Govt to fix forestry rulings

Govt to fix forestry rulings

JAKARTA (JP): The government is revising more than 3,000
forestry regulations which it says are ineffective because they
do not stipulate clear sanctions for those who violate them,
Antara reported on Tuesday.

Junior Minister for Forestry Nurmahmudi Ismail said the
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry was coordinating the
revision of the rules, which include ministerial decrees, to see
whether they were still suitable.

Nurmahmudi also proposed that the ministry take over the
licensing of companies in the forestry sector from the Ministry
of Industry and Trade to ensure timber supply sustainability.

Currently, forestry concessionaire holders are licensed by the
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry to produce 22 million cubic
meters of wood a year. The combined demand for wood from licensed
forestry companies, however, reaches 64 million cubic meters, he
said. (02)