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