Indonesia unveils policy to speed up expansion of mangroves

Xinhua 7 Sep 17;

JAKARTA, Sept. 7 (Xinhua) -- The government of Indonesia has issued a regulation to preserve and accelerate expansion of mangrove forest in the archipelagic nation, a senior government official said here on Thursday.

The rules provide guidance to provincial administrations and other stakeholders in managing mangrove forest based on the characteristic of their territory, said Montty Girianna, deputy for energy, natural resources and environment management at the chief economic ministry.

The rule would also be expected to prevent and restore damages in mangrove forest in the country, according to the official.

According to ministry of environment and forestry it has been recorded 1.67 million hectares of damages in Indonesia's mangroves forest and only a total of 1.82 million hectares remains in a good condition.

"So that, our target of a 3.49 million hectares of mangroves forest coverage can be achieved in 2045," said Girianna.

Under the rules, it was also included public participation in preserving mangroves forest and planting coastline with plants.

Indonesia, home to over 17,500 islands, has about 95,000 kilometers coastline and harbors nearly a quarter of the world's mangroves.