Antara News, Monday, June 7, 2010 16:13 WIB
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Monday called on the people not to litter rivers with garbage because it could destroy mangrove forests along the coast lines.
"Again, I ask the people not to throw garbage arbitrarily into rivers because it will destroy our mangrove forests at the sea shores," President Yudhoyono said when he inspected a mangrove forest area in the Muara Angke natural tourist park in North Jakarta.
On the occasion the president said environmental pollution would cause floods , various kinds of disease which would in the long run compel the government to spend a lot of funds on people`s health programs.
The head of state said it was better at the earlier stage to use the funds to save the environment, including mangrove forests, in an effort to save the people from the threat of natural disasters in the future.
"Some parts of the rivers are clean enough but most of them are still littered with garbage," the president said.
During his visit to the Muara Angke park, the President was accompanied by Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan, Youth and Sports Minister Andi Mallarangeng, Environment Minister Gusti Muhammad Hatta, Minister/State Secretary Sudi Silalahi, Cabinet Secretary Dipo Alam and Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo.
The Angke Kapuk natural tourist park is a 99.82-hectare natural conservation area covered by mangrove forests.
The area has been declared a tourist forest area for mangrove reforestation and rehabilitation and natural tourist activities.
Up to the end of April 2006, some 40 ha of the area had been rehabilitated and reforested with mangrove trees.
Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan said on the occasion that his office has been cooperating with the Jakarta City Administration for five years to plant at least 9 million mangrove trees in the area.
"We have planted mangrove trees several times here, at Teluk Angke, at Ancol resort, and even at other locations in an effort to make Jakarta green," the forestry minister said.
According to him, mangrove-tree-planting activity should be intensified because environmental damage along the coast of Jakarta Bay had reached an alarming level.
