Forestry Ministry Says Greenpeace Claims vs APP Not True

Jakarta Globe, May 21, 2012

Greenpeace activists wearing uniforms bearing the stripes and color of
 the endangered Sumatran tiger are seen in this photo riding their motorcycles
 close to a truck loaded with logs in Bengkalis district, Sumatra. (AFP Photo/Ulet
 Infansasti/Greenpeace) 

           

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The Forestry Ministry has denied allegations by Greenpeace that a high-profile pulp and paper company is logging valuable ramin trees in Riau.

Darori, the ministry’s director general for forest protection and nature conservation, said on Monday that Asia Pulp & Paper was not responsible for the logging of the ramin, a tropical hardwood species.

“These trees are indeed being logged, not by APP but by suppliers for APP,” he said, adding that the move on the part of the suppliers was “a mistake” because ramin, typically used for furniture, was unsuitable for pulping.

“And besides, cutting down ramin trees isn’t a crime,” Darori said.

He also said that APP had put aside the logs that it had received and could not do anything with them because “they don’t have an economic value.”

Ramin is the most valuable tree species in Indonesia, selling for $1,000 per cubic meter when exported.

Darori said it was regrettable that Greenpeace had raised the allegations without providing any proof. He said such claims could simply be part of a “trade war” against APP.

Greenpeace raised the issue in a report in February titled “The Ramin Paper Trail,” in which it noted that the tree species was legally protected under national laws.

“Since Indonesia banned the logging and trade in ramin in 2001, more than one quarter of this ramin habitat [in Sumatra’s peat forests] has been cleared — much of it from areas currently supplying APP,” the report said.

However, Darori said the logging of ramin was allowed as long as a permit was obtained from the Forestry Ministry.

In its own declaration of sustainability, APP says it is committed to “unequivocal compliance with national and local laws and relevant international regulations,” with “zero tolerance for illegal wood in our supply chain.”

Earlier this month, the company announced that as of June 1, it would suspend natural forest clearance while carrying out high conservation value forest assessments. Once completed, “We will protect all identified HCVF areas,” it said.

However, environmentalists have called the announcement yet another case of “greenwashing,” arguing that APP has already cleared “most of the natural forest on concessions covered by this announcement.”

“APP once again has chosen to invest in greenwashing instead of meaningful change in the face of increasing and widespread condemnation of its forestry practices,” Nazir Foead of WWF-Indonesia said on Monday.

“Our analysis suggests that this limited moratorium will have little impact, since APP has already cleared 713,383 hectares or almost all of the natural forest in its own and affiliated concessions in Riau.”

WWF estimates that out of the remaining 206,412 hectares, only 22,000 hectares would be affected by the announcement, while the rest were “already designated or by regulation must be protected.”

It said that if the company really wanted to reduce its footprint on Sumatra’s tropical forests, APP should immediately issue a moratorium on the use of natural forest fiber by any of its pulp mills.

“Only if APP immediately extends this moratorium to cover the full wood supply of all its mills and demonstrates a real commitment to changing its forestry practices, WWF would welcome it as a sign that the company is taking steps to join the ranks of responsible paper companies,” Nazir said.

Antara, JG++