The benefactors of 1.8 million hectare plantation project

Tamsil Linrung, who headed a team of House Commission IV which visited East Kalimantan, has stated the support of the parliamentary commission for the opening of large oil palm plantations in border areas amid environmentalist critics that the plan is merely to cut down trees in these areas, Antara reported.

Speaking to reporters here last weekend, Tamsil, a legislator from Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) said oil palm cultivation in borderlands has great significance for coping with problems, especially the manpower problem, in border areas. He made the remarks commenting on the government's plan to open 1.8 million ha of oil palm plantations in East Kalimantan, especially in critical forests close to the border with the East Malaysian region.

But environmentalists have long been suspicious over the plan. Data from Sawit Watch, a NGO with focus on palm plantation, shown in West Kalimantan, government had given licenses to open 1.5 million hectares of palm oil plantation, but only 382,000 hectares that are really being cultivated. In East Kalimantan, only 303,000 hectares that already been cultivated for palm oil out of 2 million hectares of licenses. In Central Kalimantan, the cultivated lands for palm oil have reached 438,000 hectares, far below the 1.8 million hectares allocated.

Sawit Watch has every reason to be suspicious. They're just afraid those who hold the licenses would only cut down trees, get the harvests, and leaving the lands in even worse condition.

Who would invest in the Indonesia-Malaysia border anyway?

Well, Felda Holdings, the largest CPO producer in the world from Malaysia, is apparently keen to get around 500,000 hectares of land in Kalimantan to expand its palm oil business.

China Development Bank pledged US$8 billion funding for the palm oil plantation that covers about half the size of The Netherlands.

READ MORE!!!