Nature's gift

Nature's gift

"Unforgivable!" Such was the remark of Heart of Borneo national
coordinator Bambang Supriyanto on the destruction of pristine
forest on the world's third largest island.

No expression could be more apt to describe the annihilation
of some of the most unique creatures on earth as a result of
man's reckless ways.

As if we needed further reminding of the wondrous bounty God
has left in our care, a conference in Leiden, the Netherlands,
last week announced the discovery of hundreds of new species in
Kalimantan (Borneo).

During the conference a new report titled Borneo's Lost World:
Newly Discovered Species was released, highlighting the findings
of an international project under the aegis of the World Wildlife
Fund (WWF) at a 22 million-hectare highland plateau known as the
Heart of Borneo.

According to the report, among the discoveries were 260 new
insect species, 50 new plants, 30 kinds of freshwater fish, seven
types of frog, six types of lizard, two newly discovered snakes
and one previously unknown species of toad. Various other
scientific information was also gathered during the project, such
as genetic information concerning the orangutan.

About three-quarters of the island of Borneo is Indonesian
territory, and we can only express our gratitude for the efforts
of the WWF, the international scientific community and sponsors
of the project to detail how blessed we are with nature's
wonders. It is a task that Indonesia by itself could not
accomplish.

Due to a lack of funding, limited know-how and the plain
absence of the political will to accomplish such endeavors, many
of our natural marvels remain undiscovered.

Be that as it may, there is a more lasting and no less
important obligation that we must perform as a follow-up to the
WWF project. Our task now is to protect and preserve nature
against our own destructive egos and greed.

One cannot say enough about the worrying rate of deforestation
in this country. Satellite photos show that between 1985 and 2001
over 55 percent of lowland forest in Kalimantan was destroyed.
This destruction continues at an accelerated pace with illegal
logging and the conversion of forests into plantations.

For now, most of the highland forest in the Heart of Borneo
remains untouched. But there is no guarantee it will remain safe
from human disturbance unless we persistently recommit ourselves
to protecting our natural heritage.

We take so much from the earth, while all that it really asks
of us is to ensure its preservation. As generations of agrarian
families have come to understand, the more one cares for the land
the more nature will yield its bounty for our benefit.

Throughout Indonesia we find natural products that are said to
contain wondrous medicinal benefits. If only we could properly
catalog, research and cultivate these products, one could only
imagine the alternatives available to high-priced medicines.

One such craze at the moment is the popular Red Fruit
(pandanus conoideus) found in Papua. The fruit itself is found
throughout the island, but the fruit grown in the Wamena
highlands is said to be the best for curing various maladies.

While the WWF project in Borneo found hundreds of new species,
let us think for a moment about the dozens of species (and
perhaps more) that have perished over the decades as a result of
our negligence.

Environmental awareness should no longer be an extracurricular
subject for our young; it must become a core subject as important
as the arts and science.

Negligence toward the environment also has immediate political
and economic consequences. An increasing number of our natural
products that have medicinal qualities are being patented by
foreigners. Traditional home cures using herbal concoctions are
being analyzed and synthesized.

While we support the use of these natural remedies to cure and
soothe ailments worldwide, we should also be wary lest we one day
arrive at the point where we could be economically liable if we,
without permission, used natural products that originated in
Indonesia.

It is time to remind ourselves once again of our obligation to
nature and to our grandchildren, who will inherit a bounteous
earth or suffer from our present deeds.