Gunung Kidul sows a greener future

Gunung Kidul sows a greener future

The Jakarta Post, Gunung Kidul

Gunung Kidul, once known as a dry and barren district in
Yogyakarta, will hopefully look greener next year after the local
administration's decision to sponsor a sustainable reforestation
program in 516 hectares of barren and critically damaged land in
18 of the regency's subdistricts.

Bambang Sukemi, chief of the local forestry ministry office,
said a majority of residents in the 18 subdistricts have begun
planting seedlings distributed by the local administration.

"Within the next two and three months, all seedlings that
villagers have planted will grow higher and bigger so that the
mountainous areas located in the Yogyakarta province's southern
region will look greener," he told The Jakarta Post here over the
weekend.

Bambang said the reforestation project, which has absorbed Rp
616 million, was financed by the central government under the
general allocation fund scheme and carried out by the local
administration in cooperation with local people.

The funds were used to prepare the land, supply seedlings and
cultivate the plants.

Bambang hailed the unique project in which villagers have
played a major role.

"The government has only played a role of motivating villagers
and encouraging them to actively participate, and they have done
it well," he said.

He said the 18 subdistricts' residents divided into 24 groups
and were free to determine which seedlings they would plant on
their land, while the government provided information on how to
cultivate the seedlings.

"Most groups have planted their seedlings, which are expected
to grow bigger in the next two or three months," he said, saying
that most villagers preferred to plant hardwood, mahonia and
acacia trees.

In addition to the reforestation program, villagers could also
use their land to cultivate nucleus plants to support themselves.

Bambang said that, to maintain the reforestation program's
sustainability, the local administration had issued a ruling that
villagers were obliged to plant five trees for every tree they
cut down.

"Villagers will be allowed to harvest their forest but they
are obliged to plant five trees for every tree they cut down," he
said. "And both authorities and the people will take strict
action against possible forest theft and looting, because such
activities will bring suffering to local people and the
environment."

He said the local administration would extend the
reforestation program throughout many other subdistricts in the
regency.

"We have many hundreds of hectares of critical land that needs
to be regenerated in the future," he added.

So far, more than 11,000 hectares of critical land in the
regency have been reforested with large tree species and a
majority of local people now enjoy ground water as a result.

Widodo, 35, a farmer, praised the reforestation program, which
he said had helped local people improve their social welfare and
preserve their environment.

"We no longer feel inferior originating from Gunung Kidul
instead of other regencies, because this regency is becoming
greener and many students have gained their S-1 titles from the
timber trade," he said.