Indonesian Pres. Promises To "Cut Red Tape" For More Mining, Roads, Power Gen In Protected Forests

[hatrack]

JAKARTA - Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has signed a decree to allow projects including mining, power plants, transport and renewable energy deemed strategically important to take place in protected forests.

Yudhoyono has pledged to do more to cut through red tape and prevent overlapping regulations slowing down projects ranging from mining to toll roads in the resource-rich developing nation in his second term in office. Increasing exploitation of mineral resources and speeding up infrastructure development is seen as key for boosting growth and creating jobs in Southeast Asia's biggest economy.

But the decree, which was obtained by Reuters and came into effect on February 1, will anger green groups given Indonesia already has one of the fastest rates of deforestation in the world. "The use of forest areas for development activities can be done for unavoidable strategic purposes," said the decree, which cited key development projects as including power plants, renewable energy, toll roads and train lines.

The decree said open-pit and underground mining could take place in production forests, which is a forest area that is considered neglected or abandoned after trees have been cut. "In a protected forest, mining can be done through underground mining," the decree said. The decree defined mining activities as including oil and gas, minerals, coal and geothermal. Indonesia's state oil firm Pertamina has previously urged the forestry ministry to allow geothermal activities in protected forest as most of geothermal reserves are located in these areas.

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http://planetark.org/enviro-news/item/56935