JP/18/EXPERT

JP/18/EXPERT

Experts give Indonesia tips on the fight against illegal logging

Fabio Scarpello
Contributor/Jakarta

Indonesia's focus on, and approach to the fight against illegal
logging, and the use of DNA markers on trees as a possible tool
to curb it, have been the subjects of conversations between The
Jakarta Post and Dr. Luca Tacconi and Dr. Giovanni Vendramin, two
of the experts taking part in the Indonesian-Italian workshop on
"Wood research and industrial needs for the forestry wood sector"
held here between May 17 and May 19 .

The workshop falls under the umbrella of the 2004-2007
Executive Program of Science and Technological cooperation
between Indonesia and Italy, and is jointly organized by the
Indonesian Ministry of Research and Technology (RISTEK) and the
Embassy of Italy in Jakarta.

According to a joint report presented by the London-based
Environmental Investigative Agency (EIA) and the Bogor-based
Telepak, deforestation in Indonesia claimed two million hectares
of forest in 2002.

This is a rather optimistic estimate compared with Forest
Watch Indonesia's (FWI) belief that 4.1 million hectares of
forest was laid to waste in 2003, up from 3.8 million hectares in
2000. Everybody, including the government's forestry department,
agrees that 80 percent of deforestation is illegal. Unless the
trend is inverted, the World Bank predicts that by 2010 there
won't be any forest left in Kalimantan and North Sumatra.

Undoubtedly, the war against illegal logging is not a war
Indonesia should and can fight alone, and the world at large
needs to take part. The G8 -- a group of the eight most
industrialized countries -- consumes 74 percent of the world's
forestry product exports, but is often unconcerned about its
source.

Accidentally, according to EIA, Italy is Europe's main
importer of illegally logged wood and especially ramin, an
endangered tree growing in Indonesia and Malaysia. In Italy, it
is used to make picture frames, for which the country is the
world leader.

However, Indonesia's main grievance rests with Malaysia and
Singapore, which are accused of importing Indonesian logs and
breaching a ban in place since October 2001.

On 10 May, President Megawati was quoted by The Jakarta Post
as saying that it was difficult to fight the widespread illegal
logging across Indonesia, and neighboring countries were to blame
for encouraging the problem. This, and similar comments made by
other politicians, do not convince Doctor Luca Tacconi.

Tacconi is a Senior Economist at the Center for International
Forestry Research (CIFOR) in Bogor. His knowledge of local
environmental issues adds weight to his doubts.

"Every time illegal logging is discussed, the Indonesian
government claims that the area to patrol is too big and that
neighbors are not helping. This is an easy way out. I am not
doubting the difficulty of the task faced by Indonesia. What I am
doubting is the government's approach and focus and whether there
is a real political will to stop the problem," Tacconi said.

According to Tacconi, by far the largest quantity of illegal
logging is used in Indonesia. He firmly points the finger at pulp
and plywood industries: "In 2001, pulp and plywood industries
produced goods that required the use of some 50 million cubic
metres of timber -- above the maximum annual harvest set by the
government, which currently stands at 6.5 million cubic metres.
It is obvious that this was illegally harvested. On this basis,
why isn't the government focusing its efforts on these sectors?"
Tacconi asked.

To enforce Tacconi's point, eight out of eight sawmills that
were randomly inspected by the Ministry of Forestry in a recent
program were found to be using illegally logged timber.

Tacconi added: "Indonesia's 100 million hectares of forest are
impossible to patrol, and the government would be more effective
in monitoring the mills rather than the forest. There are 14 pulp
paper mills and between 50 to 80 plywood mills which together use
73 percent of the total timber harvested in Indonesia. If the
government placed guards at their gates and checked the documents
of the incoming timber, it would achieve better results."

Ways to detect the source of timber range from the rudimentary
stamping of each log, to the high-tech bar coding currently run
as a pilot project in East Kalimantan. At the workshop, Dr.
Vendramin spoke of the possibility of using DNA markers to
identify commercial timber and its origin.

Vendramin is a researcher at the Institute of Plant Genetics
in Florence, Italy. Scientific jargon aside, he said to "think of
it as a DNA test to assert the paternity of a child. We take a
DNA sample from the man and the child and see if they match. The
only difference when it comes to trees, is that we need to create
a database of tree DNA beforehand.

Once that is done, the process is easy. We take samples of
wood or manufactured wood products worldwide, and match them with
the DNA markers in the database. In this way we will know where
it comes from, and if the area was earmarked for harvest."

The advantage of such a method is that it may help to set up
better controlling systems that can be used by exporting as well
as importing countries, and by public agencies as well as the
private sector. The disadvantage is that it is still rather
expensive and would require a consistent investment.

"Prices are coming down fast, and together with other
organizations we are lobbying the European Union (EU) to adopt it
as a standard control method," Vendramin added.

In Indonesia, the EU has long been involved in a concerted
effort to limit illegal logging. In the last decade, help has
been provided in the form of more than 100 million Euros with
extra funds recently allocated.