Govt expands reforestation to 21 catchment areas

Govt expands reforestation to 21 catchment areas

Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The government has decided to expand the reforestation program
from 17 critical catchment areas to 21 across the archipelago
over five years between 2003 and 2007 to help reduce widespread
natural disasters.

Deputy Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Farid
Husain, in charge of health and environment, said on Friday that
the expansion was needed to improve the condition of the critical
catchment areas.

"We have raised enough funds to do so," he told The Jakarta
Post after attending a meeting on anti-HIV/AIDS measures with
other ministries.

The reforestation program will cover 3 million hectares of
degraded land and be conducted gradually, with some 300,000
hectares be rehabilitated in 2003, 500,000 hectares in 2004,
600,000 hectares in 2005, about 700,000 hectares in 2006 and
900,000 hectares in 2007.

Farid said the funds would be provided from the reforestation
funds, state budget, provincial budgets and other sources.

State Minister for the Environment Nabiel Makarim has
repeatedly said the government had allotted some Rp 15 trillion
(US$1.67 billion) to carry out the reforestation program for five
years.

For this year's program, the government had allocated Rp 1.6
trillion to conduct the reforestation program, Farid said.

The rehabilitated catchment areas in Sumatra this year will
cover Ambar Kampas, Tulang Bawang and Way Sekampung in Lampung,
Asahan in North Sumatra, Kampar in Riau, Kuantan and Masang
Antokan in West Sumatra.

Bengawan Solo, Luk Ulo and Serang Lusi in Central Java, Opak
Oyo in Yogyakarta, Brantas in East Java, Ciliwung in Jakarta and
West Java, Cimanuk, Cisadane and Citarum in West Java are the
catchment areas targeted to be reforested in Java.

In Kalimantan, Barito catchment area in South Kalimantan is
the target of the reforestation program this year.

The rest are Jeneberang Klara and Walanae in South Sulawesi,
Limboto in Gorontalo and Tondano in North Sulawesi.

Several regencies and municipalities have also been determined
as the location of the reforestation program.

For example, in Bengawan Solo catchment area, regencies like
Blora, Boyolali, Karanganyar, Grobogan, Klaten, Rembang, Sragen,
Semarang, Wonogiri, and Sukoharjo have been named.

"For this year, at least 300 million seeds will be cultivated
in the 300,000 hectares of degraded land," Farid said.

The reforestation program will also involve military officers,
who will join local people in growing the seeds.

Rampant deforestation, particularly illegal logging
activities, have been blamed for natural disasters, such as
flooding, drought and landslides, which hit the country over the
past five months.

According to the government, between January 2002 and March
2003, there were 229 disasters in the country, claiming more than
505 lives and forcing more than one million others to flee their
homes.

The losses due to natural disasters between 1991 and 2000
reached US$17.6 billion.