Jakarta – Considering the massive level of deforestation in tsunami-hit Nangroe Aceh Darussalam province over the last five years, the government should review its decision to revive eight forestry concessions there, an environmental organization says.

"It's definitely not profitable, especially when compared to the ecological damage it could cause," Greenomics national program coordinator Vanda Mutia Dewi said Wednesday.

The government recently revived eight forestry concessions to help supply timber for the construction of housing projects for people affected by the tsunami disaster in Aceh. The revival of the concessions is included in a memorandum of understanding signed by the Forestry Ministry and the Aceh and Nias Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Agency (BRR) last month on the procurement of timber for reconstruction projects.

The eight forestry concessions have long been inactive due to the armed conflict between the government and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM).

Vanda said the revival of the concessions would ultimately only cause losses to the state and the local administration.

"Should the government permit the exploitation of the forests in the eight concessions based on a logging quota of 500,000 cubic meters, the government will only earn Rp 43 billion a year," she said. "How big is that?" she asked.

Vanda said the Forestry Ministry and the BRR should therefore seek timber sources in other regions. "The government may, for example, offer incentives such as an increase in logging quotas to companies (in other provinces) that provide timber for the reconstruction of Aceh," she said.

Greenomics also urged the government to create a system to ensure the legality of the timber used in the reconstruction process.

"We have found that many lumber mills are selling timber from indeterminate sources to projects funded by foreign NGOs and even the government itself," she said, adding that Greenomics had surveyed 40 lumber mills in the province.

She also urged the government not provide new plantation land for demobilized insurgents in the province as there were still 84 plantation firms that were now inactive.

A Greenomics study shows that the deforestation in Aceh has reached an alarming level with more than 30 percent of existing forests areas being damaged.

"The revival of the eight concessions will further worsen the deforestation problem," Vanda said.