Timber trouble in Aceh

"We must make sure that the wood being used for new houses is certified as coming from sustainable forests," says Dede Suhendra, a program manager at World Wildlife Fund-Indonesia, a conservation group. He says there are already indications - but no proof - that contractors are using illegally cut wood to build temporary barracks for tsunami survivors in Aceh.

Home to some 4 percent of all known bird species and small populations of endangered Sumatran tigers and rhinos, Leuser is being squeezed by loggers and land-hungry migrants. Indonesia's graft-ridden security forces are widely accused of profiting from illegal logging, and their presence in Aceh, where they are battling armed separatist insurgents, has added to the pressure on local forests.

Indonesian officials say they are taking steps to tackle illegal logging and root out security personnel with a hand in the trade. "President [Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono] is intent on waging war against corruption and ending illegal logging. Military and police won't dare to do such a thing [in Aceh], because the president is watching this closely," says Alwi Shihab, coordinating minister for public welfare.

Last year, campaigners defeated a plan by Yudhoyono's predecessor Megawati Sukarnoputri to build a road linking Aceh's coasts that would have opened up remote inland forests to logging companies. But they fear that plans for 100,000 new homes in Aceh could give loggers renewed reason to plunder its forests and those of other provinces.

Here in Calang, a coastal town flattened by the tsunami, there's no shortage of wood for rebuilding houses and government buildings, but little clarity about its origin. Indonesian laborers say the planks stacked at the harbor came from elsewhere on Sumatra island, though local residents say that wood is also available from nearby forests.

Lumber prices have soared by 20 percent or more over the past month in Banda Aceh as the province gears up for reconstruction. Traders say most of the wood on sale arrives by boat from other ports on Sumatra.

Despite its appeal, importing foreign timber to save Indonesia's forests may prove unpractical, say donor countries. For one, deciduous timber is different from Indonesia's tropical hardwoods and would need treating for the climate. Builders might find it doesn't fit their needs, or match local expectations.

Then there's the math. "Our top priority is to get as much value as possible out of our money. It may not be the best strategy to import timber all the way from Sweden," says a Swedish diplomat in Jakarta.

Aid workers point out that wood substitutes like bricks and concrete are available and are preferable for larger buildings, given the risk of future earthquakes or tsunamis in Aceh.

Even the idea of buying overseas timber to spare Indonesian forests carries a risk for concerned parties. "Importing wood doesn't necessarily guarantee that the wood doesn't come from illegal logging, because it tends to leave Indonesia illegally and reenter with some other banner," warns Antonella Vitale, a shelter adviser to the United Nations Development Program.

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