Alvin Darlanika Soedarjo, Jakarta – The Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) has accused the government of encouraging deforestation by allowing eight industrial timber plantation companies to cut down trees in Riau province beyond the legal limit.
"The Forestry Ministry has issued permits for these companies to continue exploiting forest and peatland in Riau for the pulp and crude palm oil industries," Walhi chairman Chalid Muhammad told a media conference Friday.
The eight timber plantations, which control more than 2 million hectares of land in Riau, are responsible for the disappearance of forests in the province, he said.
"The ministry has failed to conserve the forests there and it should be held responsible for deforestation, which contributes to global warming," Chalid said.
Walhi cited letter of dispensation No. 613/2006 issued by Forestry Minister Malam Sambat Ka'ban, which allows the industrial timber plantations to continue to exploit the forests.
Indonesia, especially in rural areas, emits more than 3 billion tons of carbon dioxide annually. A large part of this is caused by deforestation.
Indonesia is considered the third leading emitter of greenhouse gases after the US and China.
Ka'ban, who is reportedly locked in a dispute with the National Police over forest-related crimes in Riau, issued a letter of support for Adelin Lis, the financial director of logging company PT Keang Nam Development Indonesia who is on trial for illegal logging in Riau.
The letter said Adelin was guilty only of administrative errors, not criminal action in logging outside the company's concession area.
Walhi Forest Campaign division head Rully Syumanda said forestry officials and the police put more effort into arresting poor rural culprits rather than the directors or owners of big companies involved in illegal logging.
"By 2015, about 93 percent of Riau's forest will be gone," he said.
Walhi said industrial timber plantation companies usually operated by cutting down the forest, clearing the land with fire and then planting industrial timber. Haze from forest fires in Indonesia is an annual occurrence, affecting large parts of the country and neighboring countries such as Singapore and Malaysia.
Chalid said a scheme proposed by several international organizations to reward rural people for forest conservation would not be effective, considering much of the land was controlled by plantation companies.
Besides Riau, Walhi representatives from West Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, North Sumatra and Southeast Sulawesi reported on deforestation in their provinces.
The environmental group says police, judges and prosecutors must find new ways to stop illegal loggers, because previous efforts have proven useless.
Forestry Ministry spokesman Masyhud told The Jakarta Post he had not seen the dispensation letter allegedly issued by the minister granting the eight timber estate companies permission to fell more trees.