Forestry Ministry proposes miners to pay conservation funds

Mining companies operating in forest areas may be required to pay a certain amount of funds to the forestry ministry to help finance forest conservation activities.

Director General for Forest Protection and Conservation Darori said on Monday that the conservation funds would be different from the non-tax payment as stipulated in the government regulation (PP) No 2/2008, which required miners in forest areas to pay contribution fee for the use of forest areas.

Darori said that the forestry ministry needed to collect different contribution fee from the mining companies operating in forest areas because the forest fee payment under the PP N0 2/2008 went to the finance ministry?s coffer.

He said that the new forest contribution funds would be managed by an independent agency which would be assigned to coordinate forest conservation activities. ?If not, the funds will be directly managed by the forestry ministry,? he said.

Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan said that the ministry had formally submitted the proposal to collect the conservation funds to the office of the coordinating minister for the economy. He promised that the new forest contribution fee would not bring extra financial burden to mining companies. (*)