Govt to launch forest conservation campaign

Govt to launch forest conservation campaign

BANDA ACEH, Aceh (JP): The government will launch a national reforestation and forest conservation campaign in a ceremony here next month, Minister of Forestry Djamaludin Suryohadikusumo said.

Djamaludin, who visited Banda Aceh on Tuesday to inspect the site for the launching ceremony, said the campaign would be opened by President Soeharto on Dec. 21.

National Solidarity Day is also being commemorated that day, he said.

Aceh Deputy Governor Zainuddin A.G. said the ceremony would take place on a hill undergoing reforestation in Lamreh Village, 34 kilometers from Banda Aceh.

Surrounding the area, he said, a total of 100 hectares of unproductive land were being replanted with trees for an industrial timber estate managed by the Indonesian Forestry Society.

Zainuddin said the site was expected to become a water catchment area and prevent erosion in the future.

A future resort for the governor and high-ranking official guests is also being built at the site of the ceremony.

Zainuddin said the resort and surrounding grounds would serve as a tourist site as they were located near a historical fort.

A motor racing circuit and a golf course were being constructed there, he said.

Djamaludin reminded the local administration that the main focus of the reforestation program should be the welfare of the people.

"You must emphasize the social benefits of the program and how the timber estates can become their source of income," he said.

Djamaludin also asked the local administration to refrain from moving the local people during the process of constructing the new resort, as most locals let their cattle graze in the area and made a living out of farming in this way. (pwn)