Sukanto Tanoto, the Indonesian businessman and philanthropist who founded and now heads the RGE Group of natural resources manufacturing companies, puts great emphasis on practices that foster conservation. One of the companies under the RGE umbrella, Asia Pacific Resources International Limited (APRIL), is among the world’s foremost producers of paper products, fiber, and wood pulp. In fact, the largest pulp and paper mill currently operating worldwide is the APRIL facility in Riau Province on the island of Sumatra.
In August 2014, APRIL’s Stakeholder Advisory Committee (SAC), consisting of an independent group of authorities in the field of forestry management, met in Pangkalan Kerinci to discuss its Sustainable Forest Management Policy (SFMP). The meeting reflected Mr. Tanoto’s and RGE’s dedication to ongoing efforts to maintain a high level of sustainability practices. The SFMP meeting centered on discussion of several areas brought forward by the membership of the SAC.
The SAC praised APRIL’s fire prevention and management efforts, which focused on detecting problems early, garnering community support, and aggressively containing and suppressing fires that do break out in the Riau facility. In addition, the SAC reviewed the company’s GIS system, which monitors its pulp-producing concession lands, as well as its work to provide protection for conservation zones through buffer-zone control and water-management techniques. These practices, the SAC found, have proven their overall effectiveness.
In looking at recent incidents, including one involving communications problems that led to the clearing of land before a high-conservation-value survey could be completed, the SAC recommended that APRIL take steps to increase its communications infrastructure and its capacity to monitor the progress of HCV assessments in the future.
The SAC additionally made recommendations to APRIL on how the company can enhance its usefulness within the overall structure of Indonesia’s social welfare infrastructure. Among other proposals, the SAC suggested that APRIL increase its national profile as a partner with local communities and government agencies, as well as within its own industry.
APRIL currently provides protection for more than 200,000 hectares of lands designated for forest conservation in Riau. The company’s focus on maintaining dialogue with local communities has enhanced its ability to boost the region’s economy and improve living conditions for its residents. APRIL’s recent appointment of KPMG Performance Registrar Inc. to monitor its forest-management practices is designed to further strengthen its ability to deliver economic benefits while maintaining strong conservation measures.
