Oil palm expansion causing problems in C. Kalimantan: WALHI

The illegal expansion of oil palm plantations carried out by palm oil giants in Forest Land Use Plan (TGHK)-based forest areas in Central Kalimantan has continued to spark disquiet among local residents. Director of the Central Kalimantan chapter of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (WALHI), Arie Rompas, said in Jakarta on Sunday that as […]

New spiny rat discovered in ‘birthplace of evolution’

Tufts of harsh, bristly hair and a white tail tip are among the defining features of a new rodent species discovered in Indonesia. The Spiny Boki Mekot Rat was found in the mountain forests of Halmahera, in the Moluccas (Maluku) archipelago. It was from these islands that Alfred Russel Wallace wrote to Charles Darwin, outlining his theory […]

AMAN: “Pasca Perpres REDD ada 4 Hal yang Perlu Dicermati”

Jakarta, Ekuatorial – Berbagai tanggapan muncul pasca keluarnya Peraturan Presiden (Perpres) Nomor 62 Tahun 2013 tentang Badan Pengelola Penurunan Gas Emisi Rumah Kaca dari Deforestasi, Degradasi Hutan dan Lahan Gambut atau REDD+. Badan ini dianggap tidak bergigi dan hanya sebagai macan kertas karena hanya memiliki fungsi koordinasi, sinkronisasi dan lain-lain. Namun, sebagian mengatakan Perpres itu […]

Neglected News Arises From The Birds of Paradise

Birds of paradise, perhaps widely known by most Indonesian people from the illustration of 1995’s banknote Rp 20.000 or 1971’s coins Rp 50. The legendary model, which is called Cendrawasih in Bahasa Indonesia, has extensively been studied of its species diversity and distribution. However, its behavior in the wilds had never been recorded and studied, […]

Sinarmas expands oil palm plantations in Papuan forests

A report has revealed that Golden Agri Resources (GAR), the Sinarmas Group’s oil palm business, is expanding its oil palm plantations in more than 20,000 hectares of forests in Papua. The expansion permit was obtained after the forests were removed from the government’s moratorium map on primary forests, the report says. The report titled “What are […]

Hot and Hotter

Orangutans were not the only ones driven away from the fires at the Tripa peat swamp. Local residents have found the heat rising from the peatland forest unbearable. A primate’s charred skull, no larger than a tennis ball, lay under a scorched tree. No one said anything up to that point. But as soon as Tempo attempted to lift the object, two […]