Sinar Mas Group Overcome fire Delinquent Land Area of ​​Biosphere Reserves in Giam Siak Kecil

Sinar Mas Group Overcome fire Delinquent Land Area of ​​Biosphere Reserves in Giam Siak KecilPT . RAPP Unexpected Performers Forestry Corruption
Gagasanriau.com.Pekanbaru - Ministry of Forestry ( MoF ) also stated that the Sinar Mas Group is considered negligent in protecting the world's protected areas Giam Siak Kecil - Bukit Batu area of ​​106 467 ha in Riau due to illegal logging and fires on land designated as a UNESCO biosphere reserve that .

"If companies ( Sinar Mas Group ) , I think all have a responsibility . I do not bermasuk defend , but as a result of any fact , " said the Director General of Forest Protection and Nature Conservation ( PHKA ) Sonny Ministry Faiz in Pekanbaru on Wednesday .

According to him , the company should be able to detect for the prevention of forest fires and land , especially in the Giam Siak Kecil Biosphere - Bukit Batu previously Giam Siak Kecil Wildlife and Wildlife 84 967 ha of 21,500 ha Bukit Batu .

According to him , the Disaster Management Task Force team found the smoke Riau tents built by arsonists as barracks land that has been in a state of ditingalkan occupants , then sawing machine and so forth .

Based on the report from the Head of Disaster Management Task Force Brigadier General Hood County Prihadi Agus Irianto this week , about 3,000 ha Biosphere - Giam Siak Kecil Bukit Batu burned and 800 ha of which occurred in the core zone .

" Illegal logging and fires , it was already known . Indeed, initially it happened yesterday from other zones such as community-owned buffer zone , but then went into a part of our biosphere reserve , " he said .

He said he has been unable to extinguish hot spots that burn the core zone , and transition zone planted with industrial plantations for paper industry raw materials belonging to the Sinar Mas Group as well as a buffer zone belongs to the community .

" It's one of the problems is the access road ( from the buffer zone , tansisi and core ) and then water resource issues . Although built water canals , but the condition of the water is low and this is a constraint field in putting out hot spots , "said Sonny .

Practices of the company as well as illegal loggers around the biosphere reserve has a negative impact on the world koservasi region . The peat can not be converted into oil palm plantations and industrial tree plantations .

" If it is damaged peat , the peat in the surrounding expanse also damaged . It happens every year . Both combustion in biosphere reserve or bullying illegal , before designated as biosphere reserve by UNESCO , " he said .

Sinar Mas Forestry spokesman Nurul Huda said managing Biosphere - Giam Siak Kecil Bukit Batu which consists of two management company Sinar Mas Group and the government through the Great Hall of the Riau Natural Resources Conservation . ( Ant )

MoF rejects Cooperation Subsidiary APP

07 February 2014 - Mohammed Said
Pekanbaru , ( Antarariau.com ) - Greenomics Indonesian Ministry of Forestry states refuse cooperation with two subsidiary operations group Asia Pulp and Paper ( APP ) , PT Arara Abadi and PT Wirakarya Way.
"The petition was filed three months after launching APP " forest conservation policy " or forest conservation policy in February 2013 , " said Coordinator of the National Program for claims up Vanda Mutia Dewi via cell phone from Pekanbaru on Friday .
The APP group company , he added , PT Perkasa Perawang Successful Industry , PT Ruas Utama Jaya , PT Rimba Lestari Saber located in Riau . While PT Rimba Mas Hutani are in Edinburgh and PT Rimba Mas Hutani located in South Sumatra .
Five companies proves that independent suppliers of raw materials called APP , it is a direct subsidiary of the company that manufactures pulp and paper , PT Arara Abadi and PT Wirakarya Way.
Finally, the application for approval was rejected by the MoF after monitoring the Directorate General of the Ministry of Forestry and the Forest Crop unload the fact that these companies directly related to APP .
" Furthermore , the Ministry of Forestry requested that APP no longer apply for operational cooperation similar to companies that claimed to be independent suppliers , " he said .
In the report one year implementation of APP forest conservation policies , claims up, calling for a giant company in the paper industry no longer hide the status of the raw material supply companies that proved to clear the natural forest and peat .
It also called for " Rainforest Alliance " does not perform an audit of APP policy before there is clarity about the legal status of the companies referred to APP as an independent supplier .
" We hope this report can be a reference for all stakeholders about the legal status of the company that is covered by the APP as an independent supplier , " said Vanda .
Market Transformation Leader World Wildlife Fund ( WWF ) said Aditya Bayunanda forest conservation policy until now has not been touched APP how to replace the forest damage has been done .
He also warned that the company has opened a natural forest area of ​​more than 2.6 million hectares .
" APP should be responsible for passing the forest 's large , " he said .
With a history of a dark forest destruction , APP is not a model worth emulating other pulp and paper companies .
" The new APP states stop clearing natural forest after forest is depleted . If a campaign style that imitated other companies , it could jeopardize the future of Indonesia's forests , " he said .
Source: antarariau.com

Sinar Mas Claims Not Negligent Keep Biosphere environment

06 March 2014 - Muhammad Said
Pekanbaru , ( Antarariau.com ) - giant Sinar Mas Group claims was never negligent in maintaining the conservation world Giam Siak Kecil - Bukit Batu was initiated by the company so designated as a biosphere reserve by UNESCO in 2009 .
" So if you say Sinar Mas negligent , we never negligent and that one was , yes encroachers . I want to ask , the region of the ( biosphere reserve ) who would want to watch ? . As if each meter must dijagain people , " said a spokesman Sinar Mas Forestry Nurul Huda in Pekanbaru on Thursday .
Previously , the Ministry of Forestry ( MoF ) said Sinar Mas considered to have been negligent in protecting Biosphere - Giam Siak Kecil Bukit Batu area of ​​106 467 hectares in Riau due to illegal logging and forest fires .
"If companies ( Sinar Mas Group ) , I think all have a responsibility . I do not mean to defend , but as a result of any fact , " said the Director General of Forest Protection and Nature Conservation, Ministry of Forestry , Sonny Faiz .
Nurul , the biosphere reserve is a buffer zone ( buffer zone ) Sinar Mas . But in the core zone of the biosphere reserve , there is a team formed by the governor of Riau and served as a supervisor conservation world Giam Siak Kecil - Bukit Batu .
Altogether it never fails because it is cooperation and Bengkalis Police have arrested arsonists land biosphere reserve consists of how many people are up at this time how many times to conduct joint operations .
" We are very concerned and keeping the concentration of the biosphere reserve . Evidently , how many times we are operating with the involvement of the police station as police chief Bengkalis Bengkalis Mr. Andri Wibowo , " he said .

Source:antarariau.com

Indonesia set to ratify haze amidst raging fires in Riau

As the province of Riau continues to be enveloped in haze caused by the burning of forests, the Indonesian parliament has finally agreed to ratify the Asean Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution

Haze coming from RIau in Indonesia have started early this year due to an early dry season that triggered forest fires in the province known for palm oil and paper and pulp plantations. Image: Reuters / Fikih Auli, via The Irrawaddy

The parliament of Indonesia on Monday finally agreed to ratify the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution – almost 12 years since the treaty was first adopted by member states.

The decision comes on the heels of a fresh haze crisis in Riau, Sumatra, where a thick blanket of smoke has stalled flights, closed schools, and affected more than 22,000 people with respiratory problems.

The agreement, which has already been ratified by the nine other member countries as of 2010, seeks to monitor and mitigate forest fires that cause widespread air pollution. Indonesia is the sole Asean country that has not ratified the agreement due to previous objections on the infringement of sovereignty.

Annas Maamum, the governor of the province of Riau, which is the centre of the haze resulting from the burning of dry forests and clearing of lands for palm oil and paper and pulp plantations, declared a state of emergency last week. He reportedly appealed to the central government for assistance to combat the fires.

At the parliament, parties representing almost 65 per cent of lawmakers agreed to ratify the Asean Haze Agreement. Only the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) declined to support the treaty, again citing the issues of breaching sovereignty. These two political groups are against allowing fire fighters from Asean countries to enter Indonesian soil and extinguish fires.

Protecting the nation’s jurisdicition, however, is a top priority and battling the haze through the agreement and help of other countries will be for Indonesia’s benefit, said Indonesian Environment Minister Balthasar Kambuaya in a report by The Jakarta Post. 

Monitoring the fires

Currently, on the ground and aerial efforts have been undertaken in Riau to end the forest and peatland fires, according to the Riau Haze Emergency Relief Taskforce.

A total of 1,449 “high confidence” fire alerts (fires detected by NASA with a certainty of 30 per cent or higher, based on brightness and heat produced) were identified in Sumatra from February 20 to March 3, said the World Resources Institute, a Washington DC-based environmental organisation.

The group, which recently launched Global Forest Watch, an online site that monitors worldwide forest loss and gain in near-real time, pointed out how “roughly half of these fires are burning on land managed by oil palm, timber, and logging companies”. This is “despite the fact that using fire to clear land is illegal in Indonesia”, they added.

The forest fires and the resulting haze in Indonesia are known to be a yearly occurrence that affects not only the country, but also neighbouring nations like Malaysia and Singapore. The fires are said to be a result of the dry season that takes place every year from April to October. The current dry spell, however, is unusually early and is already one of the driest on records, the WRI noted.

These forest fires also largely attributed to the billion-dollar palm oil and paper and pulp industries, which have large tracts of concession areas in Riau, among other provinces in Indonesia. Slash and burn is a common and cheap method to clear away land for new farms and plantations.

Building momentum

Last June, the forest clearing caused the worst haze crisis in the region of Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore in decades. Public ire, NGO campaigns, and political action have since gained momentum, with several companies declaring zero deforestation policies and the Asean closing in on their haze treaty.

Environment Minister Kambuaya, the Environment Minister of Indonesia, even expressed hope that the country will be able to ratify the agreement before the upcoming Asean meeting on transboundary haze in April, reported Today Online.

Meanwhile, Singapore is working on a new legislation that that would allow it to impose fines on local and international firms that cause transboundary haze that affect the city-state. These companies will have to pay fines of up to US$238,000 for such a violation, based on the current draft bill.

According to the WRI team, “This is a rather small fine for the large companies that operate in Indonesia, but the potential impact on their reputations sends a strong signal that businesses need to do a better job of fire prevention.”

Separately, Singapore-based paper and pulp firm APRIL (Asia Pacific Resources International Limited) announced on Tuesday its new measures to help address the forest fire emergency in Sumatra. They will deploy an additional 200 fire fighters to their original 400-strong group and provide three helicopters and 30 water pumps to the government’s fire fighting efforts.

This is in addition to the online forest fire tracking system the firm launched on Monday. Their company blog called APRIL Dialog will host daily reports of on the ground inspection of their concessions, which will include: a map of active fires; the origin, cause and size of each blaze; and, the status of the fire fighting action.

These efforts follow the Sustainable Forest Management Policy APRIL began toward the end of January. Greenpeace International noted that this was “just weeks after being threatened to be kicked out of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development” due to deforestation practices.

The APRIL policy does not contain a “commitment to implement an immediate moratorium on all natural forest clearance and peatland development in its suppliers’ concessions”, said Greenpeace.
Singapore-listed palm oil firm Golden Agri Resources, on the other hand, announced on Friday its growing commitment to zero deforestation, with the firm extending its Forest Conservation Policy across all its third-party suppliers. These series of corporate social responsibility commitments picked up pace starting from the no deforestation policy started by largest palm oil trader Wilmar International last December.

source :eco-business.com

Padamkan Kebakaran Hutan di Riau, 7 Helikopter Tembakan Bom Air

04 March 2014

Satuan Tugas Tanggap Darurat mengerahkan 7 helikopter untuk melakukan water bombing (Bom Air) di sejumlah titik kebakaran hutan dan lahan (Karhutla) di Riau. Dengan harapan kebakaran hutan segera bisa teratasi.

Komandan Satgas Udara Tanggap Darurat Asap Riau, Kolonel (Pnb) Andyawan kepada wartawan Affiliasi merdeka.com (Grup PadangToday), Selasa, (4/3) mengatakan, 7 helikopter tersebut satu di antaranya milik TNI AU, satu helikopter dari Badan Nasional Penanggulangan Bencana (BNPB) salah satunya Sikorsky buatan Negara Rusia.

"Sedangkan tiga Helikopter dari Riau Andalan Pulp and Paper (RAPP) dan dua Helikopter lagi milik Sinar Mas, akan diupayakan optimal pemadaman lewat udara," kata Andyawan.

Tujuh helikopter tersebut akan diupayakan melakukan pemadaman di tiga titik lokasi yang paling parah kondisi kebakarannya yakni di kawasan Cagar Biosfer Giam Siak Kecil Kecamatan Bukit Batu Kabupaten Siak. Kemudian di Tanjung Batu Bengkalis serta hutan di kabupaten Pelalawan.

"Besok akan ditambah lagi dengan Pesawat CASSA dari Jakarta, upaya ini dilakukan hingga tanggal 12 Maret 2014," pungkasnya.(*)