1m hectares of forests destroyed PA

PEMALANG, Central Java: About one million hectares of tropical forest in the country are destroyed annually, Minister of Forestry and Plantations Nur Mahmudi Ismail said here on Monday.

"People have to stop destroying the forests. We have no choice but to save and preserve our forests. The areas are not there to be merely looted and demolished," Nur Mahmudi said at the opening of the week-long National Green Movement in Blendung village here.

The worrying level of forest destruction is due to constant timber exploitation and poor planting management and preservation, he said.

"Forests and plantations make up 60 percent of the country's 190 million hectares of land. But we don't realize how rich we are in natural resources," Mahmudi said. (har/edt)