JP/5/HPH

Siberut Island suffers as logging destroys ecology

Syofiardi Bachyul Jb The Jakarta Post/Padang

Two non-governmental organizations (NGOs), joined by Padang's North Siberut Alliance for the Preservation of Mentawai Culture (AMAPM), are urging the government to put a stop to logging activities on the island of Siberut, which is among the Mentawai Islands.

According to the West Sumatra branch of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi), the Citra Mandiri Foundation (YCM) and the alliance, widespread logging -- carried out by forest concessionaires and permit holders -- could cause serious environmental damage to the island, which is some 150 kilometers west of West Sumatra's capital Padang.

"Even without the logging companies, the island is prone to natural disasters as its ecology is fragile," said deputy director of the YCM Frans R. Siahaan.

Siberut is a small island with an area of 403,000 hectares. It was separated from Sumatra 500 million years ago and is vulnerable to erosion. The forest has been its main ecological protector.

The forest is home to a number of endemic animals and plants, among them four primates: the Bilou (dwarfed gibbon) the Simakobu (pig-tailed monkey), the Bokkoi (Mentawai macaque) and the Joja or Mentawai monkey.

There are eight companies and cooperatives allotted more than 50,000 hectares of land on the island by the government.

They have been operating on the island for the last few years.

The forestry ministry is reportedly processing the concession for a private company to log 49,440 hectares of forested area.

West Sumatra Walhi director Agus Teguh Prihartono said that -- based on the results of an investigation the three organizations conducted two months ago -- the logging companies had considerably damaged the environment and contributed to social unrest among locals.

A number of rivers dried up and trees were felled arbitrarily, although concessionaires are prohibited from logging trees on sloped or hilly ground, or those that are less than 50 centimeters in diameter.

The presence of logging companies also threatens the ecology of Siberut National Park, according to Agus. One company was also penalized for logging trees within the national park, some of which were over 14 meters tall.

Conflicts among tribes and families are commonplace on the island, allegedly due to land disputes and the meager price paid for timber by the companies to locals.

A resident of North Siberut and member of AMAPM, Andom Sabebegen, said the presence of companies and cooperatives in two villages upstream had reduced the quality and quantity of river water in the area.

"Before they operated here in 1993, our sampan could still make it up the river, as far as Sotboyak and Bojakan villages, during nine months of drought. Now, if there is no rain for three days, the river dries up," he said.

On the other hand, he added, if it rains for half an hour, the houses of people who live near the river are flooded.