Report: 88 percent of logging in Indonesia is illegal

2011-06-23 01:40:56 GMT+7 (ICT)

JAKARTA, INDONESIA (BNO NEWS) -- The Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) on Wednesday said that a Greenpeace report showed that up to 88 percent of Indonesia's logging activity is illegal, greatly affecting the country's environment and economy.

ICW researcher Donal Fariz told the Jakarta Post that in addition to the ecological impacts of illegal logging, the state posts annual losses of at least Rp 30.3 trillion ($3.51 billion), according to a study made by Indonesia's Supreme Audit Agency.

Fariz also called for legal action against regional administration chiefs that are involved in corruption cases, allowing illegal logging to continue throughout the country. "We cannot play down illegal logging," Fariz stated, adding that illegal logging was not "an ordinary crime" in terms of the number of perpetrators and the amount of state losses. "It is very alarming," he said.

According to the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF), Indonesia's Javan rhinoceros, its Sumatran tiger and its Borneo pygmy elephant are among the world's animals closest to extinction. These species, among many others that are native to the Southeast Asian country, are in constant danger due to poaching, habitat loss and climate change-related threats.

While Indonesia boasts a great biodiversity with as many as 300,000 animal species, including 17 percent of worldwide fauna species, the World Conservation Union has listed 147 mammals, 114 birds, 91 fish and 2 invertebrate species in the country as endangered.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2011-06-23

when compared with 90% of what happens in Indonesia is technically illegal, it does not raise an eye brow.