Legislator demands for reclamation guarantee funds
Wednesday, June 21 2000 - 02:45 AM WIB
Forests in South Kalimantan has bee heavily destroyed, said legislators from the House of Representatives' Commission III. They demanded the central government and local administration to act quickly to reclaim and reforest the destroyed forests in the province to prevent further destruction.
In a hearing with Acting Minister of Forestry and Plantations Muhammad Prakoso, legislator H. Akhmad Havivi said that if necessary, the government could use the guarantee funds deposited by mining firms operating in South Kalimantan to reclaim the destroyed forests.
"Based on my visit to the location, it's apparent to me that forests in South Kalimantan is in a dire condition, heavily destroyed. I hope the guarantee funds from mining firms can be used as a source of fund to reforest the area which has been destroyed by mining activities," he said.
Director General of Reforestation Abdul Fattah said the forests in the province was destroyed by coal mining activities. He promised that his office would allocate a budget to reclaim and reforest the province.
Abdul Fattah noted that his office could use reforestation fund and state budget for reforestation purposes in South Kalimantan. Abdul Fattah noted that the guarantee funds deposited by mining company was kept by the Ministry of Mines and Energy, not by his office. But he promised to coordinate properly with the mining office.
Meanwhile Legislator Akhmad Kurnain questioned the South Kalimantan governor's plan to accommodate illegal loggers through a locally owned company, noting that it could not solve the real problem of forest destruction.
Akhmad Kurnain suggested that the government reminded the governor to pursue a comprehensive solution, not only a partial solution, to the problem of illegal loggers in the province.
He suggested that the solution should not only touch the loggers, but also the downstream wood-based industries in the provinces, which operate over capacity. If these industries were not reigned, he said, demands for illegal logs would remain high. (*)