VZCZCXRO7428
RR RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHJA #0766/01 0750907
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 160907Z MAR 07
FM AMEMBASSY JAKARTA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3887
INFO RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA 0541
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 3992
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 0407
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL 4016
RUEHTC/AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE 3312

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 JAKARTA 000766 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EAP/IET, OES/IET, AND OES/ETC 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SENV TPHY TBIO TRGY ENRG ID
SUBJECT: INDONESIA ESTH HIGHLIGHTS - FEBRUARY 2007 
 
 
¶1. Summary: On February 1, "Eyes on the Forest", a coalition of 
three non-governmental organizations (NGOs), protested a Government 
of Indonesia (GOI) plan to auction 130,000 hectares of former 
concession areas in Riau and Jambi for plantation use.  On February 
13-16, the Indonesian Ministries of Forestry and Foreign Affairs 
hosted a United Nations Forum on Forest (UNFF) meeting in Bali in 
preparation for an April 2007 UNFF meeting in New York.  On February 
20, Indonesia's Minister of Forestry welcomed the arrival of 
Andalas, a five-year old male Sumatran rhinoceros (dicerorhinus 
sumatrensis) born in a Cincinnati zoo, as part of a program that 
rebuilds the Sumatran rhino population.  On February 21, the World 
Bank office in Jakarta released a new report entitled "Sustaining 
Economic Growth, Rural Livelihoods and Environmental Benefits: 
Strategic Options for Forest Assistance in Indonesia".  On February 
21, the Ministry of Forestry (MOF) announced the allocation of 5.4 
million hectares of unproductive plantation forest to its community 
forest plantation (HTR) initiative, which seeks to encourage 
small-scale sustainable forest development.  As Indonesia begins 
planning for a December 2007 Conference of the Parties of the United 
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Bali, the GOI 
plans to stop the importation of products containing 
Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) by the end of 2007 due to CFCs' negative 
impact on the environment.  As part of GOI efforts to combat polio, 
the Ministry of Health (MOH) conducted vaccinations for polio and 
measles, and distributed doses of vitamin A on Java Island on 
February 20.  End Summary 
 
Forest Conversion Threatens Elephant Habitat 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. On February 1, "Eyes on the Forest" (EoF), a coalition of three 
NGOs that includes World Wildlife Fund, Jikalahari, and Friends of 
the Earth Indonesia (WALHI Riau), protested a GOI plan to auction 
130,000 hectares of former concession areas in Riau and Jambi for 
plantation use.  The NGOs believe the conversion will threaten the 
habitats of 60-70 Sumatran elephants and 100 tigers living in the 
area.  EoF coordinator Nursamsu asserted that the conversion would 
increase the potential for conflict between animals and humans in 
the area and would threaten the forest's ecosystem by reducing 
heterogeneity in the forest.  Nursamsu added the auction stands in 
contradiction to the government policy of reforesting two million 
hectares of critical forest land.  In addition, the head of the 
413,000 hectare Bukit Tigapuluh National Park, Haryono, announced 
that he expects the GOI to exclude the 86,000 hectares of forest 
previously set aside for park expansion from the auction.  Haryono 
added that plantation development in the area would threaten the 
livelihood and lives of indigenous people residing within the 
borders of the National Park. 
 
Indonesia hosts UN Forum on Forest 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶3. On February 13-16, the Indonesian Ministries of Forestry and 
Foreign Affairs hosted a United Nations Forum on Forest (UNFF) 
meeting in Bali in preparation for the April 2007 UNFF in New York. 
Approximately 170 participants from around the world attended the 
Forum.  The participants discussed the concepts that underpin the 
UNFF's Multi Year Programme of Work (MYPOW) and presented regional 
and sub-regional perspectives on forest issues. 
 
Sumatra-American Rhino Back Home 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶4.  On February 20, Indonesia's Minister of Forestry received 
Andalas, a five-year old male Sumatran rhinoceros (dicerorhinus 
sumatrensis) born in the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, at 
Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta airport.  The return of Andalas is part of 
the GOI's Indonesian Rhino Conservation Strategy, under which the 
GOI plans to establish a Sumatran rhino breeding program in Way 
Kambas, Lampung.  Andalas will breed with two females, Rosa and 
Ratu, already living at the sanctuary.  A team of U.S. rhino experts 
working at the facility has been using ultrasound technology to 
establish the birth cycles of Rosa and Ratu in an effort to speed up 
the breeding process.  Experts believe there are approximately 300 
Sumatran rhinos alive in several isolated areas of Sumatra and 
Malaysia and perhaps 60 Javan rhinos alive in Ujung Kulon national 
park on the western tip of Java Island.  The experts note that the 
population of Sumatran and Javanese rhinos will be out of immediate 
danger only when the rhino population reaches 2,500, a goal they say 
may take 50-60 years. 
 
World Bank Launches Forestry Report 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶5. On February 21, the World Bank Office in Jakarta released a new 
 
JAKARTA 00000766  002 OF 003 
 
 
report entitled "Sustaining Economic Growth, Rural Livelihoods and 
Environmental Benefits:  Strategic Options for Forest Assistance in 
Indonesia".  Six co-sponsoring institutions, including the World 
Bank, Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), the United 
Kingdom's Department for International Development (DFID), the 
European Union, the Asian Development Bank, World Agro-Forestry 
Centre and the International Finance Corporation, produced the 
report for the international donor community, the GOI and other 
stakeholders. 
 
¶6.  The report focuses on the impact of deforestation on both the 
land and people, stressing methods to balance and improve community 
livelihoods while maintaining environmental services and 
biodiversity goals.  The report also cites four main priority areas 
for forest assistance from donor agencies: 1) improving governance 
to close the gap between rules and results; 2) improving rural 
livelihoods to narrow the gap between rich forests and poor people; 
3) increasing sustainable economic development to bridge the gap 
between benefits and beneficiaries; and 4) protecting environmental 
services and biodiversity to bridge the gap between current use and 
future stewardship. 
 
Community Forest Plantation Initiative 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶7. On February 21, the MOF announced the allocation of 5.4 million 
hectares of unproductive plantation forest to its community forest 
plantation initiative, which seeks to encourage small-scale 
sustainable forest development.  During the first phase, the project 
will operate in 102 regencies across eight provinces in Sumatra and 
Kalimantan and will include participation from a projected 360,000 
households.  The MOF selected Sumatra and Kalimantan due to the 
large concentration of timber industries on those islands.  Under 
the current plan, the MOF plans to allocate 15 hectares to each 
eligible individual or cooperative.  The MOF also plans to provide 
streamlined permit procedures and requirements, grant loans at 
commercial interest rates, offer institutional support from local 
governments, and is discussing ways to raise prices for wood 
products produced in community forests. 
 
Indonesia Will Stop CFC Import by December 2007 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶8. As Indonesia begins planning for a December 2007 Conference of 
the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate 
Change in Bali, the GOI will stop the importation of products 
containing CFCs by the end of 2007 due to the negative impact CFCs 
have on the environment.  On June 22, 2006, the Minister of Trade 
issued a regulation entitled "Import Provision of Ozone Layer 
Destruction Substances" (Regulation of Minister of Trade No. 
24/M-DAG/PER/6/2006) stating that the importation of CFC-11 for the 
foam and footwear industries, CFC-12 for the air conditioner and 
aerosol industries, CFC-113 for the metal dissolving and cleaning, 
and CFC-114 and CFC-115 for the use in air conditioning liquids will 
be phased out by the end of 2007. 
 
¶9. Environmental Investigation Agency Senior Environmentalist Ezra 
Clark noted that Indonesia is currently the largest market for 
environmentally detrimental Freon in Asia, and that Freon exports 
from China enter Indonesia via Singapore.  Data released in 2005 in 
the Global Trade Information Services' World Trade Atlas revealed 
that China exported 1,178 metric tons of Freon to Indonesia in 2002, 
but Indonesian Customs recorded only 150 metric tons.  By 2004, 
Freon exports from China to Indonesia had grown to 1,500 metric 
tons.  The GOI ratified the Vienna Convention for the protection of 
the Ozone Layer in 1992 and the Montreal Protocol on Substances that 
Deplete the Ozone Layer in 1998. 
 
Indonesia Combats Polio 
----------------------- 
 
¶10. As a part of GOI efforts to make Indonesia polio-free, the MOH 
conducted vaccinations for polio and measles, and distributed doses 
of vitamin A on Java Island on February 20.  The MOH will hold 
similar vaccination drives in Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Bali and West 
Nusa Tenggara in August.  The MOH allocated 17.2 billion rupiah (USD 
1.9 million) from the 2007 State Budget to implement these programs. 
 Indonesia identified a new case of polio on March 13 2005, 
following ten years of being polio-free.  The number of cases 
increased through February 2006, with cases reported in 48 regencies 
across 10 provinces.  The disease had infected over 300 children by 
early 2006.  Due in large part to immunization drives and other 
disease control efforts by the GOI, there have been no new polio 
cases report for more than a year. 
 
 
JAKARTA 00000766  003 OF 003 
 
 
Heffern