Govt urged to revoke logging permit

Govt urged to revoke logging permit

The Jakarta Post
Jakarta

The government should review a forestry concession the Riau
Governor gave to a wood pulp company to log up to 215,000
hectares of Riau rain forest, environmentalists say.

Riau Environmental Forum (Walhi) director Rully Sumanda said
the group was deeply concerned about Governor Rusli Zainal's
recent decision to give a new concession to PT Riau Andalan Pulp
and Paper (RAPP). The giant pulp mill belonging to Radja Garuda
Mas (RGM) Holding Group, would be allowed to log up to 215,000
hectares of forests in the Pelalawan, Siak and the Bengkalis
areas.

Rully said the region was home to many protected rare species
and known for its rich biodiversity.

"Walhi appeals to the government to review the governor's
decision that would intensify environment destruction in the
province, which has been hit badly by floods during the past 10
years due to rapid conversion of its rain forests into
plantations," he told The Jakarta Post here on Friday.

He feared that with the new forestry concession, the
province's mangrove areas and their ecosystems would be
destroyed.

The mangrove forests had been buffer-zones for dozens of
fishing communities in the three regencies, he said.

"The existence of the mangrove forests has ensured the supply
of fish to the fishermen is maintained and they have
simultaneously protected locals from large tidal waves."

Elephants and Sumatran tigers also lived in the forests, which
was also an important water catchment area.

"It would be a good idea if the government reviewed the
governor's decision, otherwise the decision will cause many
environmental problems in the future," he said. Recent flooding
that killed dozens of people in the province was a good reason to
replant areas prone to inundation.

Rully said the governor's decision contravened Law No.
41/1999, which stipulates that only barren areas are allowed to
be replanted as industrial forests (HTI).

"Riau still has 1.6 million ha of cleared but empty land that
could be given to the pulp mill to be grown into industrial
forests."

Meanwhile, the House of Representatives's Commission IV on
forestry and plantation said it would convey the groups concerns
to forestry minister Malam Sambat Kaban in their next meeting
with him.

Commission members Imam Syuja and Nurhadi Musawir said other
groups had complained about the decision and they planned to
visit the area themselves.