Ekosistim Nusantara Foundation (EcoNusa) considers there are lots offorests without good management particularly in Papua and Maluku. For the reason, EcoNusa CEO Bustar Maitar called community and government to protect the existing forests in a bid to minimize environmental hazard.
Bustar expected that forests in the eastern Indonesia, particularly in Papua and Maluku, are well-managed. The existence of forests in these regions are deemed the last frontiers to sustain forestry issue in Indonesia. “Indonesia is eminently known with the scores of rainforests. So, we we fail to protect forests, it means we fail to protect climate in Indonesia,” said Bustar as quoted by Republika.co.id last week.
EcoNusa is said to have numerous communities in Papua and thus communities know how to protect their own forests. However, Bustar said that it is not enough to rely simply on the community. It needs the central government to provide support and to protect the forests.
He added that the population in Papua is around 6 million. It implies that they need assistance to afford their welfare and independent livelihood. They should be able to manage their forests prudently. Never let the forests on those areas be cleared for the sake of development that fails to side with the local community.
“Actually in Papua needs broader access of information so that they have creative initiative. This should be well-communicated to the local community there,” he said.
Development program and infrastructure in Papua should have been well-planned. “Do not let (the development) end up with environmental destruction. This thing is intended to minimize the potential environmental hazard in the near future,” Bustar added.
These statements were made during EcoNusa visit to Republika Daily Editor in Jakarta on February 5, 2020. Bustar and EcoNusa team were directly hosted by Republika’s Managing Editor Irfan Junaedi and his editorial team. Irfan agreed to environmental protection particularly forests so as to ensure community livelihood. For the reason, it requires never-ending education to all stakeholders to ensure the protection of the existing forests.
