Sumatra forest may to lose its world heritage status

The rainforest is currently at risk of being excluded by Unesco due to rampant illegal logging and infrastructure construction. 

“The government is upbeat that in the next five years, everything can get better, so the status of TRHS would no longer be in danger,” Hartono said. 

He was talking on the sidelines of the Inception Workshop on Building a Resilient Tropical Rainforest Heritage of Sumatra for Climate Change Mitigation and Biodiversity Conservation in Medan, North Sumatra, on Wednesday.

The TRHS is one of the Unesco World Heritage Sites and encompasses three national parks in Sumatra – Mount Leuser National Park, Kerinci Seblat National Park  and Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park.

The TRHS was granted the status in 2004, and seven years later it was named an in-danger site.

Hartono said the change of status was due to various activities being carried out there now and in the past, such as illegal logging, the ongoing construction of 30 to 80 kilometres of road in the forests by some regencies and a plan to build a 1,000km road.

He said since 2004, Unesco had been providing funds for conservation. However, he claimed the funding was not much as it was adjusted to the types of activities being carried out. He cited the provision of US$60,000 for the restoration of 100 hectares in the TRHS area. 

“We’re not worried about losing the funds, but the country’s dignity. What would the world say if we are not able to manage this world heritage?” Hartono said.

He added that Unesco had offered seven solutions: minimising deforestation, maintaining primary species, halting road construction in the area, stopping mining, establishing boundaries and improving law-enforcement and landscape management.

He said the government had tried to apply some of these suggestions and would review the construction of new roads in the area and conserve wildlife species.

Deputy at the Office of Coordinating People’s Welfare Ministry, Haswan Yunas, said efforts to preserve the TRHS often received resistance from people.

“Deforestation is still taking place in Mount Leuser National Park. The perpetrators mostly are groups of people, especially former tsunami and Aceh conflict refugees,” Haswan said, adding security personnel had repeatedly curbed illegal logging in the TNGL. 

Jakarta Unesco deputy director and senior programme specialist for the ecological and earth sciences unit Shahbaz Khan voiced appreciation for the Indonesian government’s efforts to be removed from world-heritage-in-danger status. Shahbaz said TRHS should be conserved because its presence was not only beneficial to Indonesia but also the world.

“If we are able to preserve the biodiversity and forest, it would be useful for future generations,” Shahbaz said.