Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Poor record keeping and illegal logging is raising concerns of over-exploitation of Merbau, finds a new report by TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network.
Merbau, a tropical hardwood, is popular in Europe and elsewhere as a flooring material. Roughly 30,000 cubic metres of Merbau timber entered the EU in 2005, half of it direct from Indonesia, the remainder from Malaysia and, after processing, from China... [Continue]
Taking a step into the tropical peat swamp of Central Kalimantan can be a dangerous affair. A firm surface is never guaranteed, and losing your boots in the quicksand-like mud is inevitable -- but the least of your concerns.
There are snakes, spiders and a particularly nasty variety of ant that proved itself talented at getting into one's pants for a salutary welcome bite... [Continue]
Jakarta, Indonesia - Small-scale corruption is widespread throughout the Asia-Pacific region and is contributing to the poverty of millions, according to a United Nations report released here Thursday.
The report, "Tackling Corruption, Transforming Lives," published by the United Nations Development Program, examines the issue from the bottom up, focusing on the ways in which petty bribery and graft hinder the poor's ability to receive essential services... [Continue]
WWF has reiterated its concern over Asia Pulp and Paper's (APP) logging activities in high-conservation-value forest in Indonesia.
A spokeswoman for the conservation organisation said its concerns follow its recently published report on the situation.
WWF has repeatedly levelled allegations of illegal logging in Indonesia at the Singapore-headquartered APP... [Continue]
Indonesia - Amongst the neatly ranged young teak trees, Nasir, 41, was hard at work digging up weeds.
A thousand saplings, a meter tall and spaced two meters apart, flourish in this 0.75 hectare farm, planted to replace mature trees about to be harvested.
This is something Nasir does every weekend. He lives all of 30 meters away from his farm, and has ample time to tend to his other crops... [Continue]
Indonesia - Forestry activists have warned of a sharp increase in the national deforestation rate if the government fails to deal with overlapping permits issued for forest concessions and industrial timber forests.
Greenomics Indonesia's latest study found about 18.4 million hectares of forest concession areas and production forest had mostly been occupied by plantation and mining companies thanks to permits issued by regents... [Continue]
Indonesia - Field investigations held by the activists found that the Bukit Tigapuluh National Park was under threat from illegal logging, forest clearing for plantations and road building that were linked to the operation Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) and its partners.
Green activists strongly criticized the ongoing forest conversion work at Bukit Tigapuluh, saying it would speed up the loss of Sumatra's endangered species and further harm the environment... [Continue]
