecline. As of recently, there was only some 650,000 hectares of
\nlowland forest left, spread through Jambi, Riau and South Sumatra
\nprovinces.<\/p>\n
\"If we don't stop the illegal logging and forest fires, the
\nforest will have completely disappeared by 2010,\" she said.<\/p>\n
Despite the rapid pace of deforestation, the government was
\nslow to take measures to stop the illegal logging and forest
\nfires, she said.<\/p>\n
Only less than 40 percent of the forest area was designated as
\nconservation areas, she said. There were two conservation areas,
\nthe Bukit Duabelas National Park consisting of 60,500 hectares
\nand the Bukit Tigapuluh National Park, with 144,000 hectares.<\/p>\n
The trees in lowland forests with an elevation of 150 meters
\nhad a very high economic value, Putriana explained, including
\nmeranti trees, with the result that illegal logging was rampant,
\nshe said.<\/p>\n
Some endangered species of plants were also found there, such
\nas the rafflesia arnoldi and amorphopallus titanium, which were
\nnow threatened with extinction.<\/p>\n
Not only plants, but animals were also facing extinction as
\ntheir habitats continued to disappear.<\/p>\n
There were some 196 species of fauna that were threatened,
\nincluding the Sumatran elephant, Sumatran tiger and Sumatran
\nrhinoceros. The total populations of these three species only
\namounted to between 100 and 200 individuals at the present time.
\nThere were also some 154 bird species on the verge of extinction.<\/p>\n
In order to prevent more damage being done, Putriana urged the
\ngovernment to issue and implement a ministerial decree on the
\nrestoration of ecosystems.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/sumatra-lowland-forest-shrinking-dramatically-1447893297",
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