Forest destruction

Forest destruction

From Media Indonesia

Most residents of the Maria and Ntori villages, in the Bima regency, West Nusa Tenggara, have cleared the forest there (mostly government forest preserve) and do illegal farming. This has been going on since 1990. They grow rice on the cleared ground only once or in one season, then leave the plot barren afterwards, thus upsetting the ecosystem.

I believe that up to now about 150 hectares of forest has been destroyed by no less than 90 slash and burn farmers. Unfortunately the authorities have not responded to the peoples' report or complaints. Some of the negative impacts of the forest destruction are:

* The water sources, which are vital for the community's life, are drying up. And during the rainy season we have frequent floods and land slides.

* The animals in this area were forced to move to other location, which caused inconvenience to the community there.

Forest products such as wood, rattan and other forest yields, which constitute the state's assets, have become scarce and the land is almost bare.

* Historic places like Ndano Rengge, Tamba Jara and Kapaju, which are closely related to the history of Bima Sultanate, have virtually lost their significance.

In relation to this I would like call on the Ministry of Environment to take the necessary measures to safeguard the areas and stop the practice of slash and burn farming.

M. ALI BAKAR

Bima, NTB