Project Barito Ulu aims to save Kalimantan's rain forests

Project Barito Ulu aims to save Kalimantan's rain forests

By Yenni Kwok

JAKARTA (JP): More a compromiser than a die-hard
environmentalist, Rupert Ridgeway is the manager of Project
Barito Ulu, whose main objective is to regenerate Kalimantan's
damaged rain forests without halting logging activities.

"Rain forests will not have any commercial value, and then
what's the use?" said the 46-year-old Brit, who recently gave a
talk on Kalimantan's rain forests to members of the Indonesia
Heritage Society.

The question now is how to minimize environmental damage while
still making a profit on forest products.

He compares Kalimantan's tropical rain forests with the
Amazon. About 80 percent of the plant species in Kalimantan have
commercial value, compared to only 30 percent in Amazon.

It therefore should not come as any surprise that many timber
companies flock to Kalimantan. Ridgeway showed me a map of
logging concessions in Central Kalimantan, where nearly every
hectare of land is taken up by logging companies.

Heavy commercial logging is not the only threat to the
rain forests. Shifting cultivation, human settlement and road
building (mostly by logging companies) also contribute to the
damage.

Thus the importance of Project Barito Ulu. The project is a
collaboration between the Ministry of Forestry and Cambridge
University. Local and foreign scientists as well as students have
worked on forest regeneration around the upstream, or ulu, area
of the Barito River in Central Kalimantan since 1989.

Barito River

The upstream Barito River work area covers approximately 900
hectares. The journey there can take six or seven days from
Banjarmasin and part of the trip involves taking a boat, which
can be very challenging if the water level drops.

The upstream area was chosen for site research because no
research had ever been done in Central Kalimantan despite heavy
logging there, said Ridgeway, who discovered his interest in rain
forests after taking pictures of the Amazon's forests.

The research area is also the meeting place of the Barito,
Busang, Joloi and Murung rivers, which contributes to the
diversity of animals and plants.

Besides forest regeneration, the project also identifies
plants and sends them to the international herbarium in the West
Java town of Bogor, Kew in England and Leiden in the Netherlands.
Others tasks include observing animal feeding habits, adding
fertilizer to selected areas to test soil quality and analyzing
the impact of weather on plant production. Here, a knowledge of
botany, zoology and the physical environment is needed.

Commenting on cross-science and the complexity of the research
projects, Ridgeway said: "If you take one small bit, chances are
you damage another part. Tropical rain forests are very complex.
There are a lot of things there, just like a jigsaw puzzle."

Ridgeway has seen more responsible logging practices over the
past five years, compared to 15 years ago. However, this does not
mean that no damage has been done.

For example, the government only allows trees with diameters
greater than 60 centimeters to be chopped down. As a result, most
giant trees are now gone, allowing the hot sun and heavy rains to
penetrate the species which usually live in shaded areas.

It also makes reforestation efforts more challenging. If the
tall, big trees are gone, the forests are survived only by
shorter, less genetically superior ones. Moreover, logging roads
have opened up the areas to common people who can now reach the
areas and start cultivating.

Gold

Kalimantan is not only rich with tropical rain forests but
also mineral deposits. The Busang gold deposits not only invite
business controversies but also environmental concerns as gold
mining activities are well-known for devastating the environment.

When asked if the project would be interested in restoring ex-
mining areas, Ridgeway said they did not have the skills for this
kind of recovery. He explained that the mining industry usually
does more damage to the soil, while most scientists working for
the Barito project are usually botanists.

"It is also not part of our memorandum of understanding," he
said, citing another reason.

The costs of a long-term forestry project, including this one,
are generally high. So far, Wickes, a British house-improvement
franchise, has given the project 500,000 poundsterling a year.

Ridgeway cited some reasons for the high costs. First, the
research usually takes a long time. Secondly, scientists need to
go to remote places to carry out their field studies. Thus,
Ridgeway calls on timber companies for financial assistance with
his research. "It is in their best interest," he said.

For now, he has to be content with information assistance from
several timber companies.

"I don't believe in a confrontation. It is counterproductive.
Once they are suspicious, they think we are radical
environmentalists and they may not be willing to release any
information," which, he said, could ultimately undermine forest-
saving efforts.