Indonesia Home to 60 Percent of World`s Mangrove Forests

By Barrie | September 6th, 2007 | 2 Comments »

Indonesia is currently home to 1.8 million hectares of tropical mangrove forests or about 60 percent of the world`s reserve, a nature conservation activist said.

Rasyid Assaf Dongoran, director of the Amanah Nature Conservation Foundation (Akasia), said here on Monday that 2.9 million hectares of Indonesia`s mangrove forests were located in Papua province, 195,000 hectares in South Sumatra and 150,000 hectares in East Kalimantan.

Maluku province had 100,000 hectares, Riau 95,000 hectares and North Sumatra 60,000 hectares. “We have to preserve our mangrove forests because they protect our coastal areas from the abrasice force of sea waves,” he said.

He said mangroves played a role in maintaining ecological balance which was very useful for human life. Mangrove forests also protect the ecosystem and serve as the habitat for fish and shrimp to feed, breed and develop.

Antara News