Forestry
The main aims of forestry policy are to maintain the preservation of forests for the improvement of public welfare; secure the existence of forests, optimize the benefit of forests; and reinforce forestry institutions. To achieve these aims, with reference to policy and strategy having been determined, there are five priority schemes put into operation in addressing the major issues of forestry: Illegal Logging Eradication scheme; Forest Fire Handling scheme, Forestry Restructurization scheme, Rehabilitation and Conservation scheme of Forest Resources; and scheme for Decentralization of the Forestry Sector.
ILLEGAL LOGGING ERADICATION SCHEME
The scheme aims to secure and preserve forest resources, in order that forests are managed in a sustainable fashion. Under the scheme various activities have been done, including: maintaining close cooperation with the Police and the Navy in intensifying the operation to fight illegal loggers on the spots (such as under the Waralaga Operation that enforces a law upon illegal logging including transport and trading of illegal logs, and under the Operation of Wana Bahari done by the Navy to hunt down the transportation of illegal log by sea); and to intensify surveillance operations along the northern coast of Java to prevent smuggling of illegal logs from outer Java. International cooperation has also been maintained such as with the Governments of the UK and People's Republic of China in the context of curbing down and fighting the illegal trade of logs, and of improving law enforcement, as well as intensifying activities towards the establishment of conserved forests. Similar cooperation has also been organized with the Governments of Japan, South Korea, and with the Governments of countries joining in the Forum of Forest Law Enforcement Good Governance (FLEG), etc.
FORESTRY FIRE HANDLING SCHEME
Under the scheme it has been and is being strived to prevent and minimize forest fire, and at the same time to protect people living around fires-prone forest areas. In this frame work, there have been spotted fire-susceptible areas that should be given high priority in dealing with forest fire. Those areas include North Sumatra, Riau, Jambi, Central Kalimantan, and East Kalimantan, with each area has already a Forest Fire Brigade. Early warning system is given priority to be developed in the context of preventive actions against forest fire. The early detection system on forest fires is taken from meteorology data satellite of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and from the Geo-Stationary Meteorological Satellite (GMS-5), and from HIMAWARI of Japan. Cooperation has been maintained with donor countries in handling forest fires. The zero burning scheme has been also imposed upon forest concession holding companies to prevent forest fires.
FORESTRY RESTRUCTURIZATION SCHEME
The main aims of the scheme are to preserve forest resources and to manage them in order to provide socio-economic and ecological benefits for the whole Indonesian people; and to encourage the establishment of viable wood industries and of efficient wood industrial structure that can produce products of high quality and having competitive edge in global market. Execution of the scheme also covers: the implementation of sustainable production forest management being the manifestation of sustainable forestry development concept, to manage well the supplies of wood for industrial raw material and to secure that only legal logs and timber are available in the market; the implementation of forestry sector soft landing, namely gradual reduction of timber production from natural forests as an effort to curb down the destruction of forests; and the establishment of the Forestry Industrial Revitalization Agency to improve performance of the timber processing industries, which recently tend to decline. The agency is also tasked to endeavor the preservation of forest, explore the possibilities of employment and business opportunities.
FORESTRY RESOURCES REHABILITATION AND CONSERVATION SCHEME
The scheme aims to secure and maintain the still unimpaired forests, and to accelerate the recovery of damaged forests. Through this scheme, economic and ecological values of forestry are expected to be optimum, and social conditions of the people living around the forest improve by getting direct benefits from it either as the doers or business partners.
By conserving forest resources it is hoped that the utilization of forest function and status ecologically, economically and socially can be maintained and even improved, and simultaneously animal population, types of plant, genetic germs and ecosystems existing in the conserved forests be protected and preserved.
To make the implementation of the scheme successful, various measures have been, are being and will be done to include: rehabilitation and reforestation programs of damaged forests and land of about three million hectares in five years, and 300,000 ha in 27 river basins; arrangements of national and regional-scope master plans for forest and land rehabilitation; improvement of institutions engaged in forest seed under the auspices of the Indonesian Forest Seed Project (IFST) through maintaining bilateral, multilateral as well as international cooperation, and the establishments of Forest Plant Seedling Houses (already available are in Palembang, Bandung, Denpasar, Banjarbaru, Makassar, and Ambon); promotion of active participation of society in the program of forest and land rehabilitation, through a scheme known as "seed for people"; the development of social forestry to improve the management of forest and land preservation, to empower members of society particularly those who live around forest areas to enhance their welfare.
In the implementation of the scheme of rehabilitation of damaged forest and land, the Ministry of Forestry has provided Rp134 billion to 182 district administrations.
DECENTRALIZATION SCHEME ON FORESTRY SECTOR
The scheme aims to promote the good organization of coordination of decentralization system in the field of forestry among related agencies and institutions in conforming to their respective authority and function in order to create harmony in actions to achieve better performance; and to create common understanding and perception on forestry decentralization system in implementing sustainable forest management in the context of regional autonomous system application. Regarding the decentralization system, various regulations which govern forest management, forest management planning, utilization and use of forest areas, urban forest, and reforestation fund, have been imposed.
ECOLOGY
Indonesia still has many parts of its territory covered by the luxuriant growth of the characteristic tropical rainforest vegetation, a type of ever-wet vegetation containing a large number of timber species. What makes the flora of Indonesia completely different from those of other countries as well as the flora of other tropical areas in the world is among other thing its high number of genera and species endemic.
As it is recorded, Indonesia has as many as 27,500 species of flowered plants or about 10 percent of the estimated number of flowered plant species in the whole world, and about 40,000 species of plant, or about 10-12 percent of the estimated number of plant species in the world. About 6,000 species of plants are known to be used directly by the local people. Indonesia has also some 1,539 species of reptile and amphibians (16 percent of the world's reptile). While its mammal accounts for 12 percent of the world's mammal; kinds of fish 25 percent, and kinds of bird 17 percent. Most of these species are found in forest areas which these days are suffering heavy pressures from different fronts such as animal smugglings, theft of germ plasma, timber illegal cutting, illegal hunting, illegal trade of protected species of flora and fauna etc.
Indonesia has a total forest area of about 120.25 million hectares or some 63 percent of the country's total land area. Of the area about 20.5 million ha constitute parks and reservation forests, about 33.52 million ha protection forest, 23.06 million ha limited production forest, about 35.2 million ha production forest, and about 8.07 million ha of convertible production forest.
Conservation forest area is divided into national parks (41 areas), nature recreation parks (89 areas), major forest parks (13 areas), hunting ground (15 areas), nature conservation (179 areas), and wildlife sanctuaries (51 areas).
Frequent landslide, flood, and pollution, draught, micro-seasonal changes, excessive and indiscriminative timber cuttings have to some extent degraded, depleted and damaged the forests. Unfortunately reforestation and land greening have not kept abreast yet during the past few years.
FOREST SOCIAL-ECONOMIC FUNCTION
Numerous people have enjoyed the benefits, socially and economically, forests can offer directly and indirectly. Forests provide not only its main products such as many kinds of timber, and by-products such as rattan, resin, aloe wood, sandalwood etc, but also regulate the supply of water, prevent flood, and offer employment. For instance the total number of people earning their living directly or indirectly from forests was estimated at about 30 million. In 1997 employment in forests was estimated at 183 thousand.
FOREST CONCESSION
Up to December 2002 there were 270 valid forest concessions, exploiting for about 28 million ha of forest. Of the total area, some 22.5 million ha belonging to 182 forest concession areas were managed by private companies, 339,240 ha belonging to five forest concession areas were run by state-owned enterprises, and the remaining 5.2 million ha belonging to 83 forest concession areas were administered by Joint-Venture companies between private and state owned enterprises.
In meeting the supplies of timber as raw materials for industries such as for pulp (for making paper) and other purposes, scheme of industrial timber concessions has been in operation for some years covering about 2,867,221 ha (up to the end of 2002) to produce 16,101,614 cubic meters (from 2000 to 2002).
The number of sawmill and wood working, plywood mill, pulp mill was 1,881 establishments with installed capacity of 44.77 million cubic meters far higher than the 18.60 million cubic meters raw materials can supply. In 2003 the Government imposed a regulation that determines a maximum of about 6.892 million cubic meters of timber per annum natural forests can supply. This limitation is intended to recover forests potentiality and to achieve balance between supply and demand of timber logs as raw material.
The Government revenues from reforestation funds (collected from forest concession holders) and other taxes and levies during the period of 1999-2002 amounted to Rp13.5 trillion.
An encouraging trend is that the number of people visiting nature tourist objects such as nature parks and conservation areas has been increasing. In 2001, for instance, there were 741,220 persons visiting nature parks, and 3,344,096 persons touring conservation areas.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Forest Restoration
Forest ecosystem restoration on this scale has never been done before so will require the development of new techniques and approaches. The first rule of forest restoration is to prevent further degradation and our initial efforts have been focused around this. Whilst this remains an ongoing battle, our progress to date allows us to now turn our attention to practical restoration. In developing our forest restoration strategy for Harapan Rainforest we are very fortunate in having help and guidance from one of our project partners, the Forest Restoration and Research Unit (FORRU) at Chiang Mai University, Thailand. FORRU has many years experience in the restoration of degraded habitats and have quite literally 'written the book' on 'How to Plant a Forest'. We have already translated this book into Indonesian and are now adapting FORRU's framework species approach to our particular conditions. At a macro level we have been using Geographic Information Systems (GIS), satellite imagery and ground-truthing to identify and classify the different forest areas within Harapan Rainforest based on habitat cover and species composition. This will be used to identify which forest areas are suitable for specific forest restoration approaches. The four planting strategies are:
1. Harapan Rainforest tree nurseryTo leave the area untouched for natural regeneration (where an area already has a good diversity of species and vegetation cover)
2. Assist in natural regeneration (cut back certain species to allow others to grow)
3. Enrichment planting (where certain species groups are missing, particular tree species will be planted to create a more diverse habitat)
4. Planting of specific framework species (this is the method developed by FORRU for severely damaged areas whereby a selection of framework species, chosen for their attractiveness to a wide range of seed-dispersing animals and for their ability to quickly create a microclimate supportive of natural regeneration by other species, are planted).
At present, the forest restoration team is involved in a variety of tasks including:
1. Harapan Rainforest tree nurseryDeveloping the skills and capacity needed for the future.
2. Carrying out an inventory of tree species and recording their abundance within Harapan Rainforest.
3. Monitoring the phenology (fruiting and flowering times) of tree species in different areas of the forest.
4. Collecting seeds for planting in the nursery.
5. Maintaining and monitoring seedlings and saplings within the nursery.
6. Planting saplings from the nursery into selected plots within the site.
We hope that the techniques for large-scale forest restoration which will be developed over the coming years at Harapan Rainforest will become a working example of good ecosystem restoration and management for use throughout Indonesia and globally.
1. Harapan Rainforest tree nurseryTo leave the area untouched for natural regeneration (where an area already has a good diversity of species and vegetation cover)
2. Assist in natural regeneration (cut back certain species to allow others to grow)
3. Enrichment planting (where certain species groups are missing, particular tree species will be planted to create a more diverse habitat)
4. Planting of specific framework species (this is the method developed by FORRU for severely damaged areas whereby a selection of framework species, chosen for their attractiveness to a wide range of seed-dispersing animals and for their ability to quickly create a microclimate supportive of natural regeneration by other species, are planted).
At present, the forest restoration team is involved in a variety of tasks including:
1. Harapan Rainforest tree nurseryDeveloping the skills and capacity needed for the future.
2. Carrying out an inventory of tree species and recording their abundance within Harapan Rainforest.
3. Monitoring the phenology (fruiting and flowering times) of tree species in different areas of the forest.
4. Collecting seeds for planting in the nursery.
5. Maintaining and monitoring seedlings and saplings within the nursery.
6. Planting saplings from the nursery into selected plots within the site.
We hope that the techniques for large-scale forest restoration which will be developed over the coming years at Harapan Rainforest will become a working example of good ecosystem restoration and management for use throughout Indonesia and globally.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
BALI UNIOUE
Bali Forests & Mountains
With Waka Excursions - Venture into Bali's interior for a different perspective of this incredible island. Picturesque rice fields cover around 20% of the island with dense jungles in the interior. In drier areas, expect scrub, savannah and barren volcanic cones.
The lush greenery of Bali is stunning. Huge Banyan trees thrive in villages and temple grounds; tamarind trees in the northern region; clove trees cover the highlands; and bright red flame trees, acacias and mangroves dominate the south. About a dozen species of coconut palms call Bali home, with an even larger variety of bamboo species.
Flowers are everywhere! Fragrant jasmines, graceful water lilies, bright hibiscus and cheery bougainvillea abound. In gardens, roadsides and temple grounds the scent and colours of magnolia, frangipani and orchids hangs in the air. Cut flowers decorate temples and statues as offerings to the Balinese gods. These same blooms are also delicately woven, plaited and arranged in the crown of Bali's mesmerizing dancers.
Bali's interior provides a home for monkeys, civets, mousedeer, barking deer and flocks of beautiful birds. The jalak putih or Bali starling (Leucopsar rothschildi) is Bali's only indigenous bird, but there are over 300 species of birds in Bali. This includes dollar birds, wild fowl, sea eagles, sandpipers, blue kingfishers, white herons and egrets, sparrows, cuckoos and wood swallows.
Bali's Mangrove Forests Under Increasing Threat
Local Lawmakers Differ on Which Government Body Should Have Final Control Over Vital Mangrove Forests.
Bali News: Bali's Mangrove Forests Under Increasing Threat
(6/19/2006) Bali's southernmost regency of Badung is home to critical mangrove forests covering an estimated area of 622 hectares.
In order to preserve this important asset which offers a natural barrier to tidal waves and erosion as well as a natural habitat to a wide range of wildlife and marine creatures, a member of the Badung regional parliament is suggesting that
control over the Regency's mangrove forests be given to the regional government of Badung. According to Wayan Puspanegara, a member of Commission B of the Badung Parliament, his suggestion is “not an arrogation of current moves for regional autonomy, but a 'good will' recommendation to preserve the mangroves from various threats."
Quoted in the Indonesian language Bali Post, Puspanegara cited risks posed to Badung's extensive network of mangroves from property developers and local businesses who are trying to reclaim the forests for commercial purposes. The local lawmaker also pointed to incidents where solid and liquid wastes are being disposed of in the environmentally sensitive mangrove zones.
Another local parliamentarian, Bagiana Karang, called for more attention to mangrove preservation to be paid by Bali's provincial government but argues "now is not the time" for control of these areas to be transferred from provincial to regional authorities. Karang called for more coordination between the Provincial Government and the Badung Regency to preserve the mangroves which Karang sees as the "lungs" of the city of Denpasar.
Some areas are still covered by rainforest, although much has disappeared during the last century. Wild orchids, ferns, mosses and other plants requiring a high degree of humidity are found in the mountain areas. The temperate mountain weather also allows pines to flourish.
In Bali's gorges , trees such as teak grow. The numerous gorges found in Bali are a result of the volcanic ash in the soil, and they are favorite places for the Banyan and Pule, two of Bali's sacred trees. The Pule tree is used in making sacred masks.
Pangge Baya and Ebony trees are becoming scarcer, being popular materials for woodcarving. Bamboo trees grow along the banks of rivers and streams. Though used mainly used in construction, bamboo is a multipurpose material used for making pipes, rope, baskets and even food.
With Waka Excursions - Venture into Bali's interior for a different perspective of this incredible island. Picturesque rice fields cover around 20% of the island with dense jungles in the interior. In drier areas, expect scrub, savannah and barren volcanic cones.
The lush greenery of Bali is stunning. Huge Banyan trees thrive in villages and temple grounds; tamarind trees in the northern region; clove trees cover the highlands; and bright red flame trees, acacias and mangroves dominate the south. About a dozen species of coconut palms call Bali home, with an even larger variety of bamboo species.
Flowers are everywhere! Fragrant jasmines, graceful water lilies, bright hibiscus and cheery bougainvillea abound. In gardens, roadsides and temple grounds the scent and colours of magnolia, frangipani and orchids hangs in the air. Cut flowers decorate temples and statues as offerings to the Balinese gods. These same blooms are also delicately woven, plaited and arranged in the crown of Bali's mesmerizing dancers.
Bali's interior provides a home for monkeys, civets, mousedeer, barking deer and flocks of beautiful birds. The jalak putih or Bali starling (Leucopsar rothschildi) is Bali's only indigenous bird, but there are over 300 species of birds in Bali. This includes dollar birds, wild fowl, sea eagles, sandpipers, blue kingfishers, white herons and egrets, sparrows, cuckoos and wood swallows.
Bali's Mangrove Forests Under Increasing Threat
Local Lawmakers Differ on Which Government Body Should Have Final Control Over Vital Mangrove Forests.
Bali News: Bali's Mangrove Forests Under Increasing Threat
(6/19/2006) Bali's southernmost regency of Badung is home to critical mangrove forests covering an estimated area of 622 hectares.
In order to preserve this important asset which offers a natural barrier to tidal waves and erosion as well as a natural habitat to a wide range of wildlife and marine creatures, a member of the Badung regional parliament is suggesting that
control over the Regency's mangrove forests be given to the regional government of Badung. According to Wayan Puspanegara, a member of Commission B of the Badung Parliament, his suggestion is “not an arrogation of current moves for regional autonomy, but a 'good will' recommendation to preserve the mangroves from various threats."
Quoted in the Indonesian language Bali Post, Puspanegara cited risks posed to Badung's extensive network of mangroves from property developers and local businesses who are trying to reclaim the forests for commercial purposes. The local lawmaker also pointed to incidents where solid and liquid wastes are being disposed of in the environmentally sensitive mangrove zones.
Another local parliamentarian, Bagiana Karang, called for more attention to mangrove preservation to be paid by Bali's provincial government but argues "now is not the time" for control of these areas to be transferred from provincial to regional authorities. Karang called for more coordination between the Provincial Government and the Badung Regency to preserve the mangroves which Karang sees as the "lungs" of the city of Denpasar.
Some areas are still covered by rainforest, although much has disappeared during the last century. Wild orchids, ferns, mosses and other plants requiring a high degree of humidity are found in the mountain areas. The temperate mountain weather also allows pines to flourish.
In Bali's gorges , trees such as teak grow. The numerous gorges found in Bali are a result of the volcanic ash in the soil, and they are favorite places for the Banyan and Pule, two of Bali's sacred trees. The Pule tree is used in making sacred masks.
Pangge Baya and Ebony trees are becoming scarcer, being popular materials for woodcarving. Bamboo trees grow along the banks of rivers and streams. Though used mainly used in construction, bamboo is a multipurpose material used for making pipes, rope, baskets and even food.
Govt convinced 230 million trees to be planted in 2009
- The government is convinced it will achieve its target of planting 230 million trees through its "One Man, One Tree (OMOT)" program this year, a senior official said.
Director General for Forest Rehabilitation Indriastuti said here on Wednesday that the target could be achieved based data that had been reported.
"Based on data that we have received we are optimistic that the target to plant 230 trees this year would be achieved. It could be even exceeded," the director general said here on Thursday.
Indriastuti said that based on data that she had received in the February-August 2009 period, a total of 22 million trees had been planted in 25 provinces.
She said that eight provinces had not yet sent their data on the number of trees they had planted. The trees that were planted were seedlings provided by the Forestry Ministry.
Based on the plan, of the 230 million trees, the forestry ministry would provide 36 million seedlings while the rests would be provided by all stakeholders, namely the provincial government, the district government and the municipal government.
They will use funds from the reforestation fund budget and from the private sector which takes part in the program.
Data that has reached the forestry ministry indicates that 13 provinces have provided 123 million seedlings.
"There are still 20 provinces which are expected to provide seedlings so that with that data I am convinced the 230 million target would be achieved, or even exceeded," she said.
She said that there was no a must on the species of plant that should be planted for the OMOT program. "We dub it as multi-purposes tree species, or a plant type which would provide many benefits such as those which could produce fruit, or rare plants and others," she said.
Director General for Forest Rehabilitation Indriastuti said here on Wednesday that the target could be achieved based data that had been reported.
"Based on data that we have received we are optimistic that the target to plant 230 trees this year would be achieved. It could be even exceeded," the director general said here on Thursday.
Indriastuti said that based on data that she had received in the February-August 2009 period, a total of 22 million trees had been planted in 25 provinces.
She said that eight provinces had not yet sent their data on the number of trees they had planted. The trees that were planted were seedlings provided by the Forestry Ministry.
Based on the plan, of the 230 million trees, the forestry ministry would provide 36 million seedlings while the rests would be provided by all stakeholders, namely the provincial government, the district government and the municipal government.
They will use funds from the reforestation fund budget and from the private sector which takes part in the program.
Data that has reached the forestry ministry indicates that 13 provinces have provided 123 million seedlings.
"There are still 20 provinces which are expected to provide seedlings so that with that data I am convinced the 230 million target would be achieved, or even exceeded," she said.
She said that there was no a must on the species of plant that should be planted for the OMOT program. "We dub it as multi-purposes tree species, or a plant type which would provide many benefits such as those which could produce fruit, or rare plants and others," she said.
Indonesian forest destruction dammed
Greenpeace activists work with locals to halt drainage by constructing dams on the peatland canals. This will prevent the peatland from drying out and releasing carbon dioxide, the leading greenhouse gas into the atmosphere.
Greenpeace activists work with locals to halt drainage by constructing dams on the peatland canals. This will prevent the peatland from drying out and releasing carbon dioxide, the leading greenhouse gas into the atmosphere.
Enlarge Image
Sumatra, Indonesia — Our volunteers and local forest communities have halted the destruction of an area of swamp forest in Sumatra, Indonesia. They are building five dams across three-metre deep canals used in logging and draining peatland for conversion into a commercial palm oil plantation.
Destroying the forest there would not only breach Indonesian regulations for forest protection, and an Indonesia's Presidential decree, but would also lead to the release of large quantities of greenhouse gases.
Thick layers of peat underlie most of Indonesia's swamp forest. Over time, the peat layer has locked up millions of tonnes of carbon. Once forests are cleared, peat swamps are drained and decompose to release the stored carbon as carbon dioxide. Forests are often also burned, prior to the planting of palm oil saplings, further compounding the climate problem.
Such is the scale of forest destruction across Indonesia that the huge amounts of greenhouse gases being emitted have made the country into the world's third largest climate polluter, behind the US and China.
More than 30 volunteers will work for a week with people from the nearby village to construct the dams. By halting drainage operations, the dams will prevent the peatland from drying out and releasing carbon dioxide, the leading greenhouse gas. The dams will also prevent the palm oil company from illegally burning the currently waterlogged peatland, which would otherwise further add to global warming.
Greenpeace activists work with locals to halt drainage by constructing dams on the peatland canals. This will prevent the peatland from drying out and releasing carbon dioxide, the leading greenhouse gas into the atmosphere.
Enlarge Image
Sumatra, Indonesia — Our volunteers and local forest communities have halted the destruction of an area of swamp forest in Sumatra, Indonesia. They are building five dams across three-metre deep canals used in logging and draining peatland for conversion into a commercial palm oil plantation.
Destroying the forest there would not only breach Indonesian regulations for forest protection, and an Indonesia's Presidential decree, but would also lead to the release of large quantities of greenhouse gases.
Thick layers of peat underlie most of Indonesia's swamp forest. Over time, the peat layer has locked up millions of tonnes of carbon. Once forests are cleared, peat swamps are drained and decompose to release the stored carbon as carbon dioxide. Forests are often also burned, prior to the planting of palm oil saplings, further compounding the climate problem.
Such is the scale of forest destruction across Indonesia that the huge amounts of greenhouse gases being emitted have made the country into the world's third largest climate polluter, behind the US and China.
More than 30 volunteers will work for a week with people from the nearby village to construct the dams. By halting drainage operations, the dams will prevent the peatland from drying out and releasing carbon dioxide, the leading greenhouse gas. The dams will also prevent the palm oil company from illegally burning the currently waterlogged peatland, which would otherwise further add to global warming.
DNA technology could help save endangered forest species
New technology is providing some hope to those battling to stop Indonesia's massively devastating and hugely costly illegal logging activity.
In recent years, unlawful forest destruction has resulted in undermining the rule of law and deprived the state of substantial revenues. The World Bank estimates the illicit practice costs more than a staggering Rp 100 trillion each year.
It has serious economic and social implications for the poor and disadvantaged and the threat to ecosystems and biodiversity is enormous, with very little long-term advantage for anyone other than those who are responsible for the plunder and smuggling of timber.
There is no doubt that the use of endangered wood for elegant furniture, timber-lined walls and hardwood floors in the West is fueling this appalling trade, which is threatening to wipe out whole species of trees and precious rainforests, and the livelihoods of millions of Indonesians dependent on the forests for their survival.
Despite efforts from the government to stamp it out, the destruction of massive amounts of irreplaceable Indonesian rainforest appears to continue unabated.
Environmentalists have long been attempting to pressure the authorities to do more to stop illegal logging but a key challenge has always been tracking the origin of timber.
But now one organization has developed an innovative process for identifying exactly where each piece of wood comes from by using DNA technology.
Singapore-based Double Helix Tracking Technologies (DHTT) extracts DNA samples in the forest and builds databases. DNA tests then enable them to identify precisely which forest a piece of timber actually comes from.
In effect, this technology should put the prevention of use of illegally traded timber in the hands of customers.
Various measures are in place to curb illegal logging with a plethora of bodies having been established by civil society stakeholders and private sector representatives from timber-producing countries, in partnership with the World Bank.
The United States must take the credit for taking the first important step in addressing the illegal logging issue by extending the century-old wildlife protection law to include timber.
The so-called Lacey Act made it mandatory for an importer to declare the origin of their timber. If found guilty of illegal logging, the importer is subject to heavy fines.
But this law has proven tough to enforce with the timber industry being dependent on an old-fashioned paper-based system for traceability, which is prone to fraud.
DHTT's DNA database is the first step in creating a system to irrefutably prove the origin of timber, and this could be used to enforce the Lacey Act. A perfect example is the merbau species, a resilient red hardwood that is one of the most valuable timbers in Southeast Asia because of the exquisite hardwood flooring that can be produced from it. It can also be used in high-quality furniture production.
Merbau was once found in many parts of the world. Today, the only significant quantities of commercially produced merbau come from the Indonesian province of Papua, and in Papua New Guinea.
"Illegal logging and the associated rampant trade in merbau means that most areas where the timber used to be found have none left, and what there is left is also facing extinction," says Greenpeace China's Liu Bing.
Liu explains that at the current legal rate of logging, merbau will have mostly disappeared within a single felling cycle, which is 35 years. If you take illegal factors into account, merbau's extinction moves much closer.
In 2005, the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) and its Indonesian partner, Telapak, uncovered crime syndicates that were removing 300,000 cubic meters of stolen merbau logs every month.
Western manufacturers and retailers buy the timber from Indonesia suppliers who claim they are legally harvesting the merbau.
Greenpeace maintains that hardly any of the merbau being sold has been properly legally certified and that most of the wood flooring made from the species is the result of illegal logging.
China plays a major role in this complex trading web because it is where most of the wood flooring in the world is actually made before being re-exported to the West.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has established a joint team to try to stop illegal logging in provinces such as Riau, Kalimantan and Papua. But the success has been compromised by all-too-common rifts between government agencies.
Also, research undertaken by the EIA and Telapak has uncovered wide disregard in Malaysia and Singapore for Indonesian legislation aimed at stopping illegal loggers; the EIA believes the forest crisis is being made worse by countries such as these, which it accuses of "green-washing" illegally cut rainforest timber from neighbors such as Indonesia.
Let's hope that the deployment of DNA technology can seriously help to eliminate the hurdles that get in the way of halting the devastation caused by illegal logging.
In recent years, unlawful forest destruction has resulted in undermining the rule of law and deprived the state of substantial revenues. The World Bank estimates the illicit practice costs more than a staggering Rp 100 trillion each year.
It has serious economic and social implications for the poor and disadvantaged and the threat to ecosystems and biodiversity is enormous, with very little long-term advantage for anyone other than those who are responsible for the plunder and smuggling of timber.
There is no doubt that the use of endangered wood for elegant furniture, timber-lined walls and hardwood floors in the West is fueling this appalling trade, which is threatening to wipe out whole species of trees and precious rainforests, and the livelihoods of millions of Indonesians dependent on the forests for their survival.
Despite efforts from the government to stamp it out, the destruction of massive amounts of irreplaceable Indonesian rainforest appears to continue unabated.
Environmentalists have long been attempting to pressure the authorities to do more to stop illegal logging but a key challenge has always been tracking the origin of timber.
But now one organization has developed an innovative process for identifying exactly where each piece of wood comes from by using DNA technology.
Singapore-based Double Helix Tracking Technologies (DHTT) extracts DNA samples in the forest and builds databases. DNA tests then enable them to identify precisely which forest a piece of timber actually comes from.
In effect, this technology should put the prevention of use of illegally traded timber in the hands of customers.
Various measures are in place to curb illegal logging with a plethora of bodies having been established by civil society stakeholders and private sector representatives from timber-producing countries, in partnership with the World Bank.
The United States must take the credit for taking the first important step in addressing the illegal logging issue by extending the century-old wildlife protection law to include timber.
The so-called Lacey Act made it mandatory for an importer to declare the origin of their timber. If found guilty of illegal logging, the importer is subject to heavy fines.
But this law has proven tough to enforce with the timber industry being dependent on an old-fashioned paper-based system for traceability, which is prone to fraud.
DHTT's DNA database is the first step in creating a system to irrefutably prove the origin of timber, and this could be used to enforce the Lacey Act. A perfect example is the merbau species, a resilient red hardwood that is one of the most valuable timbers in Southeast Asia because of the exquisite hardwood flooring that can be produced from it. It can also be used in high-quality furniture production.
Merbau was once found in many parts of the world. Today, the only significant quantities of commercially produced merbau come from the Indonesian province of Papua, and in Papua New Guinea.
"Illegal logging and the associated rampant trade in merbau means that most areas where the timber used to be found have none left, and what there is left is also facing extinction," says Greenpeace China's Liu Bing.
Liu explains that at the current legal rate of logging, merbau will have mostly disappeared within a single felling cycle, which is 35 years. If you take illegal factors into account, merbau's extinction moves much closer.
In 2005, the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) and its Indonesian partner, Telapak, uncovered crime syndicates that were removing 300,000 cubic meters of stolen merbau logs every month.
Western manufacturers and retailers buy the timber from Indonesia suppliers who claim they are legally harvesting the merbau.
Greenpeace maintains that hardly any of the merbau being sold has been properly legally certified and that most of the wood flooring made from the species is the result of illegal logging.
China plays a major role in this complex trading web because it is where most of the wood flooring in the world is actually made before being re-exported to the West.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has established a joint team to try to stop illegal logging in provinces such as Riau, Kalimantan and Papua. But the success has been compromised by all-too-common rifts between government agencies.
Also, research undertaken by the EIA and Telapak has uncovered wide disregard in Malaysia and Singapore for Indonesian legislation aimed at stopping illegal loggers; the EIA believes the forest crisis is being made worse by countries such as these, which it accuses of "green-washing" illegally cut rainforest timber from neighbors such as Indonesia.
Let's hope that the deployment of DNA technology can seriously help to eliminate the hurdles that get in the way of halting the devastation caused by illegal logging.
SAVE THE FOREST
Soldiers help fight forest fires in C Kalimantan
Tuesday, August 4, 2009 21:38 WIB | National | | Viewed 543 time(s)
Soldiers help fight forest fires in C Kalimantan
(ANTARA/FB Anggoro/*)
Palangkaraya, C Kalimantan (ANTARA News) - The Central Kalimantan regional military command (Korem 102 Panju Panjung) has deployed six platoons or 180 men to help put out land and forest fires in the region.
"We are committed to fighting the land fires, meaning that we will fully concentrate on extinguishing the blazes, " the 102 Panju Panjung regional military command chief, Col Rudiono Edi, said here on Tuesday.
Rudiono said his command had assigned its members to help the regional adminstration overcome the forest and land fire problem.
At least 30 soldiers equipped with two portable fire fighting engines had been posted in every district military command (Kodim), he said.
The regional military command was overseeing six Kodims, namely those in Palangkaraya, Sampit, Pangkalan Bun, Muara Teweh, Buntok, and Kuala Kapuas.
"In each of the Kodims we have deployed fire engines complete with the firemen although they don`t have big capacity water hoses," Rudiono said.
In addition, the regional military command had also established cooperation with the regional police and the local high prosecutor`sn office to prevent possible forest and land torching actions by irresponsible elements, Col. Rudiono said.
The soldiers in the field were also ready to set up tents that might be needed by firefighters and dig trenches to keep the fires from widening, he said.
The soldiers aleady had experience in fire fighting as they had partcipated in past small fire fighting operations in a number of regions such as Muara Teweh, Kuala Kapuas, Pangkalan Bun, Sampit, and Kuala Pembuang, he said.(*)
Tuesday, August 4, 2009 21:38 WIB | National | | Viewed 543 time(s)
Soldiers help fight forest fires in C Kalimantan
(ANTARA/FB Anggoro/*)
Palangkaraya, C Kalimantan (ANTARA News) - The Central Kalimantan regional military command (Korem 102 Panju Panjung) has deployed six platoons or 180 men to help put out land and forest fires in the region.
"We are committed to fighting the land fires, meaning that we will fully concentrate on extinguishing the blazes, " the 102 Panju Panjung regional military command chief, Col Rudiono Edi, said here on Tuesday.
Rudiono said his command had assigned its members to help the regional adminstration overcome the forest and land fire problem.
At least 30 soldiers equipped with two portable fire fighting engines had been posted in every district military command (Kodim), he said.
The regional military command was overseeing six Kodims, namely those in Palangkaraya, Sampit, Pangkalan Bun, Muara Teweh, Buntok, and Kuala Kapuas.
"In each of the Kodims we have deployed fire engines complete with the firemen although they don`t have big capacity water hoses," Rudiono said.
In addition, the regional military command had also established cooperation with the regional police and the local high prosecutor`sn office to prevent possible forest and land torching actions by irresponsible elements, Col. Rudiono said.
The soldiers in the field were also ready to set up tents that might be needed by firefighters and dig trenches to keep the fires from widening, he said.
The soldiers aleady had experience in fire fighting as they had partcipated in past small fire fighting operations in a number of regions such as Muara Teweh, Kuala Kapuas, Pangkalan Bun, Sampit, and Kuala Pembuang, he said.(*)
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