Assurances that Forest Projects 'Will Follow Procedures"

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PAPUA NEW GUINEA RAINFOREST CAMPAIGN NEWS

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Forest Networking a Project of Ecological Enterprises

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1/23/99

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Title: Forest projects 'will follow procedures'

Source: Post Courier

Date: January 13, 1999

FOREST Minister Peter Arul has assured the public that Government

plans to encourage investment in the forestry sector will not be

done outside the prescribed legal procedures, including the

allocation of resources.

Mr Arul said people in the industry should not worry that the fast

tracking of multi-million kina timber projects would be done without

proper legal procedures and set forestry guidelines.

``The National Forest Board and the National Forest Service are

required by law to ensure that timber resources are allocated,

managed and developed on a sustainable basis and in compliance with

the allocation and development procedures under the Forestry Act

1991 (as amended),'' he said.

Mr Arul was responding to criticism from forestry sources and agents

regarding his letter, dated December 9 and addressed to the

Provincial Forest Management Committee, emphasising Prime Minister

Bill Skate's directives to find developers for timber projects.

The Minister's office said the deadline to find developers, which

expired in the first week of January, had ``naturally'' been

extended. He did not give any new dates.

Mr Arul said the intention of the letter was to push Forest

Authority staff who were sitting on projects ready for development

into getting them developed without any further delay.

He said the letter followed a meeting between the committee, Mr

Skate and himself and was a clear indication that the Government was

serious about getting all the projects off the ground by adhering to

set forestry laws.

``I am pressured by various landowner groups in most of the timber

project areas to speed up their projects as the Forest Authority was

unnecessarily delaying their timber projects. The resource owners

too want to benefit and take part in developing their resources,''

he said.

``My follow-up letter is the right step taken in the right direction

to get participants of timber resources, the landowners, PFMCs, the

Forest Authority and the developers to seriously look at where the

set back is and encourage the timber resource owners to participate

in their respective timber projects.''

Mr Arul said it was important that ordinary villagers are not lured

by developers with tinned fish and rice.

``They have to be encouraged at the initial stages to fully

participate on a 50-50 per cent or 60-40 per cent equity basis in

favor of the landowners with the developers,'' he said.

He said critics including environment and conservation groups did

not offer any alternatives or proposals but continuously want to

discourage and deprive village people from advancing themselves

economically, politically and spiritually in their natural

environment.

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