Conservation vital in Indonesia due to rising population
KUCHING: Conservation is increasingly important in Indonesia due to the rapid growth in its population, says head of Conservation, Sustainability and Stakeholder Engagement of APP Indonesia, Dr Dolly Priatna.
He said APP Indonesia was the third largest producer of paper and pulp in the world.
“The issue of conservation is very important especially in our suppliers’ concession areas which cover an area of some two million hectares in Sumatra and Kalimantan. To us, it is very important to engage with both the local communities and the relevant authorities on how best to maximise productivity so that it can benefit everyone,” Dolly said on the sidelines of the 15th International Peat Congress (IPC) here yesterday.
He stressed that under Indonesian President Joko Widodo, all the relevant authorities and the local communities have been engaged on how best to address the increasing challenge of peat fires that caused the haze.
“Each year, our government has
The issue of conservation is very important especially in our suppliers’ concession areas which cover an area of some two million hectares in Sumatra and Kalimantan. To us, it is very important to engage with both the local communities and the relevant authorities on how best to maximise productivity so that it can benefit everyone.
put in extra efforts to manage peat fires to prevent the haze which has become an annual hazard to both Indonesia and its neighbours such as Malaysia and Singapore,” said Dolly.
As for APP Indonesia, Dolly said it had been producing pulp and paper from planted forests.
“Our main source of raw materials are two types of acacia trees and eucalyptus trees.
“Wenormally harvestthemwhen they are six years old and soon after that we will do replanting straight away,” he said.
He said their main pillar of success was how to balance sustainability in the context of modernisation, engagement with the local community and productivity.
On another subject, Dolly said this was the third time he had been to Sarawak.
“I love Kuching. It’s a very nice place. And of course if I have the chance, I would like to bring my family here for a visit in future,” he said.
Dolly has even visited Lubok Antu during his first visit to the state in 1990.
His second visit was in 1998.
Dr Dolly Priatna, head of Conservation, Sustainability and Stakeholder Engagement of APP Indonesia