Mangrove forest in danger

Mangrove forest in danger

TUAL, Maluku: Dozens of hectares of mangrove forest in West
Southeast Maluku would soon be lost to illegal logging, local
officials said on Monday.

Head of the local development planning office, Ali Wafie
Rahayan said illegal loggers must be stopped from carrying out
their activities through traditional and religious approaches.

He said the conventional measures taken by the government had
proven ineffective in stopping illegal logging in the
subdistricts of Kei Kecil and Aru as laws were not enforced.

Loggers usually use mangrove trees for their temporary
accommodation shelters or for firewood.

Southeast Maluku has at least 40,200 hectares of mangrove
forest off the small Aru and Kei Kecil islands. The continued
logging has helped drastically reduce the income of local
fishermen. --Antara