Tito Karnavian\u2019s statement as Chairman of the Task Force for\nAccelerating Rehabilitation and Reconstruction (PRR) serves as an\naffirmation that the utilisation of driftwood from the flash floods in\nSumatra at the end of 2025 is already on track. The cleaning and\nutilisation efforts have dramatically increased by 111 percent in early\nApril.<\/p>\n
In a press release on Friday, 3 April 2026, Tito stated that the PRR\nTask Force has designed the utilisation of this wood for construction\nmaterials for housing needs up to the industrial sector. \u201cIt can also be\nused by residents to build houses, please do so,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Tito also emphasised that parts of the driftwood that are small in\nsize and less economical should, as much as possible, be utilised by\nlocal governments to become original local revenue (PAD). For example,\nutilised as materials for making bricks or fuel for power plants. \u201cThe\nmechanism (through) cooperation and the income becomes PAD,\u201d said\nTito.<\/p>\n
This policy is based on Ministerial Decree of the Ministry of\nForestry Number 191 of 2026 at the end of February, which allows the use\nof round wood to wood waste (debris) from flood remnants to be converted\ninto boards and building materials.<\/p>\n
This regulation cuts long bureaucratic licensing in forestry by\ngiving full authority to regents or mayors in affected areas to conduct\ninventories and distribution of wood without needing to apply for new\nlogging permits. The wood is declared as state assets managed for\ndisaster emergency interests.<\/p>\n
As a result, in several affected areas, the wood is not only cleaned\nfrom river flows but has begun to be processed into building materials\nfor temporary housing to repairs of residents\u2019 houses.<\/p>\n
In North Aceh, several residents have taken the driftwood and\nprocessed it into house building materials independently, replacing old\nhomes damaged by floods. \u201cThis wood is very helpful to us. Rather than\nleft alone, it\u2019s better used to build houses,\u201d said one resident,\nRasyidin, as quoted from NU Online, 4 April 2026.<\/p>\n
Local governments also have authority to regulate the use of\ndriftwood. For example, the Padang City Government collects cleaning\nresults and will utilise them for repairing disaster-affected\ninfrastructure.<\/p>\n
This utilisation is seen as accelerating the provision of housing\namid emergency conditions, while also optimising available materials in\nthe field. The policy also becomes a practical solution to the\naccumulation of wood that previously clogged river flows and worsened\nflood effects.<\/p>\n
The impact of this policy is immediately visible in the field. In\njust three weeks since mid-March 2026, the volume of driftwood\nutilisation skyrocketed to 111 percent. In the latest report, 5 April\n2026, the total wood converted into construction materials has reached\n5,103.72 cubic metres. A drastic increase compared to the report on 16\nMarch which only recorded 2,419 cubic metres.<\/p>\n
Interestingly, Aceh is the province with the largest utilisation\nvolume, namely 2,684.51 cubic metres. North Aceh manages 1,132.40 cubic\nmetres, while Aceh Tamiang is 1,552.11 cubic metres. This wood is\ndirectly transformed into materials for building Temporary Housing\n(Huntara) for refugees in both areas.<\/p>\n
In the two regencies, cleaning focuses on the Darul Mukhlisin Islamic\nBoarding School area in Aceh Tamiang, and Langkahan in North Aceh, with\na cleaning area of 32 hectares, involving dozens of personnel and heavy\nequipment.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, in West Sumatra, physical cleaning progress has reached\nnearly perfect, namely 99 percent. From a total of 1,996.58 cubic metres\nof wood collected in Padang City, all materials have been handed over to\nthe local government to be managed for accelerating infrastructure\nrecovery.<\/p>\n
North Sumatra recorded a total utilisation volume of 422.63 cubic\nmetres. Priority cleaning of driftwood takes place in the Batangtoru and\nGaroga River Basin Areas (DAS), with details of 173.63 cubic metres in\nSouth Tapanuli and 249 cubic metres in Central Tapanuli. In both areas,\ndisaster remnant wood is allocated for building Public Facilities\n(Fasum) and direct repairs to residents\u2019 homes.<\/p>\n
The success in achieving the utilisation target of more than 5,000\ncubic metres in a short time is inseparable from massive collaboration\nin the field. In West Sumatra alone, around 250 combined personnel from\nTNI, Polri, SOEs, and the community worked together to clean and utilise\nthe wood using 9 units of heavy equipment and 10 dump trucks.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/task-force-head-titos-affirmation-boosts-utilisation-of-driftwood-by-111-percent-1775616753", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }