Govt told to start reforestation drive

JAMBI: Approximately 300,000 hectares of the four million hectares of forest in Jambi province have been stripped bare by illegal loggers, an official said on Wednesday.

The government must put an end to illegal logging and begin a massive reforestation program to prevent major natural disasters from occurring in the province, said M. Suprijanto, head of the Batanghari River Management Agency.

Suprijanto said he made a proposal to the government to begin a reforestation program covering 4,800 hectares of denuded land in one municipality and nine regencies in the province. -- JP