| By Andi Abdussalam |
Jakarta, Oct 29 (ANTARA) - While Mt Merapi near Yogyakarta -- which erupted on Tuesday killing at least 32 people, was still continuing its volcanic activities on Friday, people had to keep an eye on other volcanoes which were also showing activities. Besides Mt Merapi in Sleman, Yogyakarta, Mt Anak Krakatau on the Sunda Strait and Mt Dempo in Pagaralam district, South Sumatera, were also showing activities. These two later volcanos' activities were however not so worrisome. Even though not so worrisome, the status of Mount Anak Krakatau on the Sunda Strait has been raised to above normal level since in the past several days. The chief of Mount Krakatau Observation Post in Hargopancurang, Rajabasa, South Lampung, Sumatra, Andi Suardi, said here on Friday the mountain's activity had increased since four days ago. But the status of Mount Dempo in Pagaralam district, South Sumatera, is until now still at level I meaning the volcano's activity is normal although tens of quakes have happened following Merapi's eruption and an earthquake in Mentawai. "Volcanic and tectonic quakes have happened many times after the eruption of Mount Merapi in Yogyakarta and the earthquake in Mentawai, West Sumatera, but they were of low magnitude so that they did influence Mount Dempo's activity which was at level II in 2008," SLamet, the chief of a Mount Dempo Monitoring post, said here Friday. As regard to the Mt Anak Krakatau, its activities have been increasing. "The intensity of shallow and deep volcanic tremors accompanied by eruptions has been increasing," Andi Suardi said. Based on observation a total 136 eruptions were recorded to happen on Friday followed by spewing of volcanic ash while on Thursday only 30 eruptions occurred. He said a total of 21 deep and 27 shallow volcanic tremors were recorded on Friday. "The volume of eruptions has been increasing while volcanic tremors tend to decline," he said. He said the increasing activity of the mountain was a natural phenomena and it could happen anytime. "Normally eruptions maximally reached only 10 times a day," he said. He said monitoring would be intensified after the Vulcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Center (PVMBG) raised the status of the mountain to an above normal level. While the activities of Mt Dempo, particularly on the day when Mt Merapi erupted on Tuesday, caused several qakes. Slamet said, according to data on seismographs on Tuesday (Oct 26), six volcanic and tectonic quakes happened on that day , and on Wednesday (Oct 27) volcanic quakes occurred six times. "Actually, Mount Dempo is still a priority on the list of volcanoes being watches by the Vulcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Center in Bandung, even though its activity is still normal or at level I after the Mount Merapi eruption," he said. He said there had been no increase in Mount Dempo's volcanic activity though the condition was hard to observe because of thick fog and rains. "A few weeks ago, Mount Dempo showed an increase in its volcanic and tectonic activity although they remained small. "But we cannot predict its future activity, and the only thing we can do now is remain alert," he said. The Center's team from Bandung came and installed additional recording devices at a height of 2.000 meters above sea level to support devices on the peak of Mount Dempo in case of damage, he said. "Since the additional devices were installed, Mount Dempo has two mountain activity recorders, called seismometer completed with antenna which will receive signals to be transferred into the seismograph at the post," he said. In fact, Slamet added, global positioning system (GPS) devices had also been set up at four places around the mountain which function to identify the volcanic position. In the meantime, Mount Merapi which erupted last Tuesday again spewed hot clouds of ash at around 11.40 a.m. on Friday. The hot clouds were clearly visible from Samiran village, Selo subdistrict, Boyolali district, Central Java. At 11.25 a.m. the volcano located on the border between Central Java and Yogyakarta provinces also spewed hot clouds of ash but on a smaller scale. Tri Mujianto of the Mount Merapi observatory post at Jrakah village said the volcano spewed hot clouds of ash five times on Friday until 11.40 a.m. A total of 17,776 people in Sleman district, Yogyakarta, and 13,757 people in Magelang district, Central Java, have so far been evacuated to safer places following the eruption of Mt Merapi on Tuesday.***3*** |
Jumat, 29 Oktober 2010
MORE VOLCANOS NEED TO WATCH
MORE SHIPS NEEDED FOR HUMANITARIAN OPERATIONS IN MENTAWAI
| By Andi Abdussalam |
Jakarta, Oct 29 (ANTARA) - Ships are vitally important to distribute logistics and carry out evacuation of victims in Mentawai Islands, a district in West Sumatra crippled by a powerful earthquake and tsunami which flattened at least six villages and killed no less than 400 people last Monday. "Ships are expected to move with agility to reach evacuation locations so that assistance during the emergency response could reach the victims soon," Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) Deputy Chief for organization development, Firman Hasan said on Thursday. Therefore, PMI's branch office in West Sumatra is hiring a ship for humanitarian operations in the tsunami-hit Mentawai Islands. "The ship will be operated for one week to visit areas and villagers who so far have not yet been evacuated and received humanitarian assistance," Firman Hasan. He said that the ship was hired in cooperation with a non-governmental organization from Bali as part of the efforts to speed up assistance into the island. In the next step, he said, PMI office in West Sumatra will also hire a bigger ship so that the volume of humanitarian assistance could be increased. "The sea vehicles are needed to support operations in Mentawai Islands, particularly in separate sub-districts in the surrounding isles that could only be reached through sea transportation," he said. So far, four warships and one hospital warship have also been deployed to conduct humanitarian operations. The Teluk Bayur naval base in Padang, West Sumatra, deployed four warships providing aid to tsunami victims. The four warships are KRI Imam Bonjol, KRI Gilimanuk, KRI Cirebon and KRI Teluk Manado. "The four warships are scheduled to arrive at their destinations on Friday," operations assistant of the Naval Base Col Indarto Budiarto said. The warships carried medical supplies from the Indonesian Red Cross in Jakarta and medical personnel from the marines. Besides medical supplies and other logistics, KRI Imam Bonjol also brought a helicopter and a Cassa plane. All the warships will distribute all kinds of aid from Padang and transport volunteers to the Mentawai islands. In order to help injured victims, mobile hospital is also important. Therefore, mobile hospitals will be set up in quake hit areas to serve wounded victims, Health Minister Endang Rahayu Sedyaningsih said. "We have inspected a location in Munte Baru, Pagai Selatan, where the condition is very concerning with all house leveled to the ground," she said. For mobile hospital at sea, the naval hospital ship KRI Dr Soeharso has canceled a journey to Wasior, Papua, and is sailing to Mentawai to help tsunami victims there. "The ship was supposed to leave today for Wasior but last night the commander of the National Defense Forces (TNI) told the navy chief of staff to cancel the plan and ordered it to go to Mentawai instead," Eastern Fleet Command spokesman Lt Col Yayan Sugiana said on Wednesday. The hospital ship is scheduled to leave for Mentawai on Thursday morning and would be there for a month. "The ship was initially scheduled to conduct a humanitarian mission in Wasior (recently hit by flash floods) for a month. So its task in Mentawai will be the same," he said. The ship would carry logistics such as food, beverages and medical supplies initially allocated for flood victims in Wasior. The ship will also carry navy personnel and 22 doctors and nurses experienced in various disciplines. The Eastern Fleet Command is still waiting for further orders from the TNI commander and the navy chief of staff on assigning more ships to Mentawai. "For the time being we will send one because three naval ships from the Western Fleet command have already been sent there," he said. Regarding logistics assistance, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has presented up to 18 tons of various kinds of basic necessaries to victims of the tsunami in Mentawai. His spokesman Julian Aldrin Pasha said it had been confirmed that all of the aid had reached the victims. Four tons of the aid were sent by land and sea while the other 14 tons by air. President Yudhoyono has asked all offices concerned to ensure that the aid reached those really in need. He also called for transparency in relief aid distribution. Aid has also come from various parties. In an early meeting in Padang, several officials reported a number of foreign countries and international organizations had also expressed their wish to help. The head of the President's Working Unit for Development Control and Supervision, Kuntoro Mangkusubroto, reported Japan was one of the foreign countries that had offered aid. He said New Zealand had also expressed its readiness to send various kinds of aid anytime needed. Kuntoro said the UN had also prepared aid for immediate shipment. In the meantime, West Sumatra branch of Indonesian Red Cross will soon send 1,000 tents to earthquake-triggered tsunami disaster areas. Local PMI spokesman Hidayatul Irwan in a press statement made available to Antara said five of its workers left to Mentawai on Tuesday evening. Hidayatul said PMI held an internal coordination meeting on Wednesday night to discuss an immediate shipment of the tents to the disaster areas in Mentawai. "On Wednesday, PMI sent a special evacuation team of ten persons, assessment team, logistic assistance, but the tents were sent on Thursday," Hidayatul said. PMI also mobilized tens of personnel and sent four ambulances to Mentawai for early assessment. "PMI West Sumatra office has sent four ambulances and tens of personnel. For the moment, we are still waiting for complete report from the local PMI office on the situation in Mentawai," Achmad Djaelani of the Jakarta-based PMI Headquarters, said in a statement.***3*** |
Selasa, 26 Oktober 2010
HOT ASHES HAMPERS EVACUATION OF MERAPI VICTIMS
Jakarta, Oct 26 (ANTARA) - Evacuation of the victims of MT Merapi which erupted in Yogyakarta on Tuesday evening could not proceed smoothly as rescue workers were constrained by rains of hot volcanic ashes which blanketed areas classified as danger zones.
"Prone areas included three subdistricts of Cangkringan, Pakem and Turi in Sleman district, Yogyakarta," said Lt. Col Beni Nugroho at the Merapi Main Disaster Control Post in Pakem on Tuesday.
He said that rescuers had only reached the gate of the Kaliurang Tourist Site, about 10 km from Mt Merapi's peak so that the areas could not yet be reached by the rescuers team.
Mount Merapi erupted on Tuesday evening, spewing hot clouds several times. "Between 5.02 p.m. and 5.34 p.m. the volcano spewed hot clouds four times and right now hot clouds are coming out of the volcano again and again," Head of the Vulcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Centre Surono said.
The hot clouds signified the eruption of Mount Merapi after the agency had raised the alert status to the highest level the day before, he said.
Up to 8 pm, the number of injured victims had reached 15 people. They suffered from burns as a result of exposure to the hot clouds which showered the area. Rescuers took them to several hospitals, among others the Panti Nugroho hospital in Pakem and Sardjito hospital in Yoyakarta.
So far, a total of 1,756 residents from the three subdistricts in Sleman district, have been evacuated to several refugee centers when Mt Merapi status was raised to the red alert level.
"We give priority to risk prone groups of people such as elderly people, under five-year-old children, pregnant women, the disabled," chief rescuer Budharjo at the Mount Eruption Main disaster Command Post in Pakem, said.
He said that of the total refugees, 999 were from Cangkringan subdistrict, 519 from Pakem and and 247 from Turi sub-districts.
The number of population in Cangkringan reaches 4,492 with 1,116 included in the risk prone group. It has the capacity to accommodate 4,500 refugees. Pakem has a population of 6,871 with 2,102 people included in the risk prone group and with a capacity of accommodating 6,900 refugees.
In the meantime, Turi has 2,218 villagers with 527 people grouped in the risk prone one and a barrack capacity of accommodating 2,400 refugees.
Yoyakarta's Volcanic Technology Research and Development Agency (BPPTK) raised the status of Mt Merapi on Thursday from cautious to the alert level. Mt Merapi has four stages of status level, namely active in normal level, cautious, alert and red alert.
On Tuesday evening, when Mt Merapi erupted, the first hot cloud which emerged at 5.02 p.m. moved in westerly direction. But the next hot clouds could not be monitored well because of rains falling on the volcano's peak.
A danger siren at Kaliurang area in Sleman district sounded at 5.57. At 6.05 p.m. the Yogyakarta Vulcanological Technology Research and Development Center pulled out all its personnel from observatory posts.
"In the 2006 (eruption), hot clouds lasted for seven minutes. But this time the hot clouds have lasted for more than 20 minutes now," Surono said.
The long duration of hot clouds showed fairly powerful energy, he said.
At around 6.00 p.m. officers at the Jrakah and Selo posts heard three eruptions and later the volcano sent smoke 1.5 km into the sky. "It is sure the type of Merapi's eruption is explosive," he said.
In Magelang district, the Search and Rescue (SAR) team has earlier set up at least 10 emergency evacuation tents in a number of locations. "We have set up 10 tents in three evacuation locations," commandant of Magelang SAR team, Heri Prawato said.
The tents were set up in the villages of Ngargosoko in Dukun sub-district, Jeruk Agung in Srumbung sub-district and Tanjung in Muntilan district. The team will still set up tents in other places to provide assistance and emergency shelters for residents.
He said that of the ten tents, five in Ngargosoko with a capacity of accommodating 2,575 refugees from Kalibening village, Dukun sub-district, three in Jeruk Agung village and two others in Tanjung. Most of the areas of Magelang district which consisted of 21 sub-districts, were included in the danger zone.
In the meantime, the central government has provided Rp500 million in funds for handling thousands of people fleeing their villages near and inside Mount Merapi's danger zones.
Vice President Boediono handed the funds to Yogyakarta provincial authorities at the office of the Hargobinangun village head in Pakem sub-district, Sleman district, on Tuesday.
The money was taken from the Health Ministry's budget. Besides the funds, Health Minister Endang Rahayu Sedyaningsih had also provided operational funds totaling Rp200 million and medical services for the refugees.
The Health Ministry did not only supply four tons of medicines and 50,000 medical masks but also six tons of supplementary food to reinforce breast milk.
At least 70 people were killed when the volcano erupted in 1994 after its lava dome collapsed. The volcano killed an estimated 1,300 people in 1930. Mt Merapi last erupted in 2006 when it belched hot clouds, emitted glowing lava and showered its areas with dust rains.***3***(T.A014/H=NG ) 26 - Oct - 2010
Minggu, 24 Oktober 2010
RI TO DEVELOP SIX ECONOMIC CORRIDORS
| By Andi Abdussalam |
Jakarta, Oct 25 (ANTARA) - If successful, the government's plan to divide the country's economic development into economic zones and clusters will create jobs for members of the local community for mutual welfare. Called "Indonesia Economic Corridor 2011," the economic zone projects, which are now under discussion with the relevant ministries, are expected to start in 2011 and to be finished in 2025. The government is drawing up six economic corridors whose aim is to improve the local people's welfare. Each zone would be built in accordance with its potentials and aimed to create work balance with other zones. The economic zone development will prioritize the opening of new work opportunities for the local people, not people coming from other regions. Thus, the local people would enjoy the economic benefits. "With the economic concept which we are discussing it is expected that the economy and welfare of people living around the zone would be improved. This is expected to eliminate stories about poor people in their own regions," Chief Economic Minister Hatta Rajasa said on Sunday. The zoning will need a fund of US$60 billion and will jointly be supported by a number of parties such as private firms, public private partnership, foreign assistance, state-owned companies (BUMN) and state and regional budget (APBN/APBD), the coordinating minister for economic affairs said. Basically, the Indonesia Economic Corridor 2011 is a mid-term economic development which would be done until 2025. In the scheme, all economic development intended to improve the economic welfare in all regions in Indonesia will be divided into six economic zones. However, the minister did not yet mention the six economic corridors which would be launched by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in 2011 as at present his office was still discussing with the relevant agencies the steps to be taken for its realization. The economic corridors are designed as six economic development highways, mostly located along coastlines which would connect centers of economic growth in five islands of Java, Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and Papua. The minister said that each zone would be developed in accordance with its potentials and would be directed to create work balance among respective zones. The economic zone development would give priority to the opening of new work opportunities for the local people. The minister cited Lampung province as an example. It would be transformed into a new economic corridor with the government support to develop the Sunda Strait Bridge (JSS), which would connect Java island with Sumatra. "The JSS is a must project that should be done immediately owing to the fact that its function is strategic for the development of the economic zone concerned," Hatta said. He said that because its function was to accelerate the economic development, the government would not delay its development. "In 2014 at the latest, the physical construction of the bridge should have been started," the minister added. Lampung will serve as one of the new economic zone development which would cover the eastern coast of Sumatra as well other parts of West Java. For the zone, the government has prepared 14 large scale projects to generate the people's economy, including the one to be developed in Lampung. For the Indonesian eastern region, the minister cite as an example the zoning of Papua province which included Manokwari, Jayapura and Marauke which would be designed as a special economic zone for food and bio-based energy development. "With the economic concept which we are discussing it is expected that the economic and welfare of people living in around the zone would be improved so that there would be no longer stories about poor people in their own regions," he said. In the meantime, Japan has expressed interest in development of Indonesia's special economic zones, particularly the first corridor, spreading along the east coast of Sumatra to western part of Java. For this Japan is committed to invest in the projects with a fund of US$52.9 billion. "Economic corridors will be built in six locations in Indonesia," Minister Rajasa told newsmen after returning from a working visit to Japan last week where he met with Japanese business leaders. The minister said he discussed with Japan its plan to develop the six economic corridors during his visit to that country on October 14-16, 2010. The Indonesian government has offered a concept on the project initially focusing on infrastructure. The project will follow the model of those already constructed on Java island, the minister said. "I want something concrete here, namely building infrastructure in the six economic corridors, with Java as a model," he said. Rajasa spoke specifically about the construction of mass rapid transit or mass transportation system for the greater Jakarta region that included its buffer towns of Bogor, Depok, Tangerang and Bekasi. "Starting from MRT the discussion broadens to building seaports, airports and other such big projects," Rajasa said, adding that the projects offered to Japan did not include infrastructure projects in the eastern parts of the country. ***2*** |
Sabtu, 23 Oktober 2010
DOMESTIC CACAO INDUSTRY BEGINS TO THRIVE
| By Andi Abdussalam |
Jakarta, Oct 23 (ANTARA) - The government is optimistic that tax imposed on cacao bean export will help develop the domestic cacao processing industry and give the commodity added value as reflected in the industry's development in the past six monhs. Earlier, Indonesia, the world's third largest cacao producer, had exported about 80 percent of its beans. However, with the imposition of the export tax, exports could be cut for domestic grinders. The government hopes that in 2011 its exports of beans would drop from 80 percent to 50 percent. According to Vice Minister of Trade Mahendra Siregar, national cacao processing industry has recovered with companies already producing to capacity. "Right now it has fully recovered. Until the end of 2009 at least six companies have already produced 150,000 tons of processed cacao and this year the figure is expected to move up to 200,000 tons," he said. The government has since April 1, 2010 imposed a 15 percent tax on cacao bean exports in order to boost local processing industry and increase the added value of farmers cacao production. About 93 percent of Indonesia's 1.5 million hectares of cocoa plantations are owned by smallholders. Since the imposition of the regulation last April, several cacao processing companies have also planned to expand as of 2011 so that next year production of processed cacao is projected to rise to 300,000 tons or they would be able to process almost 50 percent of total national cacao bean production. Not only expansion, there were even at least seven foreign investors who had expressed intention in developing cacao bean processing plants in Indonesia. The seven foreign investors who have expressed keen interest in building cocoa processing plants in Indonesia are ADM Cocoa and Olam International of Singapore, Guanchong Cocoa of Malaysia, Cargill and Mars of the United States, Armajaro of Britan, and Ferrero of Italy, Director General of Agribusiness at the Industry Ministry Benny Wachjudi said. Benny said Guanchong Cocoa was likely to build a cocoa processing plant with an annual capacity of 50 thousand tons early next year. "I don't know when the investors will start investing. But they have asked for clarification on the possibility of the government reviewing the imposition of duties on cocoa exports," he said. In addition, he said local cocoa producer PT Bumitangerang Mesindotama would also double the production capacity of its plant in Tangerang, Banten province, to 80 thousand tons per year. The expansion project which would cost an estimated US$40 million would be completed in eight months' time, he said. Benny said a number of downstream cocoa processing plants had begun to revive their activities after they ceased operation. Chairman of the Indonesian Cocoa Producers Association (AIKI) Piter Jasman said the imposition of duties on cocoa exports had a positive impact on the growth of downstream industries. "Fifteen AIKI members have raised their production capacity. The national cocoa powder and butter production is projected to reach 300 thousand tons in 2011," he said. Indonesia's grinders are now seen processing 150,000 tonnes of cocoa beans this year, up 15.4 percent from last year, but still below capacity of 345,000 tonnes per year. According to Vice Minister Mahendra, the development was a sign of growth and improvement in the added value of domestic cacao beans as earlier almost 80 percent of national cacao bean production was exported. Mahendra said the recovery of the domestic cacao processing industry occurred following the implementation of cacao bean export tariff in April 2010. The regulation has proven to be able to promote national cacao processing industry and attract foreign investment in the sector. "It has gone as expected before," he said. Mahendra said according to the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) Indonesia is the world's third biggest producer of cacao beans after Ivory Coast and Ghana. The country's cacao bean production is recorded at 540,000 tons or 16.2 percent of the world's market while the Ivory Coast and Ghana respectively at 1.22 million tons and 680,000 tons. According the trade ministry's data the value of cacao exports from January to July 2010 was recorded at US$977 million, up more than 40 percent compared to the same period of 2009 which was at US$670 million. In the meantime, cacao bean exporters have asked the government to revise its cacao bean export tax regulation in order not to burden exporters and affect prices at the farmers' level. "Their product could not yet be absorbed by local industry so that farmers' income was low," Chairman of the Indonesian Cacao Business Association (Askindo), Zulhefi Sikumbang said. He said that in the last six months, the export tax was seemed to be borne by exporters while in fact it was borne by farmers. Therefore, he called for revision of the government's regulation on cacao beans export tax. Under decree No. 67/2010, dated April 1, the Finance Minister imposes a 0-15 percent tax on cacao beans based on the reference price in US currency. Tax is imposed on cacao bean exports with reference price beginning US$2000 per ton. Zulhefi said that export tax should be fixed based on the rupiah currency, not on the US currency, so that the rate would be in a fixed rate without any change in the rupiah rate against the US dollar changed. "The cacao export tax rate should be fixed at Rp1,000 per kg," he said adding that export tax should be imposed only if the cacao beans price exceeded US$2,700 per ton at the commodity prices in New York.***2*** |
Rabu, 20 Oktober 2010
HAZE BEGINS SHROUDING SOME PARTS OF SUMATRA
| By Andi Abdussalam |
Jakarta, Oct 20 (ANTARA) - Even though some parts of the country are still showered by rains, haze has begun blanketing some parts of Sumatra on Wednesday, particularly Riau and Riau Islands provinces. Yet no significant disturbance has been recorded. Only Dumai airport was temporarily closed on Wednesday while other transportation systems such land and shipping still proceeded normally. "We have not yet issued any policy to postpone or cancel the departure of passenger ships because the haze has not yet posed a threat to shipping," Tanjung Balai Karimun Seaport Administrator Gajah Rooseno said here on Wednesday. However, Pinang Kampai airport of Riau province, was temporarily closed as visibility was only about 500 meters. Head of Pinang Kampai airport Ackwin said visibility on the air was only about 500 meters. The visibility was beyond the normal conditions so that the airport was temporarily closed for reasons of flight safety. "We have postponed one flight to Jakarta this morning," Ackwin said. Haze which originates from land fires in several parts of Riau province was relatively thick but it did not seriously disturb visibility while some motorists have begun to turn on their headlights. Motorist Tajuddin (31) said he was surprised to see the haze that began shrouding the city as he left his home Tuesday morning. "I heard the news from the media that land fires have been taking place since several days ago," he said. Compared with that last year, this year's haze seemed to happen rarely as Tuesday's haze was the first to happen in October this year. "This is the first haze to happen in Pekanbaru this October," he said. Airport Duty Manager Sultan Syarif Kasim (SSK) II Pekanbaru, Ibnu Hasan, said that haze began shrouding Pekanbaru Tuesday morning. "But so far the haze has not yet significantly disturbed visibility," Hasan said. "This morning two airplanes, namely Garuda and Lion Air departed from the airport at about 7.0 am," he said. He said that at present the visibility was still about 10,000 meters at the airport which was safe for flights. The thick haze of forest and bush fires also blanketed the sky of Batam Island in Riau Islands Province. The smoke also blanketed the sky above the areas near Batam, such as that of the islands of Rempang and Galang. The haze was likely caused by the forest fires, and slash and burns on certain parts of the Sumatra Island, Agus Salim Lacuda said. Despite the cloudy sky as a result of the haze, flights were not yet hampered due to clear enough visibility, he said. "The pilots' visibility from Wednesday morning to mid day remains at six thousand meters. So this is still good for airplanes," said Lacuda, head of the Hang Nadim International Airport's Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics office. However, in Dumai, visibility at the airport was disturbed on Wednesday. As a result of thick haze shrouding the area, authorities at 7 a.m temporarily closed Pinang Kampai airport of Riau province, on Wednesday. Head of Pinang Kampai airport Ackwin said visibility on the air was only about 500 meters. The visibility was beyond the normal conditions so that the airport was temporarily closed for reasons of flight safety. "We have postponed one flight to Jakarta this morning," Ackwin said. He said that the weather condition was basically good but the haze was relatively thick that disturbed visibility. "We have also confirmation on the postponement of the departure of a helicopter from Pekanbaru (Riau capital city) to Dumai until the visibility could reach over 1,000 meters," he said. It was informed that the helicopter would depart from Pekanbaru to monitor forest fires in Dumai, Bengkalis and Rokan Hilir districts. Images of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) satellite showed increasing number of hot spots in Dumai city, reaching 18 in different sub-districts. On Tuesday,the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) satellite has detected 202 hot spots on Indonesia's Sumatra Island on Tuesday. The Pekanbaru-based Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency's analyst, Slamet Riyadi, said that most of the hot spots were found in South Sumatra Province with 66 hot spots. The remaining hot spots were detected in the provinces of Jambi, Riau, Bangka Belitung, North Sumatra, West Sumatra, Aceh, and Lampung with 42, 36, 24, 16, 13, 3 and 2 hot spots respectively, he said. On Monday, the imagery data released by NOAA satellite showed 358 hot spots throughout the island. But the number decreased to 202 thanks to rainfalls in some provinces, he said. The presence of hot spots in Riau and other provinces in Sumatra Island was one of the indications of forest and bush fires, "We are going to ask the central government (through forestry ministry) to provide us with funds for making artificial rain," he said. However, shipping activities, haze that covered areas over Karimun waters, Riu Islands, has not yet disturbed shipping activities at domestic and international port of Tanjung Balai Karimun, on Wednesday. "We have not yet issued any policy to postpone or cancel the departure of passenger ships because the haze has not yet posed a threat to shipping," Tanjung Balai Karimun Port Administrator Gajah Rooseno said. Gajah Rooseno said that skippers still had enough visibility in the sea and they still could use naked eyes for a distance of about 1.5 km. The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) has not yet issued a special warning with regard to the haze that began to blanket certain areas in Riau province. The haze was not coupled with bad weather such as strong winds that could trigger huge waves so that all directions of the shipping lines such as those towards Tanjungpinang and Singapore were still safe to sail. Based on the law, skippers should pay attention to haze conditions at sea in an effort to avoid collision with other ships. "Alertness can be carried out through various navigational symbols such as sounding the gong and trumpet so that the existence of a ship could be learned by other ships," Rooseno said. Besides, skippers should also optimize the use of radars and grand positioning system (GPS) to monitor passing ships. Shipping activities remained normal on Wednesday, for example, KM Ocean Indoma sailed towards Kukup, Johor, Malaysia based on schedules. ***3*** |
Senin, 18 Oktober 2010
PEKANBARU GEARING UP FOR NATIONAL SPORTS WEEK
| By Andi Abdussalam |
Jakarta, Oct 18 (ANTARA) - As one of the selected venues, Pekanbaru city, Riau province, is gearing up to host 39 branches of sports which would be competed in the 18th National Sports Week (PON) in September 2012. "We are now preparing the development of Siak III and IV bridges," Pekanbaru Mayor Herman Abdullah said when he explained on Monday preparations being made by Pekanbaru to host 39 branches of sports in the PON event. The 18th National Sports Week will compete 55 sports events with 555 gold medals, 555 silvers and 729 bronzes at stake. The mayor has earlier also called on the Riau provincial government to prepare supportive infrastructure for the national sports events. As an example, he cited the Siak IV bridge whose land clearance has been done by the mayoralty and local residents have received compensation. But the provincial government has not yet begun the construction of the bridge. "The same is true to the case of Siak III. The provincial government has said it was to finish the construction of the bridge at the end of the year but it would be better if it does it earlier," the mayor said. He said that the two bridges which connected various venues on Jalan Sudirman in Pekanbaru should have been completed and functioned well before the sports events took place. "The Siak bridges must be given priority. Moreover, Siak I which connects Pekanbaru and Rumbai district is already 33 years old. People fear that it could collapse anytime when it is being used," he said. In the meantime, a fund of Rp23 billion from the state budget for the maintenance of roads in Pekanbaru city has also been disbursed and is now ready to be used. "The funds now are ready to be used," Head of Pekanbaru City's Public Works Service Dedi Gusriadi said on Monday. The funds are mainly earmarked for the construction of infrastructure, particular infrastructure in the suburbs. About 70 percent of the funds are for infrastructure in the suburbs and 30 percent for infrastructure inside the city. In order to accelerate the implementation of the project the public works service will call tenders for the projects this month. "We will announce the winners of the tender in the third week of this month," Dedi said. He said that his side was optimistic that the project would be completed in the coming three months because the roads were only to be given hot-mixed overlays or to be expanded. The regional government of Pekanbaru city also planned to turn urban roads into a "green belt" with shadowy trees. "We have set ourselves a target of having planted 10,000 trees at the end of this year," the city mayor said. The trees are being planted in several sections of protocol roads which so far were still less green such as those on Jalan Juanda, Jalan Riau and Jalan Subrantas. A man-made lake as the venue for the water ski event is also being prepared with funds taken from the Riau 2010 revised budget (APBD). "We have set aside a fund for its construction from the APBD," Mayor Herman said. Small-and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are now being prepared to welcome the PON. They are directed to produce souvenirs. They are expected to provide handicraft products and meet the need for souvenirs during the national sports events. "We hope that the souvenir market during the PON event would not be taken over by traders from outside Riau province. Therefore, local SMEs should be prepared from now on to sell their products during the PON," the mayor said. For this purpose, the provincial government has began taking stocks of the number of SMEs in Riau province which was estimated at 470.585 units. "The Small-and Medium Sized-Businesses (UKM) Service of Riau through its districts/cities offices has begun surveying SMEs which are able to produce special souvenirs of Riu origin for the PON 2012," Chief of Riau's UKM service for infrastructure and facilities affairs Irianto said. There are several districts such as Bengkalis, Kuansing and Kampar have been directly assigned to produce souvenirs for the sports events in 2012. "The assignment of several districts in certain areas is based on the conditions of their locations which meet the requirements for sports events," Irianto said. However, all districts are asked to collect data through their cooperatives on the type of their handicraft products and special foods that could be use souvenirs. "This small businesses will be registered at the PON committee and be asked to select and the kinds of souvenirs for the PON," Irianto said.***4*** |
Minggu, 17 Oktober 2010
JAMBI CATFISH BREEDERS IN GLOOMY CONDITION
| By Andi Abdussalam |
Jakarta, Oct 17 (ANTARA) - Once enjoying a booming income, most of patin catfish (pangasius sp) breeders in Tangkit Baru village, Muarojambi district, Jambi province, have abandoned their ponds because fish breeding is no longer promising. After all, most of the breeders have often suffered losses as prices of fish meals continue to increase. "I think patin catfish breeding business is now in the stage of NDE (near-death experience) experience. More than 60 percent of the 1,400 fish ponds of various sizes in this village are now idle as they are abandoned by their owners," Bs Intang, a villager who cultivates 8 plots of ponds, said. As many fish breeders stopped cultivating their ponds, the catfish production of Tangkit Baru, a catfish producing village in Muarojambi district, has dropped drastically. "We used to produce some 10 tons catfish per day. But now, I think production is only about one to two tons per day," Bs Intang said. In response to the present conditions breeders are divided to two pessimistic and optimistic groups. "We simply have to change business. There is no more hope. The trend is that production cost continues to increase while profit margin continue to drop. If you don't stop you will loose," Abdullatif, another breeder whose ponds were affected by a flood recently, said. Others switch to other kind of fish. "I stop cultivating patin fish for the time being. I now breed 'gurame' fish which still a has good prospect. But we must be patient because we have to wait for about one year before it could be harvested," Harun, who is planning to increase the number of his ponds to 20 plots, said. According to Bs Intang, most of breeders who could survive in running fish ponds are those who produce their own fish meals. "They basically get profit from the fish foods they are producing," Intang said. Owing to the fact that production cost is higher than the yield, the fish production of Tangkit Baru dropped from about 10 tons per day to only one to two tons. Tangkit Baru village is only one of the catfish production centers in Muarojambi district. Jambi province has been declared as one of national catfish production centers. When production was booming, market could not absorb it while production cost was increasing. "So, what to do with the fish," Mulyadi said. In an effort to help fish breeders, Jamb's Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Service (DKP) is doing its best to increase the quality of patin catfish so that it would be able to compete in the market. So far, catfish production in Jambi is still marketed in the form fresh fish in traditional market. While modern market still give priority to processed fish produced by large scale industry at home and abroad. Head of Jambi's DKP Herman Suheraman said that there had been processed fish production by home industry in Jambi but it could not yet compete in the modern market. "There are three kinds of processed patin fish products which are the output of cottage industry in Jambi, namely patin 'abon' (boiled and fried shredded catfish meat), patin chips and patin jelly," Herman said. He said that the catfish cottage industry which was centered in Tangkit Baru village was not yet able to penetrate supermakets. There fore, the DKP would continue to develop the catfish home industry so that the three diversified processed products would be able to compete with those of large scale industry. Herman said that the rapid growth of patin culture, both by pond and floating cage systems, caused over production and drove price down. So, one of the way that could be taken to safeguard fish farmers and to increase the added value of their products is to process the fish into a semi-finished products which are ready for consumption. "However, marketing is still a problem, though it is already diversified," Herman said. He said that the DKP through the trade service continues to approach supermarket owners so that they were prepared to help sell the home made fish products. It has also cooperated with an expert from Thailand in an effort to increase the quality. "We actually hope that the processed catfish would be marketed in the local market in order to improve the people's nutritional intake," Herman Suherman. In order to increase the local people's nutritional intake, the DKP is allocating a fund of Rp4.6 billion for the development of patin fish in five districts in Jambi. Herman said that the funds were obtained from the state budget. "Five districts will become the target of patin fish culture as part of the efforts to improve the welfare of breeders," he said. In this case, Maurojambi district which had been appointed one of the patin fish production centers, has prepared 24 thousand hectares for fish culture, patin fish in particular. "This region has a very high potential vast land to help intensify this project, for which we have prepared 24,000 ha of fishery land," Muarojambi district head H Burhanudin Mahir said sometime ago. Jambi province's fish production increased 6.4 percent to 75.95 thousand tons in 2009 from 70.73 thousand tons in 2008. The increase in production is in line with the increase in the per capita consumption which was up 3.81 percent from 25.97 kg per annum in 2008 to 27. 0 per kg in 2009. ***2*** |
Sabtu, 16 Oktober 2010
"RAINBOW WARRIOR" STILL TRYING TO ENTER RI WATERS
| By Andi Abdussalam |
Jakarta, Oct 15 (ANTARA) - In spite of rejection by the government, Greenpeace's flagship "Rainbow Warrior" is still doing its best to get a permit to enter Indonesia's waters. The environmental activists' ship is still in international waters. "The permit is not yet issued. We are still doing our best to get permission for the ship to enter Indonesian waters," Greenpeace representative for Southeast Asia Nur Hidayati told ANTARA on Friday. She said that her side was still trying to ask for entry permit from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs so that Rainbow Warrier would be allowed to berth at Jakarta's Tanjung Priok port. Nur Hidayati said she did not know the real reason why the Greenpeace ship was barred from entering Indonesian waters. "We are trying to meet foreign ministry officials. We have sent a new trip plan. We have been refused entry because there was a change in our itinerary," Nur Hidayati said. Spokesperson for the Indonesian Foreign Affairs Ministry Teuku Faizasyah said earlier the Greenpeace vessel could not berth at Tanjung Priok port as the agenda delivered by Greenpeace's representative office in Indonesia did not match the agenda received by the Foreign Affairs Ministry from Greenpeace. "We found the difference two or three days before the vessel was scheduled to arrive in Indonesia. Thus, the ministry and other relevant institutions including the Defense Force (TNI) and the Transportation Ministry have yet to give the permit to the vessel," he said. On Friday, Faizasyah reaffirmed the Indonesian government's rejection of the environmental activists' "Rainbow Warrior" to enter the country's waters. "It has been decided that the ship will not be allowed to enter Indonesia," Foreign Ministry spokesman Teuku Faizasyah said. He said there are three offices responsible for giving access to the ship namely the ministry of foreign affairs, the ministry of transportation and the Defense Forces Headquarters. Regarding the reasons for not allowing the ship to come to the country Faizasyah said that they need not be made known to the public. "At least what is worth noting is that the reasons for making Indonesia as the destination were presented by different agencies while their program was submitted later on," he said. Faizasyah said the ship was expected to be in Indonesia for three months but Greenpeace had never given a detailed explanation about the activities to be done by the ship in the country. In the meantime, member of Parliament Azis Syamsudin said he supported the government's decision not to allow the Greenpeace boat "Rainbow Warrior" to come to Indonesia as it was feared to bring a mission harmful to the country. "I support the government's measure to refuse the arrival of the Greenpeace vessel in Indonesia before it proves that its visit is useful to Indonesia," said Azis who is a member of the House of Representatives (DPR)'s Commission III on legal and human rights affairs. Azis predicted the boat had a hidden agenda related to trade competition like black campaign against crude palm oil and paper from Indonesia. "Through its campaign in Indonesia, Greenpeace always says there are environmental damages which become a reason to reject our CPO and blames paper industries which were said to have used illegal logs. I am afraid it would be an agenda to weaken our economy," he said. Greenpeace Southeast Asia Executive Director Von Hernandes denied that "Rainbow Warrior" would bring a hidden agenda in its visit to Indonesia. "Therefore, we are sending a letter to explain our activities. We explained that we are only to meet our supporters in Indonesia," he said. However, according to Greenpeace Southeast Asia country representative Nur Hidayati, her side had not received a written reply from the ministry yet. "We are waiting for a written reply because we still feel uncertain. We have received only a verbal statement. If the ministry rejects there must be a written reply," she said. She said the mission of the ship was in fact supporting the government of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in its effort to reduce emissions of gas by 26 percent and forest moratorium. Greenpeace International executive director Kumi Naidoo had expressed disappointment over the Indonesian government for not allowing the ship to come to the country. The ship plans to conduct a campaign activity to promote solutions of climate change through energy efficiency and renew energy sources. The campaign themed "Turn the Tide" in Southeast Asia is scheduled to be done in Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines. Greenpeace's media spokesman for Southeast Asia Hikmat Soeriatanuwijaya said he was disappointed with the refusal as the visit of Rainbow Warriors was intended to make campaigns beneficial to Indonesia. "The visit of Rainbow Warrior is to commemorate the 10th year of Greenpeace's presence in Southeast Asia and the 5th year of its presence in Indonesia," he said. He said his side would make the public aware of the importance of taking anticipatory measures against disasters due to global climate changes, promoting renewable energy suitable for Indonesia and preventing tropical forests from damages. "We are not against oil palm as in principle, we support oil palm plantation so long as they do not damage forests," he said.***3*** |
Kamis, 14 Oktober 2010
WASIOR REFUGEES STILL FLOWING TO NEIGHBORING TOWNS
| By Andi Abdussalam |
Jakarta, Oct 14 (ANTARA) - Thousands of refugees from the flash flood-affected area in Teluk Wondama district, West Papua, have left or are still leaving for neighboring villages, districts or provinces after the natural disaster paralysed their town last week. Some are still leaving for other provinces such as Southeast Sulawesi, South Sulawesi or Maluku provinces. On Thursday. for example, a second batch of refugees totalling 183 persons arrived in Baubau, Southeast Sulawesi. The arrival of the second phase increased the number of Wasior refugees in Baubau to 667 people. It was reported that the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) had accommodated at least 4,771 flood refugees in Manokwari, capital of West Papua while 2,554 others took their own shelters or returned to their families. According to BNPB, 2,652 other refugees had also been accommodated at six refugee sites in Wasior and 355 others in neighboring Nabire. For those who wanted to evacuate to other provinces there were at least four airlines --apart from ships provided by state-owned shipping firm PT Pelni-- which are ready to serve them free of charge. The ministry of transportation announced on Wednesday three national airlines had offered their services for refugees who wanted to leave Wasior after the area was hit by a flash flood claiming the lives of 145 people and causing 103 others to go missing last week. "The four airlines are Merpati Nusantara Airlines, Batavia Air, Lion Air dan Airfast," Director General for Air Transportation Herry Bakti S. Gumay said. The four airline companies are ready to fly them to their respective destinations during the emergency response period in the coming several days. "Batavia Air, for example is ready to fly refugees from Manokwari to Makassar, South Sulawesi. It is free of charge," the director general said. Airfast is preparing a BAE aircraft to carry out evacuation activities from Manokwari to its neighbouring towns. Merpati readies one Twin Otter aircraft and one jet airplane. Lion Air in the meantime also has provided one aircraft. The airlines made the commitment to fly refugees in line with the appeal by Transportation Minister Freddy Numberi to national airline firm to help Wasior natural disaster victims. State-owned shipping line PT Pelni also operates its fleet to help refugees. It deployed "KM Ngapulu" ship to transport refugees to Baubau. On Thursday, it had more than 400 refugees to disembark in Baubau. The arrival of the refugees was welcomed by Baubau Mayor MZ Amirul Tamim. "We are mobilising different parties which consisted of personnel from the military and police forces, health services and transportation office to handle the refugees," the mayor said. He said that his side has prepared a refugees command post and places to accommodate them. "We have also prepared logistics needs which are being handled by Baubau's Social Affairs Service," Amirul Tamim said. Head of Southeast Sulawesi's Social Manpower and Transmigration Service, Amiruddin said that the number of Wasior refugees arriving in the second batch was higher than that in the first batch. "In the first phase, there were 183 Wasior refugees. In the second one this time, their number reaches 484 persons," he said. He said that the arrival of the second batch had been prepared by Baubau's local government in coordination with relevant agencies. "We pick them at the pier when they arrived. When they disembarked we directly took them to the location of refugee camps. Of course with a tight escort by security officers," he said. He said that the 484 refugees in the second phase consisted of 52 children and 10 infants. "Among the 484 refugees, there are 10 injured victims and they have been rushed to the hospital to receive medical treatment," he added. He said that the social service officials took their data as soon as they arrived in the location of the refugee accommodation facilities. "This is done to know the whole number of refugees because their number may just be bigger than the one issued by Pelni," he added. In the meantime, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has instructed a two-week extension of the Wasior flash flood emergency response. "Extend the emergency response by two weeks from the original schedule," President Yudhoyono said when inspecting the flood-hit area at Wasior on Thursday. The emergency response was originally scheduled for only ten days from October 8-18, 2010 but based on the president's instruction, it will be extended until the end of this month. The emergency response would be prioritized to the injured and sick survivors. Yudhoyono said the government would provide temporary housing for victims of the recent flash flood. "Better accommodations will be provided for them while reconstruction efforts in Wasior are being made," he said in a dialogue with evacuees at a local military field. He said it was indeed not appropriate for people to stay in an evacuation center for a prolonged period and therefore the government would build temporary houses that meet minimum standards for them. Meanwhile, he hoped the evacuees would exercise patience. President Yudhoyono on the occasion also reaffirmed the government's commitment to rebuild Wasior after it was destroyed in the disaster. He had earlier on Wednesday said in a dialog with the flood-affected refugees at Manokwari Military District Command Headquarters, that the government was committed to reconstructing the flood-devastated Wasior area.***3*** |
Rabu, 13 Oktober 2010
INDONESIAN NOODLES SAFE FOR CONSUMPTION
| By Andi Abdussalam |
Jakarta, Oct 13 (ANTARA) - While it is being recalled from Taiwan's supermarkets and food stores for allegedly containing methyl p-hydroxybenzoate and benzoic acid, Indonesian "Indomie" instant noodles remain on sale at home as the country's Food and Drugs Monitoring Agency (BPOM) has stated the fast food is still safe for consumption. "A product evaluation has been conducted before being sold to the public, the nipagin content in the noodle's soy sauce is still within the acceptable range ," BPOM head Kustantinah said. The soy sauce only contains 250 milligrams per kilogram of preservatives, which was still normal for consumption. According to the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) and risk study on additives, international terms had been used in the Indonesian Health Minister Regulation no 722 of 1988. "In noodle soy sauce, the maximum nipagin is limited to 250 milligrams per kilogram. In other food products besides meat, fish and poultry it reached 1,000 milligrams per kilogram," she said. Taiwan authorities late last week recalled all Indomie instant noodles from the market because they allegedly contain methyl p-hydroxybenzoate and benzoic acid. The two elements should only be used to make cosmetics. However, the Indonesian food monitoring agency said the instant noodle was safe consumption. Therefore, Indonesia has asked Taiwan to immediately clarify its allegations that Indonesian "Indomie" instant noodles were not safe for consumption. Indonesian Trade Minister Mari Elka Pangestu that all Indomie instant noodle products for domestic and international markets were safe for consumption. "With regard to Indomie we hereby again state that it is safe for consumption," she said. She said Indonesia and Taiwan apply different standards with regard to foods , to instant noodles and ketchup in particular. "The two standards are both internationally accepted. It means Indomie products which are marketed in Taiwan are also safe for consumption," she said. Producer of Indomie instant noodle, publicly-listed food giant PT Indofood Sukses Makmur (ICBP) said its products exported to Taiwan always meet local food safety standards. ICBP Director Taufik Wiraatmadja said the company believed the reports carried in Taiwanese media did not concern its instant noodles intended for the Taiwanese market. ICBP has been exporting instant noodles to various countries for more than 20 years. The company always tried to ensure that its instant noodles complied with food safety requirements set by the countries where they were marketed. "ICBP should like to emphasize that its products are wholly compliant with globally-accepted guidelines set by the CODEX Alimentarius Commission, the international food standards body," he said. According to Minister Mari Pangestu, Indomie products withdrawn by the Taiwanese food control authorities were found to be not the ones marketed in that country. "Indeed they had confiscated some Indomie products but they were actually not the ones intended for marketing in that country. So that is what really happened," she said. In connection with it she said she had communicated with the Taiwanese food and drug control authorities and had asked for their clarification on the matter. "What we wish to avoid is a perception that Indomie products are not safe for consumption while in fact it they are. So we want a clarification, the Taiwanese food and drug control agency should give clarification on the matter," she said. In the meantime, the deputy head of the Taiwan Trade Office in Jakarta (TETO), Chen Win-Ping, has denied that "dirty competition" was behind Taiwanese authorities' action in recalling Indonesian-made instant noodles. "It is not true," Chen said. He said personnel from Taiwan's Health Ministry had found out in May that Indomie contained an excessive amount of preservatives. The finding was also reported to Indonesia's Industry Ministry. Chen added related authorities had also contacted PT Indofood to reduce the content of Methyl P-Hydroxybenzoate in their product to the level meeting Taiwan's national standards. "However, after an examination of Indomie products sold in several stores in Taiwan last week, we still found the products to be containing an excessive amount of Methyl P-Hydroxybenzoate. Therefore, we asked all supermarkets and stores in Taiwan to remove Indomie from their shelves," he said. However, in Indonesia, the Health Ministry still sees no need to warn Indomie instant noodle consumers in Indonesia after Taiwanese authorities recalled the product from the market on a large scale. Health Minister Endang Rahayu Sedyaningsih said the ministry was studying whether the Indomie instant noodles marketed in Taiwan were the same as those circulating in Indonesia. "We have not issued any call because we do not yet understand whether the same Indomie instant noodles are also sold to us. This needs to be investigated," she said. The minister said she had ordered the BPOM to conduct the investigation after learning that Taiwanese authorities had banned Indomie instant noodles from circulating in their market. In this regard, the BPOM is reviewing the quality of instant noodles circulating in the domestic market. "Today we also have instructed all of our branches across Indonesia to take repeat samples of instant noodles of all brands," BPOM Chief Kustantinah told a press conference at the BPOM building. BPOM would take repeat samples outside periodic samples to see the quality of the instant noodles, she said. "We will examine the samples all at once and not one by one to make the examination more efficient and cheaper," she said.***2*** |
Senin, 11 Oktober 2010
IGNORANCE OF SPATIAL CONDITIONS BLAMED FOR WASIOR FLOODS
| By Andi Abdussalam |
Jakarta, Oct 12 (ANTARA) - Ministers have brushed aside allegations that illegal logging has been the main cause of a flash flood in West Papua's Waisor town last week. They have come up with a conclusion that earthquake-affected vulnerable land, heavy rains and ignorance of spatial conditions for human settlement have been the causes of the flash floods that led to the loss of 145 lives and 103 others missing. According to Environment Minister Gusti Muhammad Hatta, it is almost impossible that illegal logging has been the factor behind the flood. An earthquake has previously occurred that caused the land there to become unstable before it is showered by high intensity of rains that triggered the flash flood. After all, based on the spatial conditions, the area is not suitable for human settlement. "Inappropriate spatial conditions for human settlement contributed to the flash flood. Based on forestry sciences, the area is not suitable for human settlement. It is within a limited production forest area. We should be careful because if the forest cover is opened a little it could trigger landslides," Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan said on Monday. The forestry minister said that the area actually might not be made a human settlement because otherwise it would disturb the land spatial conditions and trigger landslides. After all the rain falls in that area are high. Wasior is located in a river flow area within a permanent forest production zone, and the government would not allow a forest concession to exploit the forest or to fell trees in the area. "The limited production forest area should not be transformed into a town because the area is steep. If it is resided by villagers with a developing population, residential area could expand up-side and could disturb the spatial condition which is steep, and that could trigger a landslide. But the main cause of the flood last week was heavy rains," Minister Zulkifli said. He said that the natural disaster was not caused by illegal logging and in the future the area should follow a good spatial planning and should be managed well based on the environmental principles. "I think the area should be managed based on a good spatial planning. Moreover, it is a nature reserve area. The forest cover may not be eliminated by whatever reasons. The spatial planning must be made based on the environmental principles and the principles of permanent forest production and nature preservation zones," he said. In the meantime, Environment Minister Gusti Muhammad Hatta concurred with Minister Zulkifli that the flood in Wasior was not caused by illegal longing. Gusti Muhammad Hatta said it was almost impossible that illegal logging had been the factor behind the recent flood. "I think the initial cause of the flash flood was high intensity of rains," he said here on Monday. He said based on satellite images of 2000 and 2009 it was seen that forest coverage in the area had dropped just one percent. "Besides that one must know that forests in Wasior are natural reserves so that they are protected tightly and monitored closely so that it is almost impossible that a forest concession holder is operating there," he said. "There were no corporate logging activities there. According to our investigation with the help of satellite photos, only one percent of the forest area in Wasior district was denuded in 2000 and 2009, probably for household purposes," the minister said. He admitted that it was not impossible that tree felling had occurred but it must have been not on a big scale but just by individuals and not by big companies. In addition, he said, the region had been hit by an earthquake before the flood occurred so the land there had become unstable. "In fact, before the flood, an earthquake struck the area which made the land there more unstable ," the minister added. Because of the earthquake the earth structure there had changed and some of it had covered the river making the water in the river to overflow. "So this has happened because of a natural phenomenon. If land clearing has really occurred it must not have been too significant," he said. In an effort to handle the flood problems, the government is considering relocating the victims and carry out reconstruction and rehabilitation. "The government will soon prepare a spatial plan for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the town shortly after the emergency response period ends," Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Agung Laksono said. The blue print would serve as reference for the reconstruction of the flash flood-devastated town to make it better than previously, he said. The government would soon issue a regulation concerning coordination among ministries involved in the rehabilitation and reconstruction efforts, he said. "A total of 12 school buildings and one hospital were damaged in the flash flood. Only the natural disaster mitigation board, regent, district military command and police resort chief are involved in the emergency response efforts. After the emergency response period has ended they will transfer the jobs to the relevant ministries," he said. Agung Laksono said that the government was also studying the possibility of relocating the flood victims. "The possibility (of relocating them) is still being studied," he said. The effort is to be taken with regard to providing a safer place for them after recent flash floods destroyed the area. "The government will find the best and most secure place for them," he said. The relocation process would later be put in a local regulation to prevent it from violating spatial regulations. "Today the government has already started finding the best places for the Wasior flood victims," he said. ***3*** |