Eight million kg of timber debris a ‘sheer waste’ of natural resources, says activist

ENVIRONMENTAL activists and indigenous communities are astounded by revelations that more than 8,000 tonnes of timber debris, and counting, have been found in the logjams choking central Sarawak rivers.

They say that the situation underscores an urgent need to tighten controls over logging activities in forests around riverine basins.

Belaga district native activist Harry Wing has demanded that the authorities take action against the parties that are responsible for the massive denudation of nature and pollution of the ecosystem.

"Someone must be held accountable for such a huge bulk of timber wastes,” he said.

"The state and federal authorities must reinforce and tighten control over logging in our forests.

"The logjams are still ongoing and causing much travel risks in our rivers in Kapit and Belaga districts," he told The Vibes.

It was recently disclosed that at least eight million kg of timber debris had been removed from the rivers but there are massive amounts still jamming the waterways.

Sarawak Forestry Department director Datuk Hamden Mohammed had said the department deployed contractors equipped with cranes and barges to try to clear the choked rivers.

"So far, at least 8,000 tonnes of logs and big chunks of wood debris have been removed from logjam sites in Sungai Rajang.

"The operations are ongoing and we have identified the source of these timber debris to be from timber concession sites that were hit by flash floods.

"These logs and debris are not due to illegal loggings," he said after a briefing with Sarawak Natural Resources and Environment Board and other riverine agencies in Kuching.

Hamden said the department has hired contractors to physically remove the logs inside the rivers, as log booms cannot be used to trap the debris due to their immense weight and size.

Heavy rains, floods and erosions along the riverbanks are making the situation more difficult as these have caused the debris to be swept continuously into the rivers, he stressed.

This latest incident of logjams saw tonnes of timber logs and woodwastes choke the major rivers of Sungai Rajang and Sungai Katibas and their tributaries in Belaga district, causing river travel disruptions for large populations of rural riverine folks.

State assemblyman for Katibas constituency, Lidam Assan, had on March 5 called on the authorities to investigate the source of these logjams.

"Flash floods have over the past few days washed down big amounts of felled logs and woodwastes into the Sungai Katibas and Sungai Rajang up to the riverine town of Song,” he said.

The wharf at Song was also clogged with logs and woodwastes. Four riverine longhouse communities were affected.

"I have called on the authorities to check the source of these logs and woodwastes.

"There could be indiscriminate felling of trees along the rivers, causing these big amounts of logs and woodwastes to be washed into the rivers by the flash floods," he told reporters after meeting enforcement officials of the Sarawak Natural Resources and Environment Board and Sarawak River Board in his Katibas service centre.

Riverine folks along the affected zones have been facing heavy risks in trying to navigate the clogged rivers.

Massive logjams had occurred numerous times already in the rivers in central Sarawak.

Last year also saw similar logjams in Sungai Baleh and Sungai Balui, both of which connect to the Bakun Dam and Baleh Dam.

Wing had questioned why the state authorities failed to take punitive action against those timber operators causing the logjam crisis.

He said that he found it puzzling that the forestry department had not disclosed the identities of the firms responsible for choking the rivers with the debris.

"The politicians must reveal to the public the identities of those logging operators who have triggered the logjams that caused so much damage to the environment and rivers.

"Until now, the culprits causing the logjams inside the Sungai Baleh and Sungai Balui have not been penalised either.

"These irresponsible loggers must be forced to clean up the mess. They seem to get away with the serious damages they have caused to the environment," he said to The Vibes.

Villagers affected by the logjams have demanded assurance that all logging activities along the riverbanks and river basins would be halted.

Unless the activities are stopped, the erosion of the land will continue to persist, Wing warned. – The Vibes, March 15, 2024