DEFORESTATION IN INDONESIA

I.  INTRODUCTION:

1.    

Indonesia

with its area of 1’920’000 sq Km is the largest archipelago in the world. It has 13’500 islands of which 3’000 are inhabited and covering of 9’500’000 sq Km of the Indian / Pacific Ocean, with the coast line reaches 81’000 Km. With its  population  220’000’000,  Indonesia is the world’s fourth most populous nation.

2. About 88’495’000 hectares, or around 48,9 percent of

Indonesia

land cover is forest. Of this, 55 percent or roughly 48’702’000 hectares is classified as primary forest.

II. THE DAMAGE OF THE

FOREST

:

1. The damage of tropical forest in

Indonesia

has actually been starting before President Suharto stepped down in 1998. Uncontrollable of destructing logging of forest which has been lasting for years has made decreasing drastically the area of the tropical forest.                     

2.  Accelerations of the damage of tropical forest in 1985-1997 period was reaching 1,6 million hectares every year.  While in 1997-2000 period it had been increasing 3,8 million hectares.

3. This damage of the forest had made

Indonesia

become the highest level of forestry damage in the world. From 2000 to 2005 the rate of deforestation had been increased and reaching 1,91 percent. In total

Indonesia

has lost almost 24,1 percent of its forest cover, or around 28’072’000 hectares, in which 21’717’000 hectares is primary forest.

III.             THE IMPACT OF DEFORESTATION

1. Getting more and more decreasing of land cover forest in

   Indonesia

   , so that the impact is susceptible of natural disaster:           

a.       Land slides, especially in the mountainous area.

b.      Floods, has also affected so many areas.

From the year 1998 till medium of 2003 it had been happening 947 natural disaster cases in

Indonesia

with 2022 victims and losing of the value of billions rupiah. These natural disaster were coming from floods and land slides as the result of deforestation.

2. As the forest has also functions as the habitat for floras and faunas, it means that the increasing rate of deforestation would be giving a serious alarm for these habitats of floras and faunas. According to American Nature Journal approximately 2,9 to 12 endemic species extinct in every 100 sq Km of Indonesian tropical forest. Those extinction was primarily due to the destruction its habitat or deforestation.
3. Deforestation has also been giving bad impact and contributing of making people becoming more poor, because forest is also important of the people life. While floods, land slides and drought as the result of deforestation are not only emerging suffering for the people, but also making them becoming more poor.

IV.              CAUSES OF THE DEFORESTATION ;

1. Wooden Industries in

   Indonesia

   have very high of production capacity, compare with providing of wood material. That is why the wooden industries have carry out uncontrollable cutting off timber. While the plantations business  have also opening very large plantation, as well as the mining business have also opened their business in forestry area. While the people who are living around the forest area have been expelled from their original home. So, that they have no access any more with the forest.
2. These conditions becoming more and more serious because of the corrupting government where the forest has been believed as their own money sources which can be taken until totally empty for their own private lives.     

V.      HOW THE DAMAGE CAN BE HAPPENING?

1. The uncontrollable cutting down the timber of the forest has actually been happening since the year 1960, when the people had been cutting down the trees manually.
2. When the forest functions has been converted for being the large scale plantation area, which had carried out deforestation drastically. In addition, conversion of forest areas for the development of oil palm and the pulp and paper industry has been substantial. Since the beginning of this decade, as much as 2.8 million ha of

   Indonesia

   ’s forests have been lost each year to illegal and destructive logging. This has led to US $4 billion or 40 trillion rupiah in losses to the State per year.
3. The forest area has also been converted for the purpose of enlarging the township, as well as the transmigration area for the people from Java and

   Bali

   .
4. In the year 1999, when the autonomous local government had been started, the local authority have distributed its forest area to local business-men in the form of a small scale management right of forest.
5. In the same time was happening the increasing rate of the deforestation illegally and uncontrollably by some groups of the community which have been funded by the capitalist (cukong – the Chinese term), who has provide the capital or the money. Those activities had been protected by the government authorities or the security apparatus.     

VI.              THE PREVENTING MEASSURE

1.      Since the year 2001 Indonesian government, namely The Department of Forestry and the Department of Trade and Industry have launched mutual decision by issuing a forbidden regulation for exporting the logging of wood and the planking material.

2.      In the year 2003, the Forestry Department has been decreasing yearly of felled tree quota (the number of the timber which  is allowed to be cut down) until the figure of 6’800’000 M³ in a year, It will be decreasing yearly up to 5’700’000 M³ of timber.

3.      The Indonesian Government has also been establishing a revitalization body for Forestry Industry. The function of this body is to justification of the product of Forestry Industry with providing material of the forest.

4.      The government has made a commitment for illegal logging eradication. And will launch reforestation effort through

Forest

and Land Rehabilitation Movement. It will be expected that in the year 2008 will be reforested an area of three million hectares.

VII. WHAT IS THE OUTCOME?

1.      It is a pity that what the government has been doing is only a big mouth, without any real deed in the field. Up to 2002 there is still exporting of logging timber. By this condition, it has been shown that the government has been offended its regulation itself.

2.      It seems that the government is also still willing to give managing permit for natural forest and plantation for 900’000 hectares of forest to Forestry Business-men, through an auction.

3.      The government did not have any overall-planning to improve and rehabilitate the damage of  the forest in

Indonesia

by reforestation.

4.      By only decreasing the quota of felled  timber, it will be difficult to distinguish between the legal and the illegal logging. So, the important thing to do is, that the government has to launch a  moratorium of felling (cutting down the trees). It means that in a certain period of time there should not be any timber come out of the Indonesian forest.

VII.           THE

FOREST

FUNCTIONS:

1.      Indonesian tropical forest is also important for the world, because it has function as a lung of the world (carbon sequestering) Ideally 30% of land has to be covered by forest.

2.      Climate stabilization.

3.      Ground water recharge.

4.      Natural disaster prevention

5.      Watershed protection

VIII.        WHAT WE SHOULD DO?

To stop the damage of the forest in this country:

1.      The government has to stop the issuing permit of managing right of the forest for utilize the timber-wood.

2.      The government has to stop the new opening of the plantation by using  the forestry area.

3.      The government has to implement the law enforcement drastically to those who are offending the rule of protection of the forest.

4.      The government has to do overall testing towards the industrial forestry work, and to do the law enforcement to those naughty forestry business.

5.      After those things which have been mentioned above has been done, then it will be necessary to revitalization and to rehabilitation of the forest:

a.       To handle the social impact of the moratorium of felling the timber, for instance by giving job to the industrial forestry workers to do the plantation work project of the forest.

b.      Then if everything has been done in order, it will be better to consider of giving the permit of  felling the timber, just for the industrial forest plantation, or the forest which have been managed based on local community.

6.      While in the moratorium period, the timber industries can be operating naturally by importing the material of wood.

7.      To take something lightly in controlling that purpose, so the kind of wood which would be imported have to be different from the kind of local wood.

8.      Then the most important thing to do is to give back the authority  of managing the forest to the forestry people, because it has been long, long time, to manage the forest in this country.