Timber certification helps to counter illegal logging
Hasrul, The Jakarta Post, Kendari
Environmentalists are praising the South Konawe regency in Southeast Sulawesi for its timber product certification, or "ecolabeling" scheme, which involves the community in forest conservation.
The program, backed by the provincial administration, prioritizes a community-based forest management system, using a tree-selection culling method in the hope of reducing illegal logging in the area.
Mal, a local Environmental Parliament Watch (EPW) activist, said the central government should support the ecolabeling program, which managed natural resources in a sustainable manner, to combat illegal logging.
During the past four years, widespread illegal logging had seriously damaged the region's natural resources, affected the livelihoods of locals and cost the province billions of rupiah in potential legal revenue, Mal said.
"Illegal logging didn't just happen -- it is the result of unclear policies that give violators room to exploit forest reserves," he said.
People were abusing schemes that gave logging permits for privately owned land (IPKTM), sawmill operation permits and loggers were backed by corrupt officials, the police and the military, Mal said.
Constant and vigilant monitoring of forests by residents who had a stake in the conservation of the area would be necessary if such practices were to be eradicated. It was also important for the central government to listen to residents concerns, he said.
"It is time for the public to be given a chance to voice their views in discussions on forestry problems, so that the problems will not only be those of the government," Mal said.
There are so many groups involved in the ecolabeling process that sometimes it is hard to see the wood for the trees.
The program was initiated by the South Sulawesi Forest Network Institution (JAUH) to empower the community living around the forests.
Established in 2002, JAUH's task was to introduce the Social Forestry (SF) program that was conceived by the Multistakeholder Forest Programme (MFP) of the Ministry of Forestry, in cooperation with the Department for International Development (DFID).
The program is to be carried out in a 38,950-hectare teakwood forest area, and would take in 46 villages in four districts in South Konawe. It is expected to empower 8,250 families in the area.
JAUH, meanwhile, has been collaborating with the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) to conduct certification programs for privately-owned logging enterprises.
The Smart Wood Program of the Rainforest Alliance has initiated a program on forest management and the community-based Hutan Jaya Lestari cooperative has supervised residents who are using the tree-selection system.
Smart Wood researchers will assess socio-cultural and socio- economic aspects of forest management based on FSC guidelines and supervise small-scale forest enterprises.
An agreement has also been signed with Tropical Forest Trust (TFT) to assist in forest cooperative management due to their expertise in the field of certification and forest management.
"So far, we only know that forest concession holders control thousands of hectares of forest and the community are not given the right to manage forests. JAUH is trying to facilitate community ownership by explaining and promoting ecolabeling, and communities it is hoped will play a bigger role eventually," said Silverius Oscar Unggul of JAUH.
Silverius said he expected total support from the local administration for the scheme. After attaining the ecolabeling certificates, the province could enjoy up to a 20-fold increase of revenue because timber products could be directly marketed overseas, he said.
MFP-DFID Sulawesi region coordinator Anas Nikoyan said the groups supported the certification program because it would provide the community the opportunity to manage the forests in a sustainable manner.
"Besides involving the local people, the program will also be beneficial to test cooperation among stakeholders and contribute to the rise in regional revenues," Silverius said.
A Smart Wood team arrived recently in South Konawe regency to start the initial stage of disseminating information on ecolabeling.