Time to probe forest burning

Time to probe forest burning

From Neraca

Of the 115 hot spots detected by satellite imaging, estate
companies and timber plantations were responsible for starting
nearly all of these fires. Only a small portion were attributed
to those people preparing land for transmigration.

It is estimated that forest burning has affected about one
million hectares of land, with the smoke spreading from Southeast
Asia to the Pacific and causing both ecological and sociological
damage.

The naming of companies responsible for the fires, by the
forestry minister, came too late in the opinion of the central
board of the Indonesian Environmental Development Agency (BLHI).

Forest burning to effect land clearing for timber estates and
property companies has reached its optimum. In other words, the
activities of the corporations involved are nearly finished and
only now does the warning come.

If there had been consistency in preventing forest fires, the
forestry ministry should have done it from the beginning. The
person responsible for the prevention of this activity is the
director general of forest exploitation.

The director general, through his regional offices, certainly
knows the design for forest exploitation throughout Indonesia. It
is common knowledge that timber estates routinely use fire to
clear land because it is the cheapest method.

If the director general of forest exploitation had explicitly
banned forest burning it would not have occurred.

Forest burning continues to take place because the director
general acted as if he did not know. The question is: Is there
any collusion behind forest burning?

The conventional method of clearing timber estates
involves a lot of money. By burning there is no cost. It is here
that there is an opportunity for collusion in forest burning.

It has disgraced Indonesia, so much so that President Soeharto
was compelled to apologize to Malaysia, Singapore and other
countries which are suffering the effects of fires in Indonesia.

The attorney general should investigate the matter to prevent
a reoccurrence, paying special attention to possible collusion.

The directorate general of forest exploitation, which is
primarily responsible for the management of forest exploitation,
is the best placed for the pertaining information.

AGUS MIFTACH

BLHI Chairman

Jakarta