A helicopter sprays water on a burning forest near Dumai in Riau province, Indonesia, April 5, 2018. (Source:Antara)Hanoi (VNA) - IndonesianPresident Joko Widodo has issued a permanent moratorium on new forest clearancefor activities such as palm plantations or logging, according to EnvironmentMinister Siti Nurbaya Bakar.
The moratorium, which covers around 66 million hectares of primary forest andpeatland, was applied in 2011 and has been renewed regularly as part of thecountry’s efforts to reduce emissions from fires caused by deforestation.
Under the decision, ministers, governors and other officials were asked tostop issuing new permits for forestclearance activities in within the moratorium area.
The moratorium decision comes after local authoritiesdeclared an emergency in six provinces on the islands of Sumatra and Borneowhere smoke from outbreaks of forest fires have started causing acuterespiratory infections.
According to Greenpeace, Indonesia has had one of the highestrates of deforestation in the world, with more than 74 million hectares ofrainforest – an area nearly twice the size of Japan – logged, burned or degradedin the last half century.-VNA
VNA
