Forest biodiversity under threat: Locals
Forest biodiversity under threat: Locals
JAKARTA (JP): Four forest inhabitants yesterday related their experiences in an effort to show just how serious is the threat to biodiversity in their immediate surroundings.
The four men were invited to address a gathering organized by BioForum, a coalition of Indonesian non-governmental organizations, on the sidelines of the ongoing international biodiversity conference.
The four men from East Kalimantan, West Kalimantan, Lampung and West Java described how the diverse plants in their surroundings have changed or are on the point of changing.
Lukas Alpius, a villager of Jelmu Sibak in the Bentian Besar district of Kutai, East Kalimantan, said that a proposed 1,600- hectare forestry estate will wipe out 52 varieties of paddy, 42 varieties of rattan, more than 70 varieties of fruit and scores of herbal plants.
Adjacent to that area, the government is opening up a new settlement area on a 87.5-ha plot and a rubber plantation on another 80 ha, Lukas said.
The people in Bentian have been asking the government to revoke the concession permits of the timber company, PT Hutan Mahligai, since 1993, he said. The government has not responded to the requests, he added.
Maniamas Miden, a tribal leader from the Aur Sampuk sub- district in Sengah Temila, West Kalimantan, said his people are worried about rumors that forest concessionaires are about to come and take over their land.
"This is sacred land. We cannot convert the forest, though by custom we are allowed to take timber and hunt animals," he said.
"I am afraid the medicine men will find difficulties in looking for healing plants when the forestry estates come in," Miden said.
Sandra Moniaga, one of the organizers of the talks, said most forestry estates being developed in Indonesia are modeled on those established in non-tropical countries which limit the number of species of plants to one.
The monocultural practice threatens the environment inside and outside forests, she said.
"The government should remember that the forestry estates are not only changing the forests into only acacia or sengon (albizzia falcata) trees," said Sandra, who works with an NGO in West Kalimantan. "The land outside the forests also has a variety of plants, which monoculture eventually affects."
Minister of Environment Sarwono Kusumaatmadja told reporters earlier that he regretted the negative impact of the establishment of forestry estates on forests' biodiversity.
Yesterday's talks also covered the question of intellectual property rights and community rights.
Today's topics at the BioForum include women and the environment and patent rights in the context of North-South relations.
Another NGO, Konphalindo, is scheduled to host talks on the Southeast Asian perspective of the Convention on Biodiversity.
Sarwono is among the scheduled speakers. (anr)