25 Aug 2011

Papua forests valued at 78 billion US dollars

3:27 pm on 25 August 2011

The caretaker governor of Indonesia's Papua province, Syamsul Arief Rivai, says forests there cover 42 million hectares and are estimated to be worth 78 billion US dollars.

The Jakarta Post reports that at a meeting with local officials and office holders on Monday in Jayapura, Syamsul said properly and sustainably managed, they can produce more than 500 million cubic metre of logs a year.

Monday's meeting was part of a process to plan for the exploitation of the forests.

But Syamsul has also called for more effort to safeguard the forests for the sake of future generations.