Ministry of Forestry Urges Papua Highlands Government to Plant Trees to Preserve Forests

Wamena (ANTARA) - The Ministry of Forestry is encouraging the Papua Highlands Provincial Government to plant trees to preserve the region’s forest areas. Ruanda Agung Sigardiman, an expert advisor for Indonesia’s Folu Net Sink 2030 programme at the Ministry of Forestry, symbolically handed over tree seedlings to Lince Kogoya, the Acting Head of the Papua Highlands Environmental, Forestry, and Land Affairs Office, in Wamena, Jayawijaya Regency. Speaking in Wamena on Tuesday, Sigardiman stated that planting trees is crucial for maintaining the balance of forest ecosystems, particularly in Indonesia. “The symbolic handover of these plants or trees aims to encourage the local government in Papua Highlands to preserve forest areas. The more trees we plant, the better the forests will be, and it will increase forest cover in Papua Highlands,” he said. According to a report from Papua Highlands Governor John Tabo, forest areas in the region have been converted for office buildings and residential settlements, leading to significant deforestation. “Therefore, through the Indonesia’s Folu Net Sink 2030 programme, one of the main activities is to increase forest cover or multiply trees so that the forest areas in Papua Highlands remain well preserved,” he added. He acknowledged that the forests in Papua Highlands serve as a bastion for the success of the greenhouse gas emission reduction programme. “Papua Highlands and Papua Island in general have a huge role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. I would say the entire Papuan forest is the last warrior for Indonesia’s carbon stock because its forest cover is still above 70 percent,” he said. He added that on the densely populated island of Java, where 60 percent of Indonesia’s population resides, the remaining forest cover is only 18 percent. “Under these conditions, oxygen production in Java is severely lacking for such a large population. Kalimantan’s cover is also decreasing, and Sumatra’s is shrinking due to frequent fires, so Papua remains Indonesia’s hope for maintaining forest cover,” he concluded.