Indonesia prepares after psychic 'predicts quake'

Google/AFP

JAKARTA (AFP) — Local officials in a quake-prone Indonesian province said Monday they were taking precautionary measures after a Brazilian psychic warned a powerful earthquake would strike next month.

Husni Hassanuddin, a spokesman for Bengkulu province on Sumatra island, said the Indonesian embassy in Brasilia had passed on a letter from a "professor" and psychic predicting a quake would rock the island on December 23.

"During a recent meeting with all senior officials in Bengkulu, we determined a number of evacuation shelters for residents, especially those who live in the coastal areas," he told ElShinta radio.

He said there would be several evacuation drills around the province prior to December 23.

"Though we call it a rumour, we take this information seriously. We don't want people to blame us if it really happens," he said.

Another Bengkulu official, Fauzan Rahim, told state-run Antara news agency that he had seen a copy of the letter from Jucelino Nobrega da Luz, which predicted an 8.5-magnitude quake on Sumatra, but did not give an exact location. Sumatra is home to nine other provinces.

Antara said da Luz had sent a letter in 1998 predicting the tsunami that devastated Indonesia in 2004. He also issued a warning in 2006 forecasting September's 8.4-magnitude quake in Bengkulu, which left 23 people dead, it said.

A seismologist from the Indonesian Meteorology and Geophysics Agency told ElShinta that no technology in the world could predict an earthquake.

"We have told people repeatedly that we cannot predict a quake. If there's information about the date on which a quake will occur, it is surely untrue," he said.

Indonesia sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire" where continental plates collide, causing frequent seismic and volcanic activity.

Mt. Semeru cooling down

MALANG, East Java (Jakarta Post): Mount Semeru has shown a drastic decline in the number of volcanic earthquakes but remains at the third highest alert level.

Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park spokeswoman Nova Elina said Sunday in Malang, on normal day 100-150 earthquakes were recorded from the volcano but the figure had dropped to 20 quakes a day.

She said the declining activity was a cause for concern, since the volcano had not fully released its magma energy, which appeared to build up recently.

"Following the latest volcanic activity we decided to temporarily close the walking track to (the summit of) Mount Semeru," Nova said.

The volcano has continued to shower ash, reaching as far as Malang.

Motorist Muhammad Fauzi said he shut his helmet all the time while riding.

"If I don't close my helmet the dust gets into my eyes or my mouth."

Fishermen hamper mangrove reforestation efforts

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Efforts to revitalize Jakarta's dwindling mangrove forests in Muara Angke have been hampered by local fishermen farming shrimp and fishing in the designated conservation area, a ranger from the Forestry Ministry told The Jakarta Post last week.

Angke Kapuk mangrove reserve ranger Resijati Wasito said fish farmers had cleared approximately 80 percent of the 100 hectare wetlands.

The reforestation program has been hindered by fishermen rearing milk fish and shrimp and removing mangrove trees and their roots, he said.

"It's hard to deal with the illegal fishermen. We've asked them to leave, because this conservation area belongs to the Forestry Ministry, but they keep returning.

"They damaged seedlings we planted, and even threatened us with machetes to try to stop us planting more trees," Resijati said.

He said there were currently some 30 fishermen and their families living in shanties in the Angke Kapuk reserve, even though the land was acquired by the ministry in 1988.

Resijati told the Post the government also gave compensation to fishermen who left the area, but those efforts appeared to be fruitless.

"We continue to ask them to leave because we have no authority to expel them. We've also asked for military personnel to protect new trees," he said.

The reserve has changed substantially with the fish farming. Where once stood a shady forest of mangrove trees, now there are only milk fish ponds.

In 2002 the Forestry Ministry and the reserve developer, PT Murindra Karya Lestari, planted some 50,000 mangrove seedlings, but most of them were uprooted by fishermen, leaving only around 100, Resijati said.

Since 2004 some 14,000 mangrove seedlings have been planted with better supervision. Around 10,000 can now be seen near the ponds.

Resijati said left undisturbed it would take seedlings nearly 10 years to grow into a forest.

Kapuk Angke natural reserve, together with the nearby Muara Angke wildlife reserve and protected forest, are the only remaining mangrove forest sites in Jakarta, whose coastline stretches some 32 kilometers from east to west. The three reserve sites total some 170 hectares.

Most of Jakarta's mangrove forests have been cleared not only for fish farming, but also for building developments, which have an even greater environmental impact, Resijati said.

He said mangrove forest wetlands play a crucial role in slowing the abrasion of beaches, protecting the city from big ocean waves and flooding, and serve as a nursery for marine life and a feeding grounds for a large number of animals.

The forests, he said, also function as green belts, protecting groundwater in nearby areas from salination. (wda)

Trees and more trees for Kupang

KUPANG, East Nusa Tenggara (The Jakarta Post): The provincial administration said it wanted to plant 400,000 trees annually to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The administration's spokesman Eduard Gana said the planting program would be launched on Nov. 28 and would involve people from all walks of life, including school children, police and military personnel.

"The environment has become an international issue and it has become the responsibility of all people to take action to save the world from worst climate change impacts," he said.

The program is part of a nationwide campaign to plant 79 million trees.

Old meets new in biopore campaign

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

It's an old technique often used in Indonesia's rural areas, but the campaign for backyard biopore absorption holes (biopores) was heard for the first time in Jakarta on Saturday.

Enthusiasm ran high as experts from the Agricultural Institute of Bogor (IPB) and Erhalogy, a cosmetic brand, talked to Setu Babakan residents in Jagakarsa, South Jakarta.

The household technique, combining waste and water management, involves drilling a hole no bigger than 30 centimeters wide and 100 centimeters deep as an organic waste bin that also increases groundwater absorption.

"The old technique takes on new meaning as it can be used to mitigate flooding and take care of our waste problem," said Kamir R. Brata, professor from the landscape architecture department at IPB, who coordinates the campaign.

In Indonesia, the compost sinks began to receive more attention after February's flood which took numerous lives and caused losses of trillions of rupiah.

In April, the Bogor administration ordered more than 5,000 biopores sunk in 21 subdistricts.

As of June, Bogor had finished more then 22,000 holes. Kamir wants to expand the program to surrounding areas, including Jakarta.

According to Kamir, Jakarta planners have ignored the environment, preventing nature's underground network of roots, insects, worms and rodents from living up to potential.

Biopores return natural function to the ground when organic waste is composted, because insects and worms thrive, multiplying tiny passageways in the soil which absorb water.

"God has already given us the workers to keep floods away, now our duty is to make sure these workers don't leave."

The hole is made with a T-shaped hand drill which rotates clockwise. After the hole is made and tidied up, an effective microorganism (EM) solution is added to speed up decomposition.

All of the tools can be ordered from the landscape architecture department at IPB.

The ideal number of holes depends on the intensity of rains in the area. Adequate, however, explained Kamir, is for five small households sharing one drill to sink 25 holes in the immediate vicinity of their homes.

Dimiati, a corn farmer and producer, is among those who are not yet satisfied with the waste solution. While the holes may be able to deal with household waste, he said, he doesn't think they can handle industrial byproduct, which accumulates tons at time.

"I still don't see it as the solution to the waste problem," he said.

IPB and Erhalogy gave the four neighborhood units in Setu Babakan -- comprising 120 households -- 24 iron drills, 120 waste containers, eight drums of EM solution and ready-to-use EM and EM starter kits.

The donors plan to spend four months making sure the tools are used properly and the biopores maintained properly.

"The company is just concerned about the environment. The way we see it, the surface of the earth is like skin -- it needs pores to stay healthy, so we believe this idea is an innovative way to promote our brand," Erhalogy marketing manager Djoko Kurniawan said.

More information can be found at Biopori.com. (anw)

Indonesia forestry minister to meet with Greenpace

Padang, West Sumatra (ANTARA News) - Forestry Minister MS Kaban has said he was ready to meet and discuss with Greenpeace about the organization`s campaign on saving the Indonesian forest from negative impact of palm oil plantation expansion.

"I am ready to meet with Greenpeace on November 20 to discuss several points of view of the organization," Kaban said here on Saturday.

According to Greenpeace, the expansion of palm oil plantations into forest and peat land areas posed a serious threat to the global climate and Indonesia`s remaining forests.

It said expansion plans in Riau province alone had the potential of triggering a `climate time bomb`. Riau`s peatland forests store a massive 14.6 billion tonnes of carbon - equivalent to one year`s global greenhouse gas emissions.

The forestry minister`s plan to meet with Greenpeace after its ship the Rainbow Warrior, with a banner reading "Palm Oil Kills Forests and Climate", anchored next to a palm oil tanker on Thursday and blocked it in port.

The Rainbow Warrior was stationed close enough to the large tanker, loading 33,000 tonnes of palm oil, that the tug boats couldn`t get it out of dock.

And on Friday the blockade continued with eight Greenpeace activists climbed on the palm oil tanks nearby with a banner saying "Palm Oil Kills Climate & Forests".

"In response to Greenpeace campaign, I have prepared a meeting with the organization on November 20 to discuss a number of issues that it raised," Kaban said, adding that a mutual understanding was expected to be achieved in the meeting.

Tan Soe Ie: A worming way to better farming

Tarko Sudiarno, The Jakarta Post, Yogyakarta

"If I was still a young man I would definitely be rebelling at the conditions farmers are now having to endure I am deeply hurt when I hear of the continued suffering of farmers," said an angry Catholic priest Father Tan Soe Ie SJ, 79, while wringing his hands.

His vision was blurred and it seemed tears were welling behind the thick glass of his spectacles. The tone of his voice was dark and the words strong as he recounted the seemingly endless woes farmers suffer.

Although he sometimes had difficulty in breathing, Father Tan remained friendly as he recounted the fate of farmers, who he claimed got little or no attention from the government.

"It's said that we are an agrarian nation. But where is the care that should be coming from the government to benefit our farmers?" asked Tan, who worked in East Timor between 1985 and 2002 as a Jesuit priest. His job there was to work with farmers and others in the agricultural community.

"It's as though farmers are not even worthy of a greeting, they are just treated as objects. Are there any programs that benefit farmers?"

Day after day our farmers get less and less, he said. This is because few are now interested in continuing to work on the land, and because they never seem to be able to become prosperous.

Now farming is mainly done by the elderly who are less productive. Meanwhile the younger generation prefers to choose other jobs, or move to the cities. They are too lazy to become farmers and feel it is better to become a worker in the city, Tan said.

He said this situation had come about because government officials had not thought about the fate of the farmers, but only about themselves and their own interests. As an agrarian nation Indonesia has huge areas of land that are never used, yet it is rare to find a government policy that benefits farmers and improves their situation.

"I want to see progress," Tan said. "I don't feel that we should be embarrassed about copying countries like China. That nation's resurgence started some years ago when they recruited experts, indifferent to their nationality or religion.

"They understood that you need a cat to catch the mice, but who cares whether the cat is black or white? The important thing is that they can work and lead. But in Indonesia, can a minority group become leaders even though their techniques work? Why don't we have progress in many fields, including agriculture?"

These concerns have motivated Tan to keep making himself available to farmers, even though some might think it is time for him to move to Emaus, Ungaran, Central Java. Emaus is the Jesuit retirement home for priests who are no longer productive or able to do their job.

The place is like a sunset home with all the facilities for old people to live out the rest of their lives at ease. Also at Emaus, Ungaran, is the graveyard for deceased Jesuits. It is located in the yard behind the priests' house.

Jesuits such as Tan have released themselves from their families because they have taken vows of obedience and poverty. He has chosen to live among farmers on the southern slopes of Mount Merapi, Yogyakarta, since 2003.

In the village of Ponggol Pakem, Sleman, he lives in the traditional East Timorese wooden house that he built on the riverbank. He spends his days working with farmers. Since 2004 he has been making organic fertilizer from worm casts. Now he can produce 15-20 tonnes of worm fertilizer every week.

"Because I'm already old I'm not strong enough to rebel," he said. "Now I put my energies into the production of worm fertilizer. I want to make a difference by helping farmers improve their land and boost crops."

With this organic fertilizer, Tan is helping farmers get access to cheap soil nutrition so production costs can decrease.

"By using this worm fertilizer at a price within the reach of farmers, agricultural production can increase and the land can become more fertile. This is not the case with chemical fertilizers where the longer they are used the more they contribute to the land's infertility," Father Tan said.

The process of making this worm cast fertilizer is so simple, cheap and easy that all farmers can do it themselves. The main material is cow dung that has been dried, then kept under shelter and mixed with many special worms. Within four days the worms will have eaten a pile of cow dung, and the worm casts then become plant fertilizer.

After working with about seven people, Father Tan is now promoting this environmentally friendly fertilizer product. It is being marketed around the special administrative district of Yogyakarta (DIY).

"My first target is Yogyakarta," he said. "I want to establish the marketing base in this city first before going to other places. Yogyakarta has limited agricultural land; it needs to be helped with this organic fertilizer.

"I want to assist farmers and explain how this worm fertilizer can be used, and I want to do this with the assistance of the royal family. Yogyakarta people still respect the palace," said Tan who was born on Dec. 16, 1928.

By gaining the support of the royal family, he said, all farmers will feel better about accepting the fertilizer and will be prepared to change the way they farm, particularly if Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono X gets involved together with his wife.

"With farmers taking up the use of this organic fertilizer, I guarantee the agricultural world will make significant progress," he said.

The proof of the effectiveness of this regal marketing approach, according to Tan, can be seen in Thailand.

"In that nation agriculture is improving rapidly because the people there still follow the king's commands, rather than those of the government," he said.

"What the king says must be followed by his people. And I hope that can also happen in Yogyakarta in a way that wouldn't occur in other provinces. The DIY is a special area."

Palu municipality takes steps to become center of rattan industry

Ruslan Sangadji, The Jakarta Post, Palu

The Palu administration plans to make the city a rattan industry center by establishing a school and a technical supervisory unit for rattan craftsmen.

Palu supplies 50 to 60 percent, or 50,000 to 60,000 tons of rattan, for national trade, an official said.

Indonesia supplies 80 percent of the world's demand for rattan raw material, mostly to Asia, America and Europe.

"This is a good chance for Palu to compete in the international rattan trade," Palu Mayor Rusdy Mastura told The Jakarta Post.

He said his administration would work to make Palu a national rattan center in the near future.

Data from the Palu Cooperatives, Trade and Industry Agency shows that Central Sulawesi has 12 special types of rattan.

Rusdy said Palu produced high quality rattan because the soil there contained a large amount of silicate, which made the rattan more flexible.

In order to make Palu a rattan center, the administration has opened the Kriya Rotan school and sent five teachers to Cirebon, West Java, to learn more about processing rattan for furniture.

The Palu administration also has made an agreement with all stakeholders to establish a Palu Technical Supervisory Unit.

The unit will provide rattan processing machines, training and an education program, as well as a trade facility.

To support rattan processing, the administration will also build two factories and a warehouse.

Head of the planning unit for the Cooperatives, Trade and Industry Agency, M. Fatih, said the administration was encouraging rattan craftsmen to concentrate their business on finished products from home industries or small-scale factories.

Fatih said Cirebon had been successful in developing its rattan trade due to a focus on home industries.

To ensure product quality, the Palu administration will also serve and guide rattan craftsmen in improving their skills.

To achieve this goal, the administration will hold training workshops to cover several specialty areas such as rattan design, manufacturing and preservation.

"We have made an agreement with the Cirebon administration to send instructors here, and they will teach the local rattan craftsmen to provide them with new skills and better ways (to craft rattan).

"We hope by establishing the Technical Supervisory Unit, the local craftsmen will be able to increase their knowledge, as well as their incomes," Rusdy said.

President asks researchers to come up with better food technology

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono told the agriculture minister and governors to challenge researchers and other Indonesians to compete for a substantial cash prize to develop formulas for the production of noodles made from local materials.

"Please develop noodles that are made of local -- instead of imported -- materials. We have cassavas, sweet potatoes, corn and other staple foods," he said before presenting the 2007 National Food Security awards at the State Palace in Jakarta on Thursday.

"Noodles have the potential to replace rice," Yudhoyono was quoted as saying by Detik.com newsportal, saying the official competition to modify noodles would begin early in 2008.

Currently noodles in Indonesia are made of imported wheat flour.

The awards were given to the governors of East Java, Jambi, Riau, South Sumatra, South Sulawesi and Yogyakarta, as well as to 11 regents, a mayor, 108 farmers groups and 30 farming officials.

At a separate event scientists announced they had found a cheaper substitute for the raw material of the ubiquitous Indonesian tempe, a protein-rich cake made from soybeans, which Indonesia currently imports from the United States.

"Indonesia and Australia have been successful in making tempe from lupin, a kind of bean that grows in Australia," said program leader of the Food Science and Technology School of Public Health at the Curtin University of Technology in Australia, Prof. Vijay Jayasena.

"The cost of the lupin bean is less than half the cost of imported American soybeans," he said at a seminar at the Australian Embassy on the development of food science and technology in Indonesia.

The joint research on lupin-based tempe was a cooperative effort between Curtin University and the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI).

Director of LIPI's chemical research center, LB Sugeng Kardono, said lupin beans couldn't grow properly in Indonesia.

"We tried to grow them at LIPI, but the plants were always beanless," he said.

Lupin is the common name for members of the genus Lupinus in the legume family (Fabaceae). There are more than 200 species of lupin.

Australia is the largest lupin producer at more than 984,000 tons a year, accounting for the lion's share of the world's annual production of some 1.15 million tons.

Vijay and Kardono also presented other recent developments in the field of food science and technology, introducing several food processing technologies to an audience of biology and chemistry students.

Vijay described a variety of methods, including high pressure processing, irradiation, extrusion, intelligent packaging using time and temperature indicators, active packaging, micro capsulation and ozone treatment, all of which are commonly used in other countries.

Kardono said the methods hadn't been implemented in Indonesia because they were costly.

"These methods do not necessarily need a costly high-tech investment, just local instruments and the willingness to think outside the box," Vijay said.

He cited the example of an extrusion machine developed by researchers and the Asian Institute of Technology in Thailand. They were able to build the machine for one-tenth of the usual cost of US$180,000 for an imported machine.

Kardono added that LIPI was currently focusing on creating food that has an added health value, like vitamin-enriched food and curries that can fight cholesterol. (lva)

Palm oil industry needs to be revamped: Observers

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The so-called "partnership" between companies and farmers in the palm oil business needs to be reconsidered because it benefits big corporations, not farmers, say observers.

Nursuhud, a member of the House of Representatives' Commission IX overseeing social welfare, labor and transmigration affairs said the partnerships, established in 1977, were not equitable.

"The companies, as the core, possess the ability to control everything, like deciding how much of which crops will be accepted and also the criteria," he said Friday during a discussion on the welfare of Indonesian palm oil farmers.

"Farmers are always placed in a marginal position. The farmers are never involved in any attempts to reshape the paradigm."

Indonesia has some 7.2 million hectares of oil palm plantations producing some 16 million tons of crude palm oil. Indonesia controls nearly 36 percent of the world's CPO market, second only to Malaysia with 47 percent.

However, observers say there is still no system to integrate farmers into the industry, as equals of companies.

Suprapto, an oil palm farmer in Peser regency, East Kalimantan, who has been involved in the business for more than 20 years, said that during the harvest farmers often experienced losses because factories could not accommodate the entire crop.

"The price is quite good, but the problem is that we cannot sell all of our crops," he said.

Abetnego Tarigan of the group Oil Palm Watch said companies did not have a substantial interest in buying crops from farmers because most have their own plantations.

"They treat the farmers only as buffers to anticipate times when their plantations do not produce enough," he said.

He said the current system allowed companies to monopolize the industry because they controlled everything from transportation to manufacturing.

Director of plantation protection at the Agriculture Ministry, Hendrajat N, said to improve the welfare of palm oil farmers, the government would launch a program in 2008 to revitalize oil palm plantations.

The program will include the replanting of old plantations and the provision of soft loans so farmers can own at least four hectares of land.

"The revitalization program will also require (oil palm) companies to buy up to 20 percent of the company's needs from farmers," he said.

"The program also aims to develop a sustainable, environmentally safe, oil palm industry." (uwi)

Police probe bribery in Adelin case

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A police officer in North Sumatra was replaced Friday for ignoring orders to arrest Adelin Lis, the fugitive acquitted of illegal logging and corruption, a high-ranking police official said.

As part of further investigations into the high-profile case, police are also planning to question several witnesses from Adelin's trial.

They cited suspicions of bribery behind the withdrawal of their testimony against the businessman, who was charged with causing losses of Rp 119.8 billion (US$2 million) and US$2.9 million to the state through illegal logging and corruption.

National Police chief of detectives Comr. Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri said Sr. Comr. Artsianto Darmawan, deputy head of the general crimes unit at the North Sumatra Police, was removed from his post for disciplinary reasons.

Though acquitted of illegal logging and corruption and released from a jail in Medan on Nov. 5, police now want to detain and question Adelin over money laundering charges.

"Artsianto knew the police still had pending cases against Adelin and were planning to arrest him once he was released from jail, but he didn't do anything about it?" Bambang said, as quoted by Antara news agency.

Artsianto has been transferred to the Police Staff college, and has been replaced by Adj. Sr. Comr. Darmawan Sutawijaya.

Adelin, the financial director of PT Keang Nam Development Indonesia, was indicted for violating the laws on corruption and the forestry industry.

He was facing a possible 10 years in jail and a fine of Rp 1 billion (around $111,000), in addition to having to refunding all state losses.

However, the panel of judges at the Medan District Court hearing the case said the prosecution failed to prove the charges against Adelin.

The verdict outraged many, who became even more upset when the judges who heard the case received promotions.

A junior attorney general, MS Rahardjo, said Friday the prosecutors who prepared the indictment in Adelin Lis' trial would be investigated.(dic/rff)

Honey bears charm park visitors

Nurni Sulaiman, The Jakarta Post, Balikpapan

Hunkered down in her home in the Natural Environmental and Education Park in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan, is Anna, a honey bear.

Ignoring all the humans around her, she tucked into her food. She is one of five bears living in the facility, ranging from five to 10 years old. There are three males -- Haris, Benny and Batik -- and two females, Anna and Idot.

The bears have been the pride of the park since 2003 and in the past few years the city has made the honey bear its official animal.

"Honey bears are solitary animals. Those which survive in the jungle can sense human presence from two kilometers away. The captive bears are quite familiar with humans, as long as there is not too much noise," said park manager Satria Imam Pribadi.

Anna and her colleagues seem to enjoy their activities in the 1.3-hectare enclosure. Anna usually plays for two hours and is provided with meals at 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. every day.

Satria said the animals must be left to roam freely in the enclosure to prevent fights, adding that Harris and Batik in particular did not get on well.

The enclosure is in the form of natural forest an is enclosed with an electrified fence.

"It's not fatal, but only creates some pain or shock. All the animals have been trained to stay away from the fence," said Satria.

Visitors can not directly interact with the five bears, but can watch them from a boardwalk a meter away.

The 250-meter boardwalk is made of 90-cm wide planks and a 90-cm wall from bangkirai timber, and was still under construction The Jakarta Post visited the park recently.

"It will have surrounded half the enclosure at 400 meters long by next week," said Satria.

Although the animals are familiar with humans, signs at the park advise: "Honey bears are very sensitive and shy. Walk slowly and speak softly!", with pictures of a bear hiding.

Visitors are not allowed to smoke or bring food and drink with them onto the boardwalk.

The honey bears were all rescued from human homes, where they were mistreated.

Harry, the largest, is blind due to abuse. The four other bears also have health problems and have no teeth, which were probably pulled out by their owners.

"They were kept by humans before. The authorities had to seize them because they were not taken care of and were suffering," said Satria.

The bears are fed with boiled tempeh, or soyabean cake, eggs, rice and vegetables, with the same nutritional content as their natural diet. However, their favorite food, unsurprisingly, is honey.

Honey bears survive in the tropical rainforests in Southeast Asia. In Indonesia they are only found in Kalimantan and Sumatra.

The park is also home to numerous rescued cats.

"They were neglected or abandoned by people on the streets, so we take care of them. As their number gradually rises, each time a cat is brought to the park, we sterilize it first so they won't breed," added Satria. The cats have also been vaccinated to prevent rabies and worms.

"We also provide a children's park so they can enjoy the natural surroundings while playing," said Satria.

President asks agriculture minister to diversify food

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has urged Agriculture Minister Anton Apriyantono and governors to diversify food.

"The diversification is aimed at reducing Indonesia`s dependence on rice as a source of carbohydrate," the president said when awarding letters of appreciation for national food security to 156 people at the state palace here on Thursday.

Noodle has successfully replaced rice as a source of carbohydrate, he said, hoping that the food made of local maize, cassava, sago palm and others could be further developed in the future.

"Please make the new foodstuffs in a contest and provide the winners with a token of appreciation, medal, and prize prize providing the people like them very much," he said.

The president on the occasion also quoted data from the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) that the agriculture sector in 2007 had grown by 4 percent.

Even not giving the details, the head of state said that in Indonesia`s history, it was only on four occasions that agricultural growth has reached more than 3 percent.

In the meantime, Agriculture Minister Anto said that staple food in Indonesia is mainly rice, which prompted the government to constantly try to diversify food.

Farmers switch to organic cashews

Wasti Atmodjo, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar

Farmers have been using the vast tracts of semi-arid land and degraded land in Kubu district, Karangasem regency, for cashew nut production.

The cashew nut plantations have become the primary source of income for hundreds of families in a program that has been so successful that its coordinators was recently named the winner of a food resilience award, to be handed over by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Nov. 15.

"We're grateful we can work better. I hope we can survive so that more farmers can enjoy the benefits of this program," said Nyoman Menget Adriasa, 40, the coordinator of the five farmers groups in Kubu that are united under subak abian (farmers who work on dry land).

The five subak abian groups consist of Subak Pulesari with membership of 55 farmers covering 96.5 hectares, Tunas Mekar with 86 members and 97.85 hectares, Subak Giri Celagi with 74 farmers and 158.1 hectares, Subak Bhuana Kusuma with 87 members and 191.75 hectares and Subak Pertiwi Palasari with 61 members and 56 hectares.

According to Menget, each member owns 1.5 hectares of land on average. Menget himself owns 2.7 hectares.

In 1985, local farmers started utilizing the unproductive land at the foot of Mount Agung to plant cashew nuts. They started to enjoy the fruits of their hard work in 1994, even though their harvests had not been optimal.

The farmers always ended up on the losing side in determining prices. The most disheartening thing was that buyers did not pay cash straight out, but in installments, Menget said.

The result was predictable. Many farmers were frustrated and lost the spirit to continue cultivating the land.

Aside from that, Menget said, many youngsters left for Denpasar in search of jobs in hospitality. However, the 2002 Kuta bombings caused many tourism workers to return home.

"Many of them had to return to farming as it was the only way they could survive," he said.

In 2005, assistance was provided by VECO Indonesia, an non-governmental organization specializing in giving support in sustainable agricultural development, in the form of consultants who later worked in cooperation with the Bali Plantation Office, Karangasem regency and foreign investment company PT Profil Mitra Abadi from Jakarta.

The organic cashew plantations were later certified by the Institute for Market-ecology (IMO).

Imam Suharto, the learning and information management section manager of VECO Indonesia, said the farmers were prohibited from using chemical fertilizers and insecticides.

"The control covers technical assistance from production to post-harvest to marketing. During the harvest period, the cashew nuts are not picked, but left to fall by themselves, indicating they are fully ripe," he said.

Iman said the cashew nuts were divided into five kilogram lots, which were periodically checked to ensure the weight stayed the same.

"Each step has to be recorded. If there are any discrepancies, this shows there has been deceit," he said, adding that many of the farmers were not capable of preparing yearly audits or record-keeping systems.

In order to solve this problem, IMO sends officers out into the field to monitor and control the situation.

The IMO, Imam said, made external checks by cross-checking with the Internal Control System (ICS) and also the buyers. If the weight and quality was different, the IMO postponed the certification process, he said.

Out of the five farmers groups, two have got organic certification. Certified organic cashew nuts fetch Rp 8,500 per kilogram, while regular cashew nuts are sold to wholesalers for Rp 6,500-7,000.

Farmers tell govt to go organic

Adianto P. Simamora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Indonesia's farming body has called on the government to help small-scale and family-run farms implement sustainable and organic farming to help combat climate change.

The Federation of Indonesian Farmers Association (FSPI) said December's climate change conference in Bali would be the most opportune time for the government to introduce a program targeted at small and family-run farms.

FSPI executive Tejo Pramono told a media conference Tuesday family farmers should focus on organic farming methods to help reduce the use of fertilizers and fossil fuels.

"By changing the farming system, small-scale farmers can significantly cool down the earth and reduce greenhouse gas emission," Tejo said.

Indonesian farmers were currently facing problems of limited land allocations for farming, he said.

"Most farmers have less than one hectare of land, (which sees) the country rely on imported foods including rice," Tejo said.

"We'll ask the government to provide at least four hectares of land for a family farmer."

FSPI is a member of La Via Campesina -- an organization that says it brings together millions of small farmers and producers worldwide.

FSPI's executive Tejo is a member of La Via Campesina and said both FSPI and Campesina were critical of current world-wide food trade practices.

"The farming policies from the World Trade Organization (WTO), the regional or bilateral Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) must be ended," Tejo said.

"They promote transporting food around the world," he said.

La Via Campesina's main office is in Jakarta.

Tejo said the WTO and FTAs put priorities on food produced with fossil-based pesticides and fertilizers and transported them all around the world.

"The globalized farming and food productions will further worsen global warming," Tejo said.

Indonesia has long been a food importer, including unhusked rice, fruits and vegetables.

"All imported food products consume huge fossil fuel during their transportation to Indonesia," Tejo said.

He said if organic practices were adopted and Indonesia could become self sufficient, the republic would no longer need to transport food from other countries.

Experts said changing weather patterns due to the climate change "would cause unpredictable drought and floods that lead to harvest failures".

The government said it would negotiate emission reductions from the forestry sector to tap financial incentives to benefit the people in the area.

"We will provide 70 percent of carbon sales from the REDD mechanism to local people living near the forest," a forestry ministry spokesman said.

Wahjudi Wardojo, head of the forestry research and development agency at the forestry ministry, was speaking at a discussion on climate change organized by WWF Indonesia and the Society of Indonesian Environmental Journalists (SIEJ).

Reduction Emissions from Deforestation in Developing Country (REDD) is Indonesia's new climate change mechanism to be introduced in December.

Wahjudi said Indonesia, which has the third largest forests in the world, could gain US$2 billion per year from the REDD project.

Rare local trees get new home

City News - November 12, 2007

Theresia Sufa, The Jakarta Post, Bogor

The Indonesian National Park Foundation together with Cibodas National Park has designated a plot of land in Cibodas for different species of trees representing areas of Jakarta.

The foundation's researcher, Holif Imamudin, who is also the former director of Bogor National Park, said the planned park was part of a conservation effort to protect trees already considered rare.

The park now has 1,500 seedlings comprising 22 different tree species.

The tree specie already collected by the foundation include Menteng (Baccaurea recemosa), Cempaka Putih (Michelia alba), Gambir (Uncaria gambir), Cendana or sandalwood (Santalum), Rambutan, edible Gadung tuber, Kelapa Gading (Cocos capitata), Sirih or piper betel (Piperaceae), Durian tree, Duku or lanseh tree (Lansium domesticum Corr), Kemang (Mangifera caecea), Gandaria (Bouea macrophylla Griffith), Kepuh and Pinang or betel nut tree.

"It's really not an easy job because most of the trees are now hard to find," Holif said.

The cendana tree, for instance, must be cultivated from a mother tree, which is hard to find, he said.

"But we eventually got the seedlings from a resident of Jakarta who voluntarily supplied us (with the tree seedlings)."

The Kepuh seedlings currently growing at Cibodas Park did not grow like their mother trees due a difference in climate and humidity.

Holif said cooperation with Cibodas Park would continue so trees from other areas could also be grown there.

Holif said the program was aimed at investing in conservation of nature for future generations.

People should not be greedy in exploiting natural resources: president

Gianyar, Bali (ANTARA News) - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono called on the people not to be egoistic and greedy in exploiting natural resources so that future generations could also benefit from them.

"We should not be egoistic or greedy nor abdicate our responsibility to protect the interest of future generations," the president said when inaugurating the Bali Safari and Marine Park here on Tuesday.

The head of state said coming generations also had the right to benefit from existing natural resources.

"Therefore, I agree to and support the initiative of all quarters to preserve natural resources," he said.

On the occasion, the president also raised the question of domestic-versus-global economies which was often taken up by various quarters.

"One should not set the local and global economies against each other," said the president who was accompanied by Minister of Tourism and Culture Jero Wacik.

He said it was impossible for the Indonesian economy to avoid the effects of the global economy. "We are living in a globalized era so that our local economy is facing challenges from the global economy," he said.

Therefore, the president called on central and local government leaders to keep boosting the resilience of the local economy.

"I want all leaders to be creative, innovative and responsible for the solution of local problems," he added.

The Bali Safari park was built on a 40-hectare plot of land and being managed by the Indonesian Safari Park of Bogor in West Java.

The president was accompanied by Mrs Ani Yudhoyono, Forestry Minister MS Ka`ban, Agriculture Minister Anton Apriyantono and Transportation Minister Jusman Syafei Djamal.

During his visit to Bali, the president on Tuesday also spoke at a function marking the introduction of bio-fuels dubbed bio-pertamax and bio-solar.

He appealed to technologists to discover and develop cheaper technology to produce alternative fuels such as wind and solar energy to reduce the country`s dependence on fossil fuel.

"We must find cheaper technology to develop alternative energy such as wind and solar energy," he said.

Palu government aims to turn trash into cash

Ruslan Sangadji, The Jakarta Post, Palu

An increasing burden for the city, Palu municipality in Central Suluwesi is making efforts to use its garbage to produce methane, an alternative fuel source.

To realize the program the local administration, through PT Palu Cipta Metana, has signed a memorandum of understanding with PT Global Eko Rescue Foundation Ltd. in Jakarta.

"By our plans the project will commence at the end of the year or early next year," Palu Deputy Mayor Suardin Suebo told The Jakarta Post at Kawatuna subdistrict garbage dump in East Palu, on Monday.

Suardin said the company would build 40 gas wells around the site to collect methane.

The wells, each 15 meters deep, are expected to produce some 395,000 cubic meters of gas annually.

Palu city's 630 cubic meters of trash a day is believed to produce tons of methane, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, hydrogen sulfide and oxygen every day.

"The city will raise an estimated US$1.2 billion annually from carbon trade using the methane," Suardin said.

Major cities in Indonesia produce, on average, 10 million tons of garbage annually, with a total methane output of 404 million tons a year. This methane could be used to generate some 79 megawatts of electricity, he said.

Suardin said the total income from carbon trading could amount to up to Rp 118 billion (US$13.1 million) a year.

Income from methane production used for power generation could reach Rp 162 billion a year, and an equal amount from carbon trade, he said.

Suardin said the methane produced at the Kawatuna garbage dump was estimated to be able to generate 2,780,000 kilowatt hours (KWH) of electricity annually.

Assuming a single 450W-capacity household uses electricity for 24 hours, it would use around 10.8 KWH per day, or 3,942 KWH annually.

"Thus, we can meet the power needs ... for 705 households in Palu... Palu could earn some Rp 96.8 billion annually from electricity. This is what I call making cash from trash," Suardin said.

Tsunami warning system ready in 2008

JAKARTA (The Jakarta Post): The National Coordinating Agency for Disaster Management aims to have an extensive tsunami early warning system operational next year.

There are 16 institutions working on the establishment of the system, along with teams from Germany, Japan, the United States and China, the agency's managing director, Lt. Gen. (ret) Syamsul Ma'arif said at an inauguration ceremony for the Surabaya Muhammadiyah University in Surabaya, East Java, on Saturday.

He said the most important link in the warning system was still the weakest: communicating disaster information to the public and relevant institutions by television, radio, cell phone or siren.

"Besides the tsunami early warning system, we have also developed an early warning system for volcanic activity using seismographs as well as systems to monitor weather, floods and earthquakes.

Minister calls for tree-planting campaign

Ridwan Max Sijabat, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

If everyone planted a tree today, some 230 million newly planted trees would be proof of Indonesia's commitment to environmental conservation, State Minister for the Environment Rachmat Witoelar said Sunday.

"Greening the country should start with individuals. Everyone can plant trees at their houses or on farmland," he said.

"There is nothing to lose but a lot to gain from this tree-planting movement.

"Planting trees in residential areas is good for local residents, helps green the country and will form part of global efforts to fight climate change."

Rachmat was speaking at an environmental event held at the Bung Karno Sports Complex in Central Jakarta on Sunday. Also present at the event were Jakarta Vice Governor Prijanto and the United Nations Special Ambassador for Millennium Development Goals in the Asia Pacific Erna Witoelar, who is also Rachmat's wife.

The event was sponsored by car maker PT Honda Prospect Motor, printing and publishing giant the Kompas Gramedia Group and paper and pulp company PT Riau Andalan Pulp and Paper.

Some 1000 rare trees from across the country were planted as part of the event. Trees planted included the kepel (Stelechocarpus burahol), sadeng or footstool palm (Livistona rotundifolia), sawo kecik (Manilkara Kauki), kersen or Jamaican cherry (Muntingia calabura) and trembesi or rain tree (Pithecolobium saman).

Rachmat said local governments should adhere to a 2007 law on national spatial zoning to ensure cities have enough green and open spaces to support national conservation efforts.

"Local administrations should ensure green areas are free from construction activities ... that disturb the environment," he said.

"Administrations should also set aside a certain percentage of their land to be made into open spaces where people can enjoy recreational activities and plant trees."

Local and international experts currently agree that 30 percent of any urban setting should be made up of green and open spaces.

Prijanto said his newly installed administration was still debating strategies to create more open areas in the city.

However, he said the Jakarta administration was considering procuring land for the purpose and would take firm action against anyone violating local environmental bylaws.

"All houses and buildings constructed in green areas are illegal and they will be bulldozed," he said.

"Those who build larger structures in violation of the law will be taken to court," he said.

Mount Anak Krakatau eruptions attract foreign tourists

Serang, Banten (ANTARA News) - Mt Anak Krakatau, the volcano in the Sunda Strait which has been erupting with small explosions during the past few weeks, has attracted a number of Australian and European visitors, a tourist guide said.

"Some 10 to 15 Australian and European tourists come here every day to observe the eruptions of Mount Anak Krakatau," Iman Faisal (35), a tourist guide at Carita beach resort in Pandeglang, Banten, said here Saturday.

He said many of the foreign tourists take pictures of the eruptions as the happening was something of great interest in their respective countries.

"This is because Anak Krakatau is possibly the only volcano in the world that rises from the sea," he said adding that Anak Krakatau had become a legend as its eruption in 1883 killed 36,000 people.

Mount Anak Krakatau has been erupting over the past few weeks.

Officials at the Anak Krakatau Monitong Post in Pasauran village, Cinangka sub district, Serang district, said the volcano`s activity was on Friday marked by 182 eruptions coupled with 11 volcanic quakes, eight deep volcanic tremors, 54 shallow volcanic shocks, 44 tremors, and it also spewed smoke 29 times.

But none of the phenomena posed a direct threat to human life. There were even 2-minute tectonic shocks but also not dangerous.

Budiman, of the Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Center in Bandung, West Java, said the number of eruptions, volcanic shocks and tremors throughout Friday had declined compared to Thursday when there were 195 eruptions followed by 7 deep volcanic tremors, 49 shallow volcanic shocks and 18 tremors.

All this meant that Anak Krakatau`s activity was still fluctuating each day. There were no major eruptions and volcanic shocks such as had happened in 1883.

On Saturday, Anak Krakatau was still spewing molten rocks, hot clouds, and toxic gas, and had remained at the third level of alertness, Budiman said.

He therefore urged visitors and fishermen to stay away from the foot of Anak Krakatau.

Forestry minister denies backing illegal loggers

Alfian and Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta, Medan

Forestry minister M.S. Kaban has said he had nothing to do with the Medan District Court's recent ruling -- in which businessman Adelin Lis was acquitted of all charges -- and blamed the prosecutors for indicting the logging boss with weak charges that ended in his acquittal.

Addressing a radio talk show titled You destroy the forest, I set you free, Kaban, who was in Medan, North Sumatra, said over the telephone he did not defend Adelin, but the forest concession issued by the forestry ministry.

"The company (Adelin's company) was legal, in the sense that it had permission to operate there," he said.

But, the minister said, the prosecutors should have learned from previous experiences where cases were initially perceived and built as illegal logging cases but later found to be only administrative violations.

"There were 23 cases (identified as illegal logging) in Papua. But, all of the alleged perpetrators were eventually acquitted by the court there on the grounds they had only committed administrative violations," Kaban said.

"So, why are (the prosecutors) still using the same article (against Adelin)?" asked Kaban, adding two executives from Adelin's company had also been acquitted from all illegal logging charges.

But, Kaban said, those perpetrators could be charged with violating Law No. 41/1999 on Forestry if there were indications of environmental destruction within their concession areas.

"It is the duty of the (legal) apparatus to prove that," the minister said.

In this regard, he said, experts at the forestry ministry could assist the police and prosecutors in determining whether the forest had been destroyed or not.

However, Kaban said his ministry had never been consulted in such investigations.

A letter sent to Adelin's lawyer, according to Kaban, was just a regular letter, but it had been politicized.

"I sent a lot of other letters to other lawyers in response to their questions. Why weren't they questioned also?"

Chairman of the Indonesian Forest Conservation Cooperation Secretariat, Indro Cahyono, however, believes Kaban's letter was a kind of intervention.

He said if the minister wanted to provide information on the case, he could have simply appeared and testified as a witness in court.

"By doing so (writing the letter), it is likely he was intervening with court proceedings. That is a violation of the law and he can be prosecuted," Indro said.

Indro said Adelin likely had strong support from local legislators and executives.

"There is a strong indication ... his impunity indicates he also has strong support at the national level."

He added Adelin's case was only one small example of how illegal loggers could be so powerful.

"Illegal logging has become a corporate crime, infecting those with power in politics, the military and the police, as well as the judicial system," said Indro.

"As a result, they (illegal loggers) are never punished. Our investigation found that only 0.1 percent of all illegal logging suspects had been convicted by the court ... and all of them were eventually acquitted," he added.

Indra said illegal loggers allegedly financed candidates in the 2004 presidential election.

He declined to mention names, but said one of the logging companies that supported a candidate in 2004 is now being investigated.