Indonesia / The illegal timber trade is thriving and the tropical forest is disappearing
Almost every research expedition that goes to the forests of Indonesia returns with discoveries about new species. The area of tropical forests in the country, whose population is the fourth largest in the world, is the third largest in the world, after Brazil and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Although the area of Indonesia is only 1.3% of the Earth's surface, its biodiversity is extremely rich and includes 11% of the world's plant species, 10% of the mammal species and 16% of the bird species, most of which are found in forests.
However, studies show that the Indonesian forest, which has great commercial value, is disappearing at an increasing rate, despite the government's efforts to monitor the cutting of trees and the export of the wood. One of the reasons for this is illegal wild cutting and smuggling of trees to other countries, where senior and corrupt officials in the police, army and civil authorities are involved in the wood trade.
The rapid growth of the Indonesian paper industry in the last decade has created a growing demand for wood fiber that can no longer be met by planting trees. In addition, owners of large plantations of palm trees, rubber and other crops, adopted the use of fire as a cheap and easy method of clearing forests to make room for plantations. Even the clearing of small areas by farmers contributes its part to the extinction of forests.
The entire process is taking place against the background of Indonesia's faltering economic growth, the poverty and distress that the country has known since the economic crisis in East Asia in 1997 and with the encouragement of a regional-district plan that led to the expansion of the phenomenon of cutting down trees and excessive exploitation of other natural treasures.
Until 1977, most of the deforestation was done under the supervision of the family members, friends and business partners of the former Indonesian president, Kamoso Suharto. After his removal from power, in 1998, the scope of uncontrolled logging increased, when powerful timber barons in the region, connected to smuggling networks in neighboring and distant countries, took advantage of the collapse of the central control system.
As a result, the rate of deforestation in Indonesia is today one of the fastest in the world. This is according to recent data from the organization Global Forest Watch, which also has a branch in Indonesia. The report states that 40% of the forests that existed in 1950 disappeared by the year 2000. During this period, the area covered by trees was reduced from 1,620 million dunams to 980 million. The phenomenon of deforestation continues to expand and its scope reached up to 20 million dunams per year, double the rate recorded in the 200s. More than 1985 million dunams of forests have been cut down since XNUMX, most of them for the use of the wood industry and to make room for field crops, but most of the land is not used and remains wasteland.
The tropical forests of Indonesia in the lowland region - the richest in trees suitable for industry and in biological diversity - are also the ones with easy access and are therefore particularly vulnerable. The World Bank states that these forests have almost been wiped out in Sulawesi in eastern Indonesia and if deforestation continues at this rate, by 2005 they will also disappear in Sumatra and Kalimantan.
According to the Environmental Investigation Agency, a non-governmental organization that has bases in London and Washington, the amount of annual logging in Indonesia reaches 78 million cubic meters, three times more than what is allowed by law. The organization estimates that illegal logging in the national parks and other areas provides 70% of the log production in Indonesia.
About half of Indonesia's remaining forests are torn apart by roads, access roads and agricultural crops. Environmentalists claim that what is happening in Indonesia is part of a major global problem. "We are moving rapidly towards a world where evergreen forests will be left mostly on islands and reserves," says Dirk Bryant, founder of the Global Forest Watch organization and one of its directors. "The condition of the forests on Earth depends on the measures we take to preserve and protect the forests that still remain."
Indonesia has imposed a temporary ban on the export of logs from its territory, to protect the forests and encourage local processing of wood. Officials say the government intends to impose a permanent ban on the export of logs. However, according to the Minister of the Environment, Neviel Makarim, it is difficult to eradicate the phenomenon because the local authorities do not enforce the laws. Furthermore, he says, the central government in Jakarta is having trouble combating the phenomenon of illegal logging, because global markets continue to absorb the stolen wood.
According to activists from organizations for the preservation of the environment, most of the wood that comes from Indonesia illegally is smuggled through Malaysia and Singapore to other parts of Asia - mainly to China and Japan - as well as to Europe and North America. In an attempt to curb the phenomenon, Malaysia in June imposed a total ban on importing wood from Indonesia.
The Environmental Investigation Agency estimates that three million cubic meters of logs, worth $500 million, are smuggled from Indonesia to Malaysia each year. The director of the organization, Dave Kerry, welcomed the Malaysian ban and said
which may contribute greatly to reducing the phenomenon of illegal logging in Indonesia. "This is an important step towards regional cooperation, but the road is still long," he said.
Togo Manorung, who heads the organization Forest Watch Indonesia, says that even if the government's planned reform is successful, Indonesia may turn from a country rich in forests to a country poor in forests, as happened in the Philippines and Thailand.
According to him, Indonesia is at a crossroads. A considerable part of its natural treasures have indeed been destroyed or eroded, but a large part of them still exists. Developing land for planting trees for the purpose of supplying logs, as well as for important agricultural crops, is an essential component of the country's export policy, concludes Manurong.
By Michael Richardson Herald Tribune (The Hidan site was at the time part of the IOL portal from the Haaretz group. This article was published in the Haaretz newspaper)
