Govt to control exports of wood products
Govt to control exports of wood products
JAKARTA (JP): The government plans to ban exports of wood products made of materials derived from unsoundly managed forests, Minister of Forestry Djamaludin Suryohadikusumo said.
"By 1997 we'd like to see that all wood-based manufacturers only export products originating from sustainably managed forests," the minister was quoted by Antara yesterday.
He also said sanctions should be imposed on wood-based manufacturers involved in the trading of unauthorized logs.
However, Djamaludin said, his statement was merely a "proposal".
According to regulations, all international transactions of wood-based products, especially of plywood, are controlled by the Association of Wood Panel Producers, which is chaired by industrialist Mohammad (Bob) Hasan.
No association executives were available for comment yesterday.
The minister also said he'd like his idea to be applied starting this year.
"Possibly, starting this year, we could cut by 50 percent the export quotas of wood-based manufacturers who obtain their products unlawfully," he said.
He added that by 1996 this could be extended by a further 25 percent cut in the export quotas.
In 1997, the quotas should be scrapped altogether for guilty parties, he said.
Djamaludin said his idea is meant to control timber production as well as price fluctuations.
Decline
The minister remarked that plywood prices are currently "on the decline", which has affected Indonesia's export revenues.
Indonesia produces around 10 million cubic meters of plywood annually.
Latest government figures, obtained Wednesday night from the Ministry of Finance, state that plywood export revenues in the January-September period of last year fell by nine percent to US$2.8 billion from the corresponding period in 1993.
It was only last month when Minister of Industry Tunky Ariwibowo announced that plywood exports dropped by 0.8 percent to $3.78 billion in the January-August period of last year, from the same period in the previous year.
Djamaludin said that economic recession and rising competition from Malaysia and Brazil are the main reasons for the significant drop.
The minister said that declines in plywood prices will discourage producers to practice sustainable forestry management. (hdj)