Fishermen hamper mangrove reforestation efforts in Jakarta

The Jakarta Post 20 Nov 07

Efforts to revitalize Jakarta's dwindling mangrove forests in Muara Angke have been hampered by local fishermen farming shrimp and fishing in the designated conservation area, a ranger from the Forestry Ministry told The Jakarta Post last week.

Angke Kapuk mangrove reserve ranger Resijati Wasito said fish farmers had cleared approximately 80 percent of the 100 hectare wetlands.

The reforestation program has been hindered by fishermen rearing milk fish and shrimp and removing mangrove trees and their roots, he said.

"It's hard to deal with the illegal fishermen. We've asked them to leave, because this conservation area belongs to the Forestry Ministry, but they keep returning.

"They damaged seedlings we planted, and even threatened us with machetes to try to stop us planting more trees," Resijati said.

He said there were currently some 30 fishermen and their families living in shanties in the Angke Kapuk reserve, even though the land was acquired by the ministry in 1988.

Resijati told the Post the government also gave compensation to fishermen who left the area, but those efforts appeared to be fruitless.

"We continue to ask them to leave because we have no authority to expel them. We've also asked for military personnel to protect new trees," he said.

The reserve has changed substantially with the fish farming. Where once stood a shady forest of mangrove trees, now there are only milk fish ponds.

In 2002 the Forestry Ministry and the reserve developer, PT Murindra Karya Lestari, planted some 50,000 mangrove seedlings, but most of them were uprooted by fishermen, leaving only around 100, Resijati said.

Since 2004 some 14,000 mangrove seedlings have been planted with better supervision. Around 10,000 can now be seen near the ponds.

Resijati said left undisturbed it would take seedlings nearly 10 years to grow into a forest.

Kapuk Angke natural reserve, together with the nearby Muara Angke wildlife reserve and protected forest, are the only remaining mangrove forest sites in Jakarta, whose coastline stretches some 32 kilometers from east to west. The three reserve sites total some 170 hectares.

Most of Jakarta's mangrove forests have been cleared not only for fish farming, but also for building developments, which have an even greater environmental impact, Resijati said.

He said mangrove forest wetlands play a crucial role in slowing the abrasion of beaches, protecting the city from big ocean waves and flooding, and serve as a nursery for marine life and a feeding grounds for a large number of animals.

The forests, he said, also function as green belts, protecting groundwater in nearby areas from salination. (wda)