Mangrove Destruction in Meranti Exposed, Thousands of Sacks of Illegal Charcoal Seized

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, PEKANBARU — The practice of destroying mangrove forests in coastal areas has been uncovered again in Kepulauan Meranti, Riau. Authorities have secured thousands of sacks of ready-to-export mangrove charcoal and arrested suspects believed to be involved in the illegal activity. In an operation conducted by Polda Riau, two owners of illegal charcoal kilns were detained along with evidence consisting of around 580 sacks of mangrove charcoal found on the vessel KM Aldan 2. The vessel was loading charcoal in Sesap Village, Tebing Tinggi Barat Subdistrict. Director of Special Criminal Investigation at Polda Riau, Ade Kuncoro, explained that the case was uncovered following a public report regarding the transportation of mangrove charcoal without official documents. “This finding was then developed until it led to two locations of charcoal kilns that were the sources of production,” he said on Wednesday (6/5/2026). The investigation led the team to two different locations, namely in Sesap Village and Sokop Village, Rangsang Pesisir Subdistrict. At both sites, large-scale mangrove charcoal production activities were found that had been ongoing for quite some time. From the search results, authorities seized around 3,000 sacks of mangrove charcoal with an estimated weight of more than 100 tonnes. In addition, dozens of cubic metres of mangrove wood suspected to be raw materials for production were found. All these activities were carried out without permits and utilised mangrove wood that was illegally felled from coastal areas. Preliminary investigation results indicate that this practice has been running for two to three years, with the aim of distribution to foreign markets, including Batu Pahat, Malaysia. In this case, investigators have named three individuals as suspects, namely B alias CC and M alias AW as owners of the charcoal kilns, and SA who acted as the captain of the transporting vessel. The three are charged under the Forestry Law and the Law on the Prevention and Eradication of Forest Destruction, with a maximum penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment and a fine of Rp5 billion. Authorities are continuing to develop this case to trace possible wider distribution networks, including indications of cross-border involvement.