Forest burners have to prove innocence

Forest burners have to prove innocence

JAKARTA (JP): State Minister of Environment Sarwono
Kusumaatmadja warned yesterday that owners of plantation and
timber companies alleged by the government of causing widespread
fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan have until Oct. 1 to prove
themselves innocent.

Speaking during a break of the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on
the Environment (AMME) here, Sarwono said the government would
revoke their business licenses if they failed to provide
sufficient evidence.

The government on Monday named 50 companies allegedly
responsible for using burning methods for land clearing.

Twenty-two companies in Riau, 14 in West Kalimantan, and 14
others in East Kalimantan.

"In order to prove that they did not practice the burning
methods they can go to Mapindo to get a map of their concession
areas and overlay the map with satellite images (interpreting hot
spots), which they can get from Lapan," Sarwono said.

The minister was referring to PT Mapindo Parama which has
taken aerial photos of about 85 million hectares of Indonesia's
forests since 1990, about 76 percent or 65 million hectares of
which is production forests.

Lapan is the country's National Space and Aviation Agency.

The companies are required to make their defense in a dossier
which will later be cross-checked by a joint team from the local
administration, Ministry of Forestry, Ministry of Agriculture and
Ministry of Transmigration.

Sarwono could not understand why companies still practiced
burning methods despite the introduction of other land clearing
methods by the government two years ago.

"It's time to catch the culprits now, whoever they are and no
matter who is backing them," Sarwono said.

At least 300,000 hectares of land and forests in Sumatra and
Kalimantan have been destroyed by fire in the last three months,
endangering the lives of up to 40 million people here and
neighboring Malaysia and Singapore.

The second of the three-day ASEAN meeting proceeded smoothly
yesterday with delegates agreeing to adopt actions which would
boost environmental awareness in the region.

ASEAN was established as a sociopolitical organization in 1967
and comprises Brunei, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the
Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Delegates revealed yesterday that the meeting had agreed to
establish an ASEAN Environment Year in 2000.

Also starting in 2000, a special triennial environmental award
will be presented to recognize individuals with outstanding
contributions to the protection and betterment of the environment
both nationally and regionally.

Other proposal items adopted included a recommendation for the
implementation of long-term environmental goals for air and river
water quality. (aan)