Fire destroys teak forest

Fire destroys teak forest

KENDAL, Central Java: Fire has swept across 900 hectares of
the 7,000 hectares of forests in this regency.

"The majority of the forested area destroyed consisted of teak
trees," said Rusmadi, head of the local office of the state
forestry company, Perhutani.

He said he was still hopeful some of the trees can be saved
and the area reforested with the coming of the rainy season
although the quality of the teak won't be as good.

Perhutani employs local people to act as forest rangers, but
fires still occur largely because proper equipment is not
available, Rusmadi said.

The fires were started either because of human neglect or the
prolonged dry spell, he added. (har/emb)