Official fears for future of Timor sandalwood firms

JAKARTA (JP): Businesses related to sandalwood (santalum album), the main export commodity from the island of Timor, are under threat of collapse due to the over-exploitation and poor regeneration of resources, an official said.

"The sandalwood industry on Timor will become part of history some day if there no preservation efforts, as required by the East Nusa Tenggara provincial administration, are implemented," the head of the Development Planning Board's North Central Timor office, Alex Thaal, told The Jakarta Post Monday.

The preservation efforts, he said, include encouraging the public to plant sandalwood trees and reducing the logging quota for each producer regency.

Indonesian sandalwood trees grow only on Timor, with the regencies of Kupang, North Central Timor, South Central Timor and Belu being the main growing areas.

The oil refined from sandalwood is used to make perfume, while the wood is used to make handicrafts. A sandalwood tree matures and becomes aromatic at the age of between 50 and 60 years.

Thaal said the Timorese have been discouraged from planting sandalwood trees by a local law saying that all sandalwood trees growing on the island belong to the government.

"Now, a new law has been enacted which states that those who plant sandalwood trees on their plots of land will share 25 percent of the earnings derived from them," said Thaal.

Regarding the logging quotas, Thaal said that the East Nusa Tenggara provincial administration, for example, has reduced the quota of North Central Timor to about 75 tons this year from 150 tons last year.

"The provincial administration will continue decreasing the quota," he said.

The head of East Nusa Tenggara's forestry office, Ilianto Boediman, was quoted by Kompas as saying that Indonesia, with its annual output of 300 tons, is the world's third largest sandalwood harvester after India and Australia.

India harvests 3,000 tons of sandalwood per annum and Australia 453 tons.

Indonesia's sandalwood tree population decreased from 506,752 in 1965/66 to 493,655 in 1983/84 before increasing back to 685,52 in 1990/91, many of which were young trees.

A kilogram of sandalwood costs about Rp 7,500 ($3.20). (jsk)