Mining firms or contractors on protected forests get tighter regulation

Mining companies or contractors operating on protected forests are now required to carry out a forestry rehabilitation program on areas of about four to six times the forest area awarded to them, Forestry Minister Nur Mahmudi said in Jakarta on Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters following a meeting with Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro, the forestry minister said that the previous regulation only required mining companies or contractors to carry out rehabilitation program on the mining area they operated.

"This is certainly not fair because the mining companies have benefited a lot of natural resources from their concession," he told Petromindo.

He said under the new regulation, a contractor operating in a protected forest covering an area of 1,000 hectares should carry out a forestry rehabilitation program on areas of between 4,000 and 6,000 hectares.

"The mining companies or contractors should not only carry out a forestry rehabilitation program on their own concession areas but also on nearby damaged forests," he said. (godang)