Worldwide Forest Conservancy Efforts
BANDA ACEH, INDONESIA
by Daniel P. Kray, Editor
April 23, 2007
Aceh Province to Place Moratorium on Logging
Date of Legislation: March 17, 2007
Governor Irwandi Yusuf, administrator for Indonesia’s westernmost province of Aceh, has reported that the province will cease providing logging permits and hold all presently issued permits in abeyance. Landslides, floods, and widespread erosion have resulted in recent years from aggressive logging in the rugged and monsoon-washed area, resulting in human casualties well in addition to the environmental costs.
Although advanced entirely by the Governor’s office, the idea may have originated with the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) or Friends of the Earth Indonesia, which has been advocating similar measures since 2000.
Of course, Aceh was the region hardest hit by the Indian Ocean Earthquake and Tsunami of December 2005, as it was nearest to the quake’s epicenter. The province is located on the northwestern tip of Sumatra, is rich in fossil fuels, has a primarily Islamic culture, and has only recently made peace with the larger nation from which it had sought to separate itself since Indonesia’s independence in 1949.
At this time, little is known about what future actions Governor Yusuf or the national and provincial governments will take with regards to the forests.
Source:
Anonymous. “Aceh to Implement Logging Moratorium.” Jakarta Post. 17 April 2007.
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01/03/2010: ECP Staff writes: "Gratifyingly, much more attention is being given to the world's forests as an essential reserve against rising global greenhouse gas levels. The twin threats of lumbering and slash and burn agriculture have already decimated vast forests and continue to do so. Yet much of the world's forests are lost in much smaller parcels, in the slow consumption of trees as fuel for home cooking and heating purposes in much of the world, often with stoves that are inefficient, unventilated, and dangerous.
A number of international organizations - such as Trees, Water, People - are tackling the carbon emissions crisis from this very practical angle, developing and dispensing fuel-efficient stoves to families throughout South America, Africa, Asia, and elsewhere. A single such stove can reduce carbon emissions by one ton per year and save money and resources for the families who use substantially less wood to fire the stoves. Deforestation is averted, and families benefit in both health and wealth."
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