Nana Rukmana, Indramayu – Illegal logging in the regency of Indramayu, West Java, has reached such alarming levels that stern police actions are needed to stop it, according to a coalition of non-governmental organizations (KLI) in Indramayu.

Speaking to reporters here on Tuesday, KLI spokesman Dudung AR said that the state-owned forest management company PT Perhutani should also take prompt action to deal with the illegal logging, which had led to deforestation. "We have never seen any action against large-scale log thefts."

KLI is a coalition of seven large non-governmental organizations operating in Indramayu, including Greenland, Pelangi Bahari and Humanit. "It is ironic that, with most log thefts, the police have failed to arrest a single suspect. This fact has raised questions among the people. Therefore, we are now demanding that the West Java provincial police, Indramayu regency police and PT Perhutani join forces to wage war against illegal logging and deforestation," Dudung said.

He said that the NGOs would continue pressing the police and PT Perhutani to take action. "We assume that many things have been covered up in relation to this issue."

KLI said that illegal logging and deforestation had taken place in forests belonging to PT Perhutani. "The worst-hit areas include the forest in the villages of Situraja, Mekarjaya, Bantarwaru, and Sanca in the district of Haurgeulis. The forests that have suffered less damage are in the village of Cikmurang, Cikedung district, and the villages of Tanjung and Sukaslamet in Kroya district," he said.

"Until September this year we recorded 475 cases of illegal logging in the area. The crime has resulted in a total of at least Rp 5.65 billion in financial losses to the state," he said. He did not reveal the amount of logs illegally cut down during the period. "All the stolen logs were teak wood," he said.

West Java Governor H.R. Nuriana had earlier acknowledged that forests in many areas in the province were in a critical condition. When opening a re-greening campaign in the regency of Kuningan on Monday, Nuriana said that more serious attention had to be given to forest and water resources.

The governor estimated that the area covered by barren land in West Java was three percent larger this year than before. The amount of critical land reached 875,950 hectares in West Java in 1999. The expansion of critical land had led to damage to groundwater sources. The quality and quantity of groundwater had also dropped, Nuriana said, blaming the 900,000 cubic meters of pollutants that were dumped directly into the rivers each year.