PT. Asia Aditama Shipyard merusak hutan mangrove tanpa AMDAL dan Izin Lingkungan Balikpapan
10 Januari 2015
Berdasarkan analysis data dari citra satelit, perusahaan PT.Asia Aditama Shipyard telah melakukan pengurukan/reklamasi pantai, pembukaan lahan tanpa AMDAL dan Izin Lingkungan dikawasan kerjanya yang terletak di Teluk Balikpapan. Registrasi perusahaan ini adalah sebagai "Shipbuilder - Repairer", itu berarti mereka rencana membuat sebuah galangan kapal.
Kawasan yang terpengaruhi oleh reklamasi pantai tersebut termasuk bekas tambak, hutan mangrove dan hutan pantai diantara Sungai Berengadan Sungai Tempadung Kegiatan PT.Asia Aditama Shipyard telah menimbulkan dampakter jadi nya kerus akan pada kawasan hutan mangrove, kebakaran hutan serta pembukaan jalan ke dalam hutan dengan nilai konservasi tinggi yang merupakan salah satu habitat yang penting untuk konservasi bekantan (monyet hidung besar), duyung dan pesut laut. Kawasan ini juga sangat penting sebagai kawasan perikanana oleh para nelayan dari kampung Pantai Lango, Gersik dan Jenebora dan punya potensie kowisata yang sangat tinggi. Perusakan lingkungan ini telah dilaporkan kepada BLH kotamadya Balikpapan oleh kelompok masyarakat setembat.
Berdasarkan pada fakta yakni kegiatan PT. Asia Aditama Shipyard di Teluk Balikpapan tanpa disertai dengan Amdal, pada dasarnya merupakan perbuatan yang melawan ketentuan UU 32 Tahun 2009, yakni ketentuan pada Pasal 36 ayat (1) Jo Pasal 109, yang menyatakan sebagai berikut:
Pasal 36 ayat (1) UU 32 Tahun 2009:
Setiap usaha dan/atau kegiatan yang wajib memiliki amdal atau UKL-UPL wajib memiliki izin lingkungan.
Pasal 109 UU 32 Tahun 2009:
Setiap orang yang melakukan usaha dan/atau kegiatan tanpa memiliki izin lingkungan sebagaimana dimaksud dalam Pasal 36 ayat (1), dipidana dengan pidana penjara paling singkat 1 (satu) tahun dan paling lama 3 (tiga) tahun dan denda paling sedikit Rp1.000.000.000,00 (satu miliar rupiah) dan paling banyak Rp3.000.000.000,00 (tiga miliar rupiah).
Masyarakat yang peduli terhadap lingkungan hidup Kawasan Teluk Balikpapan dapat melakukan upaya hukum sebagaimana yang diatur dalam Peraturan Menteri Lingkungan Hidup Nomor 4 Tahun 2013 Tentang Pedoman Penyelesaian Sengketa Lingkungan Hidup. Diharapkan, pihak yang berwenang dalam hal ini (yaitu, Badan Lingkungan Hidup Kota Balikpapan atau Kepala Kantor Perwakilan Kementrian Lingkungan Hidup yang berada di Balikpapan) agar dapat melakukan tindakan pengawasan dalam rangka memastikan kepatuhan PT. Asia Aditama Shipyard terhadap ketentuan Lingkungan Hidup, disertai dengan Sanksi Administrasi yakni pencabutan Izin yang dimiliki oleh PT. Asia Aditama Shipyard. (Peraturan Menteri Lingkungan Hidup Nomor 4 Tahun 2013).
Selain PT.Asia Aditama Shipyard ada 2 perusahaan lagi yang sedang melakukan reklamasi pantai di kawasan mangrove Teluk Balikpapan, yaitu PT Semen Indonesia dan PT PELINDO, keduanya di kawasan hutan mangrove Sungai Puda. Dua perusahaan tersebut tetap melanjutkann pembangunan di hutan mangrove Sungai Puda yang saat ini status kawasaananya diperuntukan sebagai kawasan lindung dalam Perda No 12 Tahun 2012 tentang RTRWK Balikpapan Tahun 2012-2032. Hal ini dapat dibuktikan dari citra satelit, yang merupakan sumber data uang tidak bisa dipalsukan dan bisa merupakan bukti yang kuat di pengadilan.
Stan Lhota, MS.Sc., Ph.D.
Peneliti dari University of Life Sciences (Republik Ceko) yang pernah melakukan penelitian ekologi di Teluk Balikpapan
More destruction of Balikpapan Bay
1. Forest clearing in a protected coastal areas, ie. less than 200 metres from the sea.
The status of the area is High Conservation Value Forest. Its location is at the mouth of the River Berenga in the Tempadung estuary. The area being cleared with heavy machinery is broader than the former pond and a building has been erected.
The stones on the shores are an indication that there is the intention to build a pier. This area is very close to seagrass beds and coral reefs, the food sources for dugongs and dolphins. We are confident that confident that there is no licence for the work, or environmental analysis submitted given the high conservation value of the area.
2. Damage to the second mangrove estuary is happening in Puda where a company (yet to be confirmed PT Semen Gresik) has begun to build a wharf outside the Kariangau Industrial Area designated in the 2013-2032 Spatial Plan. This is an area of mangroves and construction is not in accordance with the Spatial Plan.
The status of the area is High Conservation Value Forest. Its location is at the mouth of the River Berenga in the Tempadung estuary. The area being cleared with heavy machinery is broader than the former pond and a building has been erected.
The stones on the shores are an indication that there is the intention to build a pier. This area is very close to seagrass beds and coral reefs, the food sources for dugongs and dolphins. We are confident that confident that there is no licence for the work, or environmental analysis submitted given the high conservation value of the area.
2. Damage to the second mangrove estuary is happening in Puda where a company (yet to be confirmed PT Semen Gresik) has begun to build a wharf outside the Kariangau Industrial Area designated in the 2013-2032 Spatial Plan. This is an area of mangroves and construction is not in accordance with the Spatial Plan.
Map of the two locations
Much more info about the ongoing destruction of this environmentally important site can be found here
Press Release re Wilmar
DEFORESTATION WITHOUT BREAKING ZERO-DEFORESTATION POLICY
Biodiversity hotspot in East Kalimantan threatened by Wilmar
BALIKPAPAN, 27 February 2014.
Public meeting, held by Wilmar in Hotel Tiga Mustika in Balikpapan, incidentally drew attention to inconsistencies in Wilmar’s commitment to zero-deforestation, which has been agreed on 5th December 2013. A proposal to destroy one of the last remaining biodiversity hotspots along the East Kalimantan coast has been revealed on the meeting, as Wilmar advocated for their proposal to locate a crude palm oil refinery by PT Wilmar Nabati Indonesia (WINA) in Balikpapan Bay. Wilmar is trying to deny the high conservation value of the land under their concession.
The concession of PT WINA in Balikpapan Bay covers 149.8 ha of forest. Since 2008, numerous NGOs, researchers and environmental activists have opposed Wilmar’s project to locate a palm oil refinery in this area. The HCV Forest assessment, conducted recently by Wilmar’s contractor, PT Re.Mark Asia, was reaction to these protests. It however proves to be only an awkward attempt by Wilmar to conduct deforestation without formally breaking the zero-deforestation policy.
The report is based more on paperwork rather than field data and makes provision for Wilmar’s needs rather than for objective criteria of HCV Forest assessment. In result, the report denies the high conservation value for most of the concession. Only 22.73 ha are considered to be a HCV Forest, which is a significant underestimate. The real extent of the HCV Forest is in fact close to the total area of the concession (149.8 ha). This represents almost 87% underestimate of the total extent of the HCV area.
One of the apparent limitations of the HCV Forest Assessment by PT Re.Mark Asia is the lack of field data (only 4-5 days of field work) and the extensive use of unreliable and highly questionable secondary resources. For example, data from previous Environmental Impact Assessments (AMDAL, UKL/UPL) have been used, regardless of the fact that these data are well known to be highly inaccurate and often purposely manipulated.
The report significantly underestimates the total extent of forest with high concentration of biodiversity values, and fails altogether to give the appropriate status to the area that represents extensive natural environments, endangered and interconnected ecosystems, forests critical to erosion and sedimentation control and forests fundamental to meeting basic needs of local communities.
The report diametrically misinterprets the status of the mangrove forest within the PT WINA concession. It considers 86% of the mangrove forest to having been changed into scrubland and shrimp farms, while in fact, 100% of the mangroves were in reasonably good condition before Wilmar took over the concession. It also entirely denies the existence and high conservation value of extensive secondary forest, by classifying it a scrubland as well. In fact however, these forests are home to numerous endangered species, including one of the world’s biggest populations of proboscis monkeys. It is one of the most important biodiversity hotspots that still remain along the coast of East Kalimantan.
Furthermore, the HCV Forest assessment denies the crucial environmental services of the forest within Wilmar’s concession, such as preventing erosion and sedimentation in Balikpapan Bay. The report fails to acknowledge that Balikpapan Bay represents a relatively closed water system, with limited and slow water exchange with open sea of the Makassar Strait. This means that the sediment and industrial waste is not washed into open sea and instead accumulates in Balikpapan Bay. This may result in extremely heavy sedimentation, which is causing death of ecosystems such as coral reefs and sea grass beds (the key feeding areas for dugongs).
Furthermore, decreased light penetration due to heavy sediment load restrains overall productivity of the ecosystem. This in turns leads to serious threats to the population of marine mammals, the collapse of local fishery and increased poverty in coastal villages, where 80 % of the inhabitants are fishermen. Traditional fishery is the major and most vital economic activity within this ecosystem. Together with ecotourism (and possibly carbon trading), it represents truly sustainable economic activity in Balikpapan Bay. Ecosystem destruction due to land clearing, deforestation and coastal reclamation, increasing underwater noise and industrial pollution, is causing serious damage to the local fishery.
Exposing this environmental case highlights a serious loophole in Wilmar’s new zero-deforestation policy. The policy, in theory, does not allow any further conversion of the High Conservation Forest, either by Wilmar or by its subsidiaries, either for palm oil plantations, palm oil mills or crude palm oil refineries. This commendable decision raised a lot of positive response from environmental NGOs and helps Wilmar to develop good image and to secure valuable business contracts.
However, the case of Balikpapan Bay shows that simply by assessing an area as not-having high conservation value, Wilmar can still continue in deforestation without formally breaking the zero-deforestation policy. Such loophole would enable Wilmar to proceed in conversion of any forest by claiming that it is not a HCV area. Such zero-deforestation policy would be meaningless.
However, we believe that if Wilmar is serious with their zero-deforestation policy, this can only be proved by the unconditional halting of any further development in Balikpapan Bay.
Balikpapan Bay represents an important test, which will show to the international community how serious Wilmar is with the new zero-deforestation policy.
Contact:
Stan Lhota, M.Sc., Ph.D
(Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague)
Biodiversity hotspot in East Kalimantan threatened by Wilmar
BALIKPAPAN, 27 February 2014.
Public meeting, held by Wilmar in Hotel Tiga Mustika in Balikpapan, incidentally drew attention to inconsistencies in Wilmar’s commitment to zero-deforestation, which has been agreed on 5th December 2013. A proposal to destroy one of the last remaining biodiversity hotspots along the East Kalimantan coast has been revealed on the meeting, as Wilmar advocated for their proposal to locate a crude palm oil refinery by PT Wilmar Nabati Indonesia (WINA) in Balikpapan Bay. Wilmar is trying to deny the high conservation value of the land under their concession.
The concession of PT WINA in Balikpapan Bay covers 149.8 ha of forest. Since 2008, numerous NGOs, researchers and environmental activists have opposed Wilmar’s project to locate a palm oil refinery in this area. The HCV Forest assessment, conducted recently by Wilmar’s contractor, PT Re.Mark Asia, was reaction to these protests. It however proves to be only an awkward attempt by Wilmar to conduct deforestation without formally breaking the zero-deforestation policy.
The report is based more on paperwork rather than field data and makes provision for Wilmar’s needs rather than for objective criteria of HCV Forest assessment. In result, the report denies the high conservation value for most of the concession. Only 22.73 ha are considered to be a HCV Forest, which is a significant underestimate. The real extent of the HCV Forest is in fact close to the total area of the concession (149.8 ha). This represents almost 87% underestimate of the total extent of the HCV area.
One of the apparent limitations of the HCV Forest Assessment by PT Re.Mark Asia is the lack of field data (only 4-5 days of field work) and the extensive use of unreliable and highly questionable secondary resources. For example, data from previous Environmental Impact Assessments (AMDAL, UKL/UPL) have been used, regardless of the fact that these data are well known to be highly inaccurate and often purposely manipulated.
The report significantly underestimates the total extent of forest with high concentration of biodiversity values, and fails altogether to give the appropriate status to the area that represents extensive natural environments, endangered and interconnected ecosystems, forests critical to erosion and sedimentation control and forests fundamental to meeting basic needs of local communities.
The report diametrically misinterprets the status of the mangrove forest within the PT WINA concession. It considers 86% of the mangrove forest to having been changed into scrubland and shrimp farms, while in fact, 100% of the mangroves were in reasonably good condition before Wilmar took over the concession. It also entirely denies the existence and high conservation value of extensive secondary forest, by classifying it a scrubland as well. In fact however, these forests are home to numerous endangered species, including one of the world’s biggest populations of proboscis monkeys. It is one of the most important biodiversity hotspots that still remain along the coast of East Kalimantan.
Furthermore, the HCV Forest assessment denies the crucial environmental services of the forest within Wilmar’s concession, such as preventing erosion and sedimentation in Balikpapan Bay. The report fails to acknowledge that Balikpapan Bay represents a relatively closed water system, with limited and slow water exchange with open sea of the Makassar Strait. This means that the sediment and industrial waste is not washed into open sea and instead accumulates in Balikpapan Bay. This may result in extremely heavy sedimentation, which is causing death of ecosystems such as coral reefs and sea grass beds (the key feeding areas for dugongs).
Furthermore, decreased light penetration due to heavy sediment load restrains overall productivity of the ecosystem. This in turns leads to serious threats to the population of marine mammals, the collapse of local fishery and increased poverty in coastal villages, where 80 % of the inhabitants are fishermen. Traditional fishery is the major and most vital economic activity within this ecosystem. Together with ecotourism (and possibly carbon trading), it represents truly sustainable economic activity in Balikpapan Bay. Ecosystem destruction due to land clearing, deforestation and coastal reclamation, increasing underwater noise and industrial pollution, is causing serious damage to the local fishery.
Exposing this environmental case highlights a serious loophole in Wilmar’s new zero-deforestation policy. The policy, in theory, does not allow any further conversion of the High Conservation Forest, either by Wilmar or by its subsidiaries, either for palm oil plantations, palm oil mills or crude palm oil refineries. This commendable decision raised a lot of positive response from environmental NGOs and helps Wilmar to develop good image and to secure valuable business contracts.
However, the case of Balikpapan Bay shows that simply by assessing an area as not-having high conservation value, Wilmar can still continue in deforestation without formally breaking the zero-deforestation policy. Such loophole would enable Wilmar to proceed in conversion of any forest by claiming that it is not a HCV area. Such zero-deforestation policy would be meaningless.
However, we believe that if Wilmar is serious with their zero-deforestation policy, this can only be proved by the unconditional halting of any further development in Balikpapan Bay.
Balikpapan Bay represents an important test, which will show to the international community how serious Wilmar is with the new zero-deforestation policy.
Contact:
Stan Lhota, M.Sc., Ph.D
(Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague)
Wilmar Violates the Zero-Deforestation Policy
PRESS RELEASE
Public Consultation without the Public: How Wilmar Violates the Zero-Deforestation Policy
BALIKPAPAN, 11. 2. 2014.
A total of 18 NGOs and researchers sent an official letter to Wilmar, in which they complain that a public meeting, which discussed the proposed conversion of a High Conservation Value Forest in Balikpapan Bay, was held in absence of any conservation NGOs.
Several large corporations, responsible for large-scale destruction of the rainforest in recent past, are beginning to commit to a new zero-deforestation policy. One of them is Wilmar, the biggest producer of palm oil, headquartered in Singapore, who signed the commitment to zero-deforestation on 5th December 2013 - a decision which earned them huge popularity.
However the recent case of Wilmar’s subsidiary, PT. Wilmar Nabati Indonesia (PT WINA), shows that the situation may not be as good as it appears. PT WINA, formerly PT Mekar Bumi Andalas (PT MBA), is already known for the destruction of the protected riverside and coastal mangrove forest in Berenga River (Balikpapan Bay, East Kalimantan, Indonesia) in 2007-2008. This case of mangrove swamp conversion is under investigation by RSPO (Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil) and the case remains unresolved, thus preventing Wilmar from achieving certification of their products.
Now however, Wilmar proposes additional forest clearance within its 150 ha concession in Balikpapan Bay, which is located in a coastal forest of exceptionally high biodiversity and ecological values; the area represents an important habitat for proboscis monkeys and other endangered species. The plan to convert this ecosystem into a giant palm oil bulking and processing industrial complex is in a sharp contrast with Wilmar’s recently announced zero-deforestation policy. In this policy, Wilmar commits to immediately stop deforestation of any forests of High Conservation Value (HCV).
There is however indication that Wilmar may try to avoid the limitations imposed by their new policy by proposing that the forest to be converted is not one of High Conservation Value. A recent incident in Balikpapan supports this suspicion. On 28th January 2014, Wilmar organized a public consultation on the Environmental Impact Assessment and High Conservation Value Forest Assessment of the highly controversial project of palm oil bulking station and refinery, which is to be built in Balikpapan Bay.
The invitation letter was dated 24 January 2014 and it included a long list of conservation NGOs, such as WWF, TNC, BOS-F, WALHI/FoE, amongst other, as well as the University of Mulawarman and two foreign researchers.
However, the invitation to attend the meeting was not sent by Wilmar to most of the organizations, and only one of those listed received an official written invitation. A few more received a phone call but it was just one day before the meeting so too late for everybody to attend. This was even worsened by the fact that the venue (a school in a village Teluk Waru) was too difficult to access for most participants, therefore none of the conservationists were able to attend the public consultation.
On Tuesday, 11th January 2014, a total of 18 conservation NGOs and researchers responded to Wilmar with an official letter, in which they complain that a public meeting, which concerns such important environmental issues, must include the conservation NGOs. The organizations consider the public consultation held in 28th January to be invalid due to their absence, and require that Wilmar organizes the meeting once again and properly.
They require that the invitations must be sent in e-mail at least one week in advance, the venue needs to be better accessible and the participants need to receive written supporting materials together with the invitation.
The case of Balikpapan Bay became the first important test to Wilmar’s commitment to their new zero-deforestation policy, and will certainly not be the last.
Therefore, organizations such as Greenpeace and The Forest Trust (TFT), which have been involved in signing Wilmar’s zero-deforestation policy, will be regularly updated about the ongoing development in Balikpapan Bay.
Stanislav Lhota, M.Sc., Ph.D.
Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague
Usti nad Labem Zoo
IUCN SSC Primate Specialist Group
Public Consultation without the Public: How Wilmar Violates the Zero-Deforestation Policy
BALIKPAPAN, 11. 2. 2014.
A total of 18 NGOs and researchers sent an official letter to Wilmar, in which they complain that a public meeting, which discussed the proposed conversion of a High Conservation Value Forest in Balikpapan Bay, was held in absence of any conservation NGOs.
Mangrove conversion into palm oil processing plant station by Wilmar - Balikpapan Bay 2013
Several large corporations, responsible for large-scale destruction of the rainforest in recent past, are beginning to commit to a new zero-deforestation policy. One of them is Wilmar, the biggest producer of palm oil, headquartered in Singapore, who signed the commitment to zero-deforestation on 5th December 2013 - a decision which earned them huge popularity.
However the recent case of Wilmar’s subsidiary, PT. Wilmar Nabati Indonesia (PT WINA), shows that the situation may not be as good as it appears. PT WINA, formerly PT Mekar Bumi Andalas (PT MBA), is already known for the destruction of the protected riverside and coastal mangrove forest in Berenga River (Balikpapan Bay, East Kalimantan, Indonesia) in 2007-2008. This case of mangrove swamp conversion is under investigation by RSPO (Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil) and the case remains unresolved, thus preventing Wilmar from achieving certification of their products.
Now however, Wilmar proposes additional forest clearance within its 150 ha concession in Balikpapan Bay, which is located in a coastal forest of exceptionally high biodiversity and ecological values; the area represents an important habitat for proboscis monkeys and other endangered species. The plan to convert this ecosystem into a giant palm oil bulking and processing industrial complex is in a sharp contrast with Wilmar’s recently announced zero-deforestation policy. In this policy, Wilmar commits to immediately stop deforestation of any forests of High Conservation Value (HCV).
There is however indication that Wilmar may try to avoid the limitations imposed by their new policy by proposing that the forest to be converted is not one of High Conservation Value. A recent incident in Balikpapan supports this suspicion. On 28th January 2014, Wilmar organized a public consultation on the Environmental Impact Assessment and High Conservation Value Forest Assessment of the highly controversial project of palm oil bulking station and refinery, which is to be built in Balikpapan Bay.
The invitation letter was dated 24 January 2014 and it included a long list of conservation NGOs, such as WWF, TNC, BOS-F, WALHI/FoE, amongst other, as well as the University of Mulawarman and two foreign researchers.
However, the invitation to attend the meeting was not sent by Wilmar to most of the organizations, and only one of those listed received an official written invitation. A few more received a phone call but it was just one day before the meeting so too late for everybody to attend. This was even worsened by the fact that the venue (a school in a village Teluk Waru) was too difficult to access for most participants, therefore none of the conservationists were able to attend the public consultation.
On Tuesday, 11th January 2014, a total of 18 conservation NGOs and researchers responded to Wilmar with an official letter, in which they complain that a public meeting, which concerns such important environmental issues, must include the conservation NGOs. The organizations consider the public consultation held in 28th January to be invalid due to their absence, and require that Wilmar organizes the meeting once again and properly.
They require that the invitations must be sent in e-mail at least one week in advance, the venue needs to be better accessible and the participants need to receive written supporting materials together with the invitation.
The case of Balikpapan Bay became the first important test to Wilmar’s commitment to their new zero-deforestation policy, and will certainly not be the last.
Therefore, organizations such as Greenpeace and The Forest Trust (TFT), which have been involved in signing Wilmar’s zero-deforestation policy, will be regularly updated about the ongoing development in Balikpapan Bay.
Stanislav Lhota, M.Sc., Ph.D.
Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague
Usti nad Labem Zoo
IUCN SSC Primate Specialist Group
A slow loris is NOT cute!
I finally got to see Jungle Gremlins of Java on BBC Knowledge last night. The BBC's blurb is bland: The slow loris [kukang] is the real-life gremlin, extremely cute but with a venom that can kill. Now it's also a YouTube superstar with millions of hits. Dr Anna Nekaris, a primatologist, travels to the jungles of Java to solve the riddle of its toxic bite, but a shocking discovery awaits. I thought it was a fascinating insight into a unique nocturnal mammal which isn't "cute" as thought by anthropomorphic idiots and a powerful condemnation of the lack of care shown by Indonesian authorities towards the trade in protected species.
Anna Nekaris may be an Oxford professor, but her research is expressed in plain language and she proves to be an engaging television presence. I hoped to be able to download the programme because, as the scene in the ‘pet’ market demonstrated, it’s the local population which is need of educating about the importance of protecting species, and this would be an excellent programme for schools. However, all I could find is a stream on Delete City.
Anna Nekaris has established the Little Fireface Project which aims to save the slow loris via ecology, education, empowerment. This is a video they've produced, for Indonesian audiences.
I suggest that Jakarta Governor Jokowi and his deputy ‘Ahok’ be approached to watch this and now they've cleared the Tanah Abang streets of street vendors and the thugs who preyed on them that be urged to deal with the markets dealing with the horrific trade in protected species.
Green Gleanings 1.8.13
1. Palm oil company guards injure four villagers in Kalimantan clash
Four villagers were injured and several vehicles destroyed in a clash between local residents and palm oil company guards in Indonesian Borneo last week. The clash is the latest incident in a long-running conflict between Wilmar subsidiary PT Bumi Sawit Kencana and villagers in Kotawaringin Timur district, Central Kalimantan.
2. The Javan Rhino’s final stronghold
An article on the current state of a native Indonesia mammal in danger of extinction.
3. Through a new online fund-raising campaign on behalf of the Sumatran Orangutan Society featuring an animated orangutan called Armstrong, comedian Bill Bailey is asking animal lovers to help create new homes for the Sumatran orangutan by backing a rainforest restoration project that has just planted its 1,000,000th tree.
(Video)
4. Cute pictures of orphaned orangutans.
330 orphaned apes are cared for at the Orangutan Care Centre and Quarantine in Borneo, Indonesia. Human surrogate mothers look after the orphaned and rescued orangutans
Four villagers were injured and several vehicles destroyed in a clash between local residents and palm oil company guards in Indonesian Borneo last week. The clash is the latest incident in a long-running conflict between Wilmar subsidiary PT Bumi Sawit Kencana and villagers in Kotawaringin Timur district, Central Kalimantan.
2. The Javan Rhino’s final stronghold
An article on the current state of a native Indonesia mammal in danger of extinction.
3. Through a new online fund-raising campaign on behalf of the Sumatran Orangutan Society featuring an animated orangutan called Armstrong, comedian Bill Bailey is asking animal lovers to help create new homes for the Sumatran orangutan by backing a rainforest restoration project that has just planted its 1,000,000th tree.
(Video)
4. Cute pictures of orphaned orangutans.
330 orphaned apes are cared for at the Orangutan Care Centre and Quarantine in Borneo, Indonesia. Human surrogate mothers look after the orphaned and rescued orangutans
Haze
An excavator creates a canal in Riau Province, Indonesia, amid smoke caused by forest fires. © Ulet Ifansasti / Greenpeace
Many of the paintings of the late 1880's, allegedly including Edvard Munch's iconic The Scream (full title 'The Scream (or Shriek) of Nature'), were influenced by the eruption of Krakatoa in 1883. The paintings of J.M.W. Turner are rightly celebrated for their depictions of the many moods of Mother Nature. This painting is said to have been influenced by the eruption of Mount Tambora in 1815.
Chichester CanalVolcanic eruptions blast gases and particles of debris into the atmosphere and cause global climate anomalies, the weather patterns on which farmers depend, including the light. That's Mother Nature at work.
The photo above is of Man's reckless imitation through forest clearance by fire in Sumatra. Prevailing winds send haze to the neighbouring countries of Malaysia and Singapore.
And this past week, forest fires have peaked again, a month after the governments of our neighbours expressed outrage.
Gleanings Anew
Links to Indonesian Green news, often from international media, are published on this Facebook page, usually on a weekly basis.
They will be posted here as part of the Gleanings series.
- Apple to establish if tin from Bangka Island is used in iPhones as Friends of the Earth steps up pressure to 'come clean' over use of child labour in Indonesia
- This is sad and as is this. Did the first lead to the second?
- Greenpeace and the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), a body that sets criteria for greener palm oil production, are caught up in a row over the origin of fires that cast a pall over Sumatra, Singapore, and Malaysia last month.
- Terusan village in West-Kalimantan (Indonesia) on the island of Borneo is completely surrounded by oil palm. The villagers grow rice and rubber on their ancestral lands. Recently, an oil palm company made Terusan an offer to convert their village land to an oil palm plantation. The people of Terusan have to make a choice about their future. They decided to map their ancestral lands as they attempt to take control of their future. Watch this video.
- Surprise, Surprise!
Corruption and mismanagement in Indonesia’s forest sector have cost the government billions of dollars in losses in recent years, including over $7 billion in losses from 2007-2011, Human Rights Watch said in a report released this week.
- Apple to establish if tin from Bangka Island is used in iPhones as Friends of the Earth steps up pressure to 'come clean' over use of child labour in Indonesia
- This is sad and as is this. Did the first lead to the second?
- Greenpeace and the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), a body that sets criteria for greener palm oil production, are caught up in a row over the origin of fires that cast a pall over Sumatra, Singapore, and Malaysia last month.
- Terusan village in West-Kalimantan (Indonesia) on the island of Borneo is completely surrounded by oil palm. The villagers grow rice and rubber on their ancestral lands. Recently, an oil palm company made Terusan an offer to convert their village land to an oil palm plantation. The people of Terusan have to make a choice about their future. They decided to map their ancestral lands as they attempt to take control of their future. Watch this video.
- Surprise, Surprise!
Corruption and mismanagement in Indonesia’s forest sector have cost the government billions of dollars in losses in recent years, including over $7 billion in losses from 2007-2011, Human Rights Watch said in a report released this week.
Govt wants to develop nuclear energy sources
Technology Minister Gusti Muhammad said on Tuesday that Indonesia needed to develop nuclear technology because fossil-based energy sources were depleting.
“If we are facing a fossil-based energy crisis, then we should try to develop nuclear technology.”
Gusti said that this plan needed to be followed up as soon as possible because developing nuclear-based technology would require a lot of investment and time.
“If we start developing now, then we can reap the results in 10 years,” he said.
Source: The Jakarta Post July 16 2013
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Given that the previous tenants in Jakartass Towers Redux laid some water outlet pipes which flowed inwards, one can expect that one result of a leak in an Indonesian power plant is that it would be botch repaired with plastic bags, masking tape and broom sticks, as happened at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station in December last year.
“If we are facing a fossil-based energy crisis, then we should try to develop nuclear technology.”
Gusti said that this plan needed to be followed up as soon as possible because developing nuclear-based technology would require a lot of investment and time.
“If we start developing now, then we can reap the results in 10 years,” he said.
Source: The Jakarta Post July 16 2013
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Given that the previous tenants in Jakartass Towers Redux laid some water outlet pipes which flowed inwards, one can expect that one result of a leak in an Indonesian power plant is that it would be botch repaired with plastic bags, masking tape and broom sticks, as happened at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station in December last year.
© Scripps Media, Inc. 2013
Are Acehnese Anti-Animals?
Sharia law in Aceh is not only misogynous but also couldn't give a damn about other animals.
View a gallery of other caged endangered species here.
There's a petition to sign here.
Meanwhile, uncaged animals bite back ....
Tiger, tiger burning bright.
Give mankind a bloody fright ...
Elsewhere, in a zoo "in East Java", some cute komodo dragons have been born.
Watch this video and cringe at the commentary!
An orangutan reaches out of its cage at a market on the outskirts of Kandang, south Aceh
View a gallery of other caged endangered species here.
There's a petition to sign here.
Meanwhile, uncaged animals bite back ....
Tiger, tiger burning bright.
Give mankind a bloody fright ...
Elsewhere, in a zoo "in East Java", some cute komodo dragons have been born.
Watch this video and cringe at the commentary!
Rivers of Filth
Manggarai sluice gates on the river Ciliwung river in south Jakarta. Indonesia Deforesters Hide Their Money Offshore
The Offshore Leaks Database of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICCJ) contains ownership information about companies created in 10 offshore jurisdictions including the British Virgin Islands, the Cook Islands and Singapore. It covers nearly 30 years until 2010.
As to be expected, billionaires are among thousands of Indonesians found in the secret documents now being made public.
Four ... of Indonesia’s very richest are known for their role in clearing vast areas of tropical rainforest. Eka Tjipta Widjaja, the Salim family, Sukanto Tanoto and Prajogo Pangestu built their fortunes after they obtained licenses to log and clear rainforest during the Suharto years. More recently Widjaja, Tanoto and Pangestu have invested heavily in palm oil plantations.
A series of reports earlier this year from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting described palm oil as one of the most controversial commodities on earth. Palm oil plantations have replaced “swathes of rainforest the size of small countries”.
Between them they have over 140 offshore companies, mostly in the British Virgin Islands.
As to be expected, billionaires are among thousands of Indonesians found in the secret documents now being made public.
Four ... of Indonesia’s very richest are known for their role in clearing vast areas of tropical rainforest. Eka Tjipta Widjaja, the Salim family, Sukanto Tanoto and Prajogo Pangestu built their fortunes after they obtained licenses to log and clear rainforest during the Suharto years. More recently Widjaja, Tanoto and Pangestu have invested heavily in palm oil plantations.
A series of reports earlier this year from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting described palm oil as one of the most controversial commodities on earth. Palm oil plantations have replaced “swathes of rainforest the size of small countries”.
Between them they have over 140 offshore companies, mostly in the British Virgin Islands.
On the EDGE
Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered (EDGE) species have few close relatives and are often extremely distinct in the way they look, live and behave. These unique species are also on the verge of extinction, and if they disappear there will be nothing like them left on the planet.
Scientists from the Zoological Society of London have pinpointed areas of the world where EDGE species occur, in the hope that these regions can become global conservation priorities. Currently only 5% of mammal areas and 15% of amphibian areas are protected.
The Edge of Existence Map lists far too many species in Indonesia.
- Mammals
- Amphibians
Lesula Monkey
This week, the International Institute for Species Exploration announced their annual top 10 new species. As the Guardian says, the list is a kind of scientific shock-and-awe campaign, shocking us at what we did not know about our own planet and leaving us in awe over the diversity, complexity, wonder and beauty of the living world.
Indeed, and this should serve as a reminder that we don't know what species remain undiscovered in Indonesia, and will never know as long as rampant land grabbing for palm oil plantations, mining and urbanisation continues apace.
Discovered in the Lomami Basin of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the lesula (Cercopithecus lomamiensis) is an Old World monkey well known to locals but newly known to science. This is only the second species of monkey discovered in Africa in the past 28 years. Scientists first saw the monkey as a captive juvenile in 2007. Researchers describe the shy lesula as having human-like eyes. More easily heard than seen, the monkeys perform a booming dawn chorus. Adult males have a large, bare patch of skin on the buttocks, testicles and perineum that is colored a brilliant blue. Although the forests where the monkeys live are remote, the species is hunted for bush meat and its status is vulnerable.
......................................................
View gallery of all ten species.
Are you in Ecotourism in Borneo?
Stan Lhota has written to say that he is "currently writing a book chapter on ecotourism in primate swamp habitats in Borneo (Kalimantan, Sabah, Sarawak and Brunei), with a special focus on proboscis monkeys.
"There is very little evaluation research published on this topic, so I am therefore searching for personal experiences of people involved in ecotourism - as conservationists, entrepreneurs or tourists.
Do you think you can help commenting on the book chapter from your own experience in Borneo? If so, please email him.
"There is very little evaluation research published on this topic, so I am therefore searching for personal experiences of people involved in ecotourism - as conservationists, entrepreneurs or tourists.
Do you think you can help commenting on the book chapter from your own experience in Borneo? If so, please email him.
As Far As The Eye Can See ...
.... are mountains of urban trash generated by the growth of Jakarta's middle classes who live for the day with their credit cards. For some (most?) of them, garbage disposal is a game with little thought given to the process.
As Meidyatama Suryodiningrat, chief editor of the Jakarta Post, wrote recently in a truly excellent opinion article, "People in the middle class no longer see political activism and social reform as an ethical obligation, but as an intellectual hobby for the few. If those who can propel change refuse to - and if the bureaucracy proves unwilling to - then what hope is there for the underclass, other than wallowing in decay as others grow wealthy?"
Pemulung (scavengers) are a common sight in Jakarta ...
... some with a sack on the back
... and others with a cart ...
... which provides a 'home'
Some of the middle classes live in gated communities and overtly forbid entrance to pemulung, threatening mutilation - a hole in the head - or even death!
These blinkered parasites would surely benefit from watching and/or downloading the BBC programme Toughest Place to be a Bin Man.
Last Saturday, along with Dan Quinn, Our Kid and a mutual friend, we were given a tour of the Sumur Batu landfill site where one of Jakarta's satellite cities, Bekasi, has its garbage dumped. It lies next to Bantar Gebang which landscapes Jakarta's waste and can be seen in the background of the top picture..
Dan has written of our visit: "The witnessing of this kind of environment requires a considerable time for its effects to be fully felt. Or perhaps nothing can touch your heart when you’ve grown accustomed to daily scenes of poverty in Jakarta. Despite the stench, filth, danger and extreme poverty, I find myself lacking the levels of feelings of empathy or horror that I had been anticipating."
Maybe this is why I haven't posted my thoughts earlier. Most of are aware, if only from snippets of news and the occasional documentaries on TV, what Asia's garbage dumps look like, but experiencing the vastness of the quiet alien landscape from afar and within is surreal. It is strangely quiet; the vast army of pemulung, perhaps 10,000 strong over the two dumps, have little to say as they work rapidly, gathering loads of plastic bags which they can resell at between Rp.300 and Rp.500 per kilo.
And it comes by the ton, every day.
Dan has said much of what I'd like to say, and much better than I could, so please make the effort to read his account. And remember how lucky we are not to have been born or have to live among our garbage.
This is not an instruction!
........................................................................
Dan's pictures are here and mine are here.
Taylor Samuelsen visited Bantar Gabang in 2012 and his account is here.
An audio report about the scavengers of Bantar Gabang.
Rice is Nice but ...
"White rice is lacklustre, lifeless, tasteless and irritating to prepare; brown rice is flavoursome, wholesome and easy to prepare."
Maud Grieve F.R.H.S. (1858-1941) - A Modern Herbal (pub. 1931) (See notes)
Every society has a staple food: my London upbringing revolved around potatoes, varieties such as King Edwards in winter for baking and Whites for salads. We grew them in our back garden.
My mother also made a delicious rice pudding with sultanas and raisins; it was boiled in milk, then baked for a while with a sprinkling of nutmeg on the top.
Later, as an adult, I'd enjoyed the occasional Chinese takeaway with white rice, Indian meals with basmati rice and vegan meals with brown rice bought from the community wholefoods store. Yet, not yet being a traveller, I knew little about the other 40,000 plus varieties of rice - yes, there are really that many, nor that Indonesian alone has about 7,000 varieties, suitable for uplands, lowlands or tidal swamps.
Shortly after I arrived in Jakarta in pre-internet days and began the process of acculturation, I was somewhat taken aback by Indonesian's obsession with food - meaning rice.
Sudah makan, belum?
I began to write a story ....
We took pity on Michael
He's been with us a long time now, since he appeared out of the crags one moonlit night. He carried a canvas shoulderbag. In it, he said, were his flavours. His needs were small. Mother had told him when he was little that rice would suffice. That's all. Rice. But what rice?
We knew from other rare travellers that there was rice to be found in Vesta, Bismati, Pilau, Saffron and in Jasmine. These we could not, did not want to know. Why should we? We made bread.
From the earliest moment of conception at pre-dawn, we were surrounded by the early morning comforting, wafting, familiar smell of rising yeast, of browning crusts, of carbonising toast, of croissants, cobs and cottages, of baguettes, bagels and buns. And best of all was bread pudding, made from the stale remnants of loaves and laced with the fruits of the seasons.
Our folk heroes were gingerbread men living in gingerbread houses eating bread and honey. The wicked witch let them eat cake.
And Michael came looking for rice. Our rice.
It grew, he said, in dew ponds, could only be gathered by the light of the new moon and he would show us how to gather it, make sheaves, stack it, winnow it, dry it, clean it, store it, boil it, fry it, can it, sell it, worship it, make babies' rattles, flour, drinks ..........
By the 1st century AD, small kingdoms, collections of villages subservient to petty chieftains, evolved in Java*. The island’s constant hot temperature, plentiful rainfall and volcanic soil was ideal for wet-field rice cultivation. This largely self-sufficient organisation, with surplus rice being stored for communal use in times of drought or festivities, could explain why the Javanese developed a seemingly more feudal society than the other islands. Dry rice cultivation is not such a collective enterprise.
However, the population explosion last century - from c.50 million in 1900 to c.110 million in 66/67 - led to rice shortages. President Sukarno advocated the eating of corn, or rats from the rice fields - accounts vary but the populace were unimpressed either way - and the famine was temporarily and partially alleviated by USAID rice aid shipments.
In 1968, Suharto launched his 'Green Revolution' aiming for food self-sufficiency. The government provided subsidies for fertilizer, pesticides, and irrigation, which helped to increase yields and production.
By 1978, programs to build up the rural infrastructure, such as irrigation canals, water supply, bridges and roads, amounted to 12% of the national development budget, demonstrating the importance of rice to political stability. This worked for a while; in spite of a drastic drop in production due to the 1975–76 wereng (brown planthopper) plague, by 1984 rice production exceeded domestic consumption for the first time. Suharto was honoured for this by the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in November 1985.
The Bureau of Logistics (Badan Urusan Logistik/BULOG), a government-owned company which deals with food distribution and price control, was originally established in 1967 to purchase rice for the provisioning of the armed forces, the civil service, and state corporation employees. It now monitors and sets prices for a much wider variety of foods. (Since its foundation, Bulog has raised the living standards of farmers, but it's also proved a much larger source of illicit funding for its managers.)
However, Indonesia became a net rice importer once again in 1988 and the rural rakyat were advised to eat ubi (cassava) as their staple food. It wasn't until last year (2012) that Bulog had "the highest ever rice stocks" with 2.3 million tons, having imported just 700,000 tons. However, there was once again a drive to wean the population off rice.
The 'Green Revolution' and the recent move towards genetically modified seeds has had several unfortunate consequences. Farming on an industrial scale with centralised distribution of insecticides, pesticides, fertilisers and 'standard' seeds has reduced the fertility of the soil, with chemicals leaching into the water table via run-offs from the fields. Farmers, who had localised and inherited knowledge of the terrain they were working, have been displaced, many becoming workers in the fields their families once owned.
In 2007, the government, through national seed company, PT Sang Hyang Seri, launched a major hybrid rice programme in association with such Indonesian oligarchs as Tomy Winarta and Jusuf Kalla. Since then, many farmers have experienced crop failures because, as Prof. Dr. Kasumbogo Untung, an entomologist at the Universitas Gadjah Mada in Yogyakarta said in 2010, hybrid seeds are especially susceptible to pests such as brown planthoppers.
Many farmers have reverted to more traditional methods such as the System of Rice Intensification (SRI). This was developed in India and seen yields per hectare increase by as much as 40%. It is based on eight principles which are different to conventional rice cultivation. They include developing nutrient-rich and un-flooded nurseries instead of flooded ones, ensuring wider spacing between rice seedlings, preferring compost or manure to synthetic fertilizers, and managing water carefully to avoid that the plants’ roots are not saturated.
Another major advantage of SRI is that it relies on local knowledge, which increases the likelihood that the seeds used would be more resistant to prevalent infestations.
SBY, who has a PhD from the Bogor Institute of Agriculture, supports SRI because "it increases production, yet does not damage the environment. We should think about the future of our children [and] the lives of the next generation."(video with subtitles)
I'm with SBY on this: support local farmers, not the genetically modified conglomerates.
................................................................................................
Footnotes
The bran in brown rice contains significant dietary fiber and the germ contains many vitamins and minerals. Because white rice involves the removal of the bran and germ, it has to be specially coated with vitamins B1, B3, and iron.
*Stamford Raffles, in his History of Java suggests that the name is derived from the Sanskit word 'yava', which means barley.
Did you know?
Rice farming is responsible for 14% of total global methane emissions.
More reading
Green Indonesia - blog
University of Michigan - paper
International Rice Research Institute
................................................................................................
A shorter version of the above was published in issue 91 of the Jakarta Expat magazine
Maud Grieve F.R.H.S. (1858-1941) - A Modern Herbal (pub. 1931) (See notes)
Every society has a staple food: my London upbringing revolved around potatoes, varieties such as King Edwards in winter for baking and Whites for salads. We grew them in our back garden.
My mother also made a delicious rice pudding with sultanas and raisins; it was boiled in milk, then baked for a while with a sprinkling of nutmeg on the top.
Later, as an adult, I'd enjoyed the occasional Chinese takeaway with white rice, Indian meals with basmati rice and vegan meals with brown rice bought from the community wholefoods store. Yet, not yet being a traveller, I knew little about the other 40,000 plus varieties of rice - yes, there are really that many, nor that Indonesian alone has about 7,000 varieties, suitable for uplands, lowlands or tidal swamps.
Shortly after I arrived in Jakarta in pre-internet days and began the process of acculturation, I was somewhat taken aback by Indonesian's obsession with food - meaning rice.
Sudah makan, belum?
I began to write a story ....
We took pity on Michael
He's been with us a long time now, since he appeared out of the crags one moonlit night. He carried a canvas shoulderbag. In it, he said, were his flavours. His needs were small. Mother had told him when he was little that rice would suffice. That's all. Rice. But what rice?
We knew from other rare travellers that there was rice to be found in Vesta, Bismati, Pilau, Saffron and in Jasmine. These we could not, did not want to know. Why should we? We made bread.
From the earliest moment of conception at pre-dawn, we were surrounded by the early morning comforting, wafting, familiar smell of rising yeast, of browning crusts, of carbonising toast, of croissants, cobs and cottages, of baguettes, bagels and buns. And best of all was bread pudding, made from the stale remnants of loaves and laced with the fruits of the seasons.
Our folk heroes were gingerbread men living in gingerbread houses eating bread and honey. The wicked witch let them eat cake.
And Michael came looking for rice. Our rice.
It grew, he said, in dew ponds, could only be gathered by the light of the new moon and he would show us how to gather it, make sheaves, stack it, winnow it, dry it, clean it, store it, boil it, fry it, can it, sell it, worship it, make babies' rattles, flour, drinks ..........
................................................................................................
It is thought that around 1000BC rice cultivation spread to the Malay-Indo archipelago from the Bronze Age Đông Sơn (Dongsan) culture centred in the Red River Valley of northern Vietnam. This brought irrigated rice-growing techniques, as well as husbandry skills, buffalo sacrifice rituals, bronze casting, the custom of erecting megaliths, and ikat weaving methods. Some of these practices survive today in the Batak areas of Sumatra, Tana Toraja in Sulawesi, parts of Kalimantan, and Nusa Tenggara.By the 1st century AD, small kingdoms, collections of villages subservient to petty chieftains, evolved in Java*. The island’s constant hot temperature, plentiful rainfall and volcanic soil was ideal for wet-field rice cultivation. This largely self-sufficient organisation, with surplus rice being stored for communal use in times of drought or festivities, could explain why the Javanese developed a seemingly more feudal society than the other islands. Dry rice cultivation is not such a collective enterprise.
However, the population explosion last century - from c.50 million in 1900 to c.110 million in 66/67 - led to rice shortages. President Sukarno advocated the eating of corn, or rats from the rice fields - accounts vary but the populace were unimpressed either way - and the famine was temporarily and partially alleviated by USAID rice aid shipments.
In 1968, Suharto launched his 'Green Revolution' aiming for food self-sufficiency. The government provided subsidies for fertilizer, pesticides, and irrigation, which helped to increase yields and production.
By 1978, programs to build up the rural infrastructure, such as irrigation canals, water supply, bridges and roads, amounted to 12% of the national development budget, demonstrating the importance of rice to political stability. This worked for a while; in spite of a drastic drop in production due to the 1975–76 wereng (brown planthopper) plague, by 1984 rice production exceeded domestic consumption for the first time. Suharto was honoured for this by the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in November 1985.
The Bureau of Logistics (Badan Urusan Logistik/BULOG), a government-owned company which deals with food distribution and price control, was originally established in 1967 to purchase rice for the provisioning of the armed forces, the civil service, and state corporation employees. It now monitors and sets prices for a much wider variety of foods. (Since its foundation, Bulog has raised the living standards of farmers, but it's also proved a much larger source of illicit funding for its managers.)
However, Indonesia became a net rice importer once again in 1988 and the rural rakyat were advised to eat ubi (cassava) as their staple food. It wasn't until last year (2012) that Bulog had "the highest ever rice stocks" with 2.3 million tons, having imported just 700,000 tons. However, there was once again a drive to wean the population off rice.
The 'Green Revolution' and the recent move towards genetically modified seeds has had several unfortunate consequences. Farming on an industrial scale with centralised distribution of insecticides, pesticides, fertilisers and 'standard' seeds has reduced the fertility of the soil, with chemicals leaching into the water table via run-offs from the fields. Farmers, who had localised and inherited knowledge of the terrain they were working, have been displaced, many becoming workers in the fields their families once owned.
In 2007, the government, through national seed company, PT Sang Hyang Seri, launched a major hybrid rice programme in association with such Indonesian oligarchs as Tomy Winarta and Jusuf Kalla. Since then, many farmers have experienced crop failures because, as Prof. Dr. Kasumbogo Untung, an entomologist at the Universitas Gadjah Mada in Yogyakarta said in 2010, hybrid seeds are especially susceptible to pests such as brown planthoppers.Another major advantage of SRI is that it relies on local knowledge, which increases the likelihood that the seeds used would be more resistant to prevalent infestations.
SBY, who has a PhD from the Bogor Institute of Agriculture, supports SRI because "it increases production, yet does not damage the environment. We should think about the future of our children [and] the lives of the next generation."(video with subtitles)
I'm with SBY on this: support local farmers, not the genetically modified conglomerates.
................................................................................................
Footnotes
The bran in brown rice contains significant dietary fiber and the germ contains many vitamins and minerals. Because white rice involves the removal of the bran and germ, it has to be specially coated with vitamins B1, B3, and iron.
*Stamford Raffles, in his History of Java suggests that the name is derived from the Sanskit word 'yava', which means barley.
Did you know?
Rice farming is responsible for 14% of total global methane emissions.
More reading
Green Indonesia - blog
University of Michigan - paper
International Rice Research Institute
................................................................................................
A shorter version of the above was published in issue 91 of the Jakarta Expat magazine
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