Five Illegal Loggers Arrested In Riau Biosphere Reserve

Pekanbaru, Riau, Oct 6 (Antara) - The Bengkalis Police have taken five people into custody for conducting illegal logging activities in Giam Siak Kecil-Bukit Batu (GSK-BB) Biosphere Reserve located in Riau Province. "They were caught red handed while conducting illegal logging activities in the conservation area," Bengkalis Police Chief Adjunct Senior Commissioner Andry Wibowo revealed here on Sunday. The five people were identified by their initials EH, JM, HTS, H, and DS. They were accused of encroaching the forest area and cutting down trees in order to clear land for starting a palm oil plantation. "The arrest was made following a tip-off from the local villagers who saw the illegal logging activities in the conservation area," the police officer stated. The police have confiscated evidences such as two chainsaws, several logs, three motorcycles, and a Daihatsu Grand Max car. Earlier, this year, Sumatra`s Riau Province bore the brunt of forest and plantations fires, and the largest number of the hotspots were detected in the GSK-BB biosphere reserve. Of the 11,138 hectares of forest area that were destroyed by the fires across Riau province, about three thousand hectares were located inside the GSK-BB biosphere reserve, Brigadier General Prihadi Agus Irianto, the head of the Riau Haze Disaster Response Task Force, reported in Pekanbaru in Riau on March 4, 2014. The GSK-BB, which is located in the Bengkalis and Siak districts in Riau province, gained the UNESCO`s recognition as a biosphere reserve in 2009, the recommendation for which was put forth by the Sinar Mas Forestry (SMF) pulp and paper company. The biosphere reserve was the foremost one to be initiated by the industrial sector. The proposal was prepared by the Sinar Mas Forestry (SMF) and was submitted to the UNESCO in Paris through Indonesia`s Ministry of Forestry in September-October 2008. As part of the Sumatra`s peat swamp eco-region, the GSK-BB possesses a unique habitat and plays a significant role in helping to sustain the populations of rare, endangered, and endemic species.