Rizal Harahap, Pekanbaru – A moratorium on land conversion begun during former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's administration in 2011 has not yet been effective to save peat forests in Riau, a

Arthur Neslen – Brazil and Indonesia spent over 100 times more in subsidies to industries that cause deforestation than they received in international conservation aid to prevent it, according to a

Jakarta – Environmental group Greenpeace has demanded that President Joko Widodo extends a moratorium on new forest concessions, which is due to end in less than three months, after the government

Rizal Harahap and Syofiardi Bachyul Jb, Pekanbaru/Padang – Haze from forest and land fires in several regencies in Riau has started covering Pekanbaru, the provincial capital, reducing visibility t

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – Despite government plans to eradicate illegal logging that have been in place over the past five years, encroachment on the country's forests remains rampant, a recent

Kennial Caroline Laia, Jakarta – Indonesian environmentalists have protested the government's plan to use a portion of funds from fuel subsidy cuts to drive the growth of the biofuel industry, sayi

Jakarta – Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) is failing to stop deforestation and illegal activities in its concession areas by other parties, even in locations already identified by the company as having

Apriadi Gunawan, Medan – Environmental activists have blamed annual floods in Langkat regency, North Sumatra, on serious forest damage in the plateau area of Mount Leuser National Park (TNGL).

Tama Salim, Jakarta – The government will revise the government's newly issued regulation on the protection and management of peatland amid growing protests from the business community,

Kennial Caroline Laia, Jakarta – Slash-and-burn clearing of forests to make way for plantations topped Indonesia's list of environmental problems in 2014, with several major forest and

Chris Arsenault, Rome – A drop in world palm oil prices is not expected to slow illegal logging in Indonesia's rainforests as companies continue to expand plantations, according to a ne

Kennial Caroline Laia, Siak, Riau – A parched landscape marred by the remnants of fire that swept through here – burnt branches and half-cut blackened trees amid dried grass – frames th

Sampit – The Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation Management Agency (REDD+) says around 80 percent of forests in Central Kalimantan have been converted for minin

Sorong – Residents in Salfi Sub-district of Sorong Selatan Regency rejected the local government's plan to invite a palm oil plantation company to their area, said Customary Council com

Jakarta – Greenpeace Southeast Asia has called once again on Singapore and Indonesia to work together and find solutions to what has become a recurrent regional scourge: the annual chok

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – The government will impose a moratorium on the issuance of all forest-exploitation permits as part of its effort to slow down the country's rapid deforesta

Ansyor Idrus, Palembang – Haze again blanketed cities in Sumatra and Kalimantan on Monday, including Palembang, which decided to extend its emergency status.

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – With the merging of the Forestry Ministry and the Environment Ministry in President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's new Cabinet, newly-appointed Environment and For

Hans Nicholas Jong, Batam – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's vow to protect the environment has come under question following his plan to merge two complimentary entities, the Forestry

Pekanbaru – In an effort to prevent forest fires, a government-sanctioned team has warned six regencies and municipalities as well as 17 companies in Riau to improve their compliance wi

Basten Gokkon, Pekanbaru – Sprawling over 136,000 hectares in Riau province, the Rimbang Baling Wildlife Reserve is home to some of the richest biodiversity in Indonesia, specifically e

Jakarta – As thick haze continues to cover large parts of Sumatra, police in Riau say that those responsible for the problem are getting away with sentences so lenient that there is har

Hans Nicholas Jong, Jakarta – Poor compliance by companies and local administrations is the major cause of the rampant forest fires in Riau, a government-sanctioned audit team has revea

Dyah Ayu Pitaloka & Jeis Montesori, Malang/Palembang – Health-threatening haze generated by forest fires hit several areas across Indonesia on Tuesday, forcing authorities to be on

Kornelius Purba, New York – A senior Indonesian official warned the international community on Monday that the massive deforestation in Indonesia was partly caused by unscrupulous pract

Rizal Harahap and Jon Afrizal, Pekanbaru/Jambi – The dense haze that has plagued parts of Sumatra for the past few days is raising health concerns and disrupting flights.

Margareth S.

Jakarta – Greenpeace mourners on Monday placed funeral wreaths on burned peatland in Riau province, highlighting an ongoing crisis and urging President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to secur

An official from Merauke in Indonesia's Papua province says the regency's alarmingly high greenhouse gas emissions rate results from deforestation.

Jakarta – President-elect Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has vowed tough law enforcement to fix the recurring haze problem, making it clear that the local authorities know who the culprits are.

Vita A.D.

Jakarta – The government will maintain its deforestation targets despite its pledge to control emissions.

Jakarta – A preliminary finding by a compliance audit conducted by a government-sanctioned team has uncovered several irregularities involving local governments and agroforestry compani

Jakarta – The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) says forest fires are becoming uncontrolable in Riau and West Kalimantan provinces.

Jakarta – More hot spots have been found in the Sumatran province of Riau on Sunday, blanketing at least 10 districts and cities with haze, the disaster management agency says, accordin

Michael Bachelard, Jakarta – Office supplies companies should stop stocking PaperOne copy paper, whose fibres come in part from high conservation tropical forests now being logged in In

Jakarta – A new study has shown that between the years of 2000 and 2012, the country lost 38 percent of its primary forest, with adverse effects on the nation's biodiversity.

Harry Pearl, Jakarta – Greenpeace has described a recent study that shows Indonesia has the highest rate of deforestation in the world as "an urgent wake up call" and has called on the

Michael Bachelard – Indonesia is destroying its tropical rainforests faster than Brazil, and the rate is soaring despite a five-year moratorium on new clearing.

Jakarta – Indonesia's disaster agency warned Wednesday that haze could return to neighbouring Singapore and Malaysia after a huge jump in forest fires in a province at the centre of a s

Jakarta – Satellites on Sunday detected 227 hotspots across Sumatra – the highest number in three months, after a relative lull – including 37 in the hard-hit Riau province, where blaze

Jakarta – Environmental activists have warned the government to be cautious about converting peatland into crude palm oil (CPO) plantations, as it could have a detrimental long-term imp

Apriadi Gunawan, Medan – Three protected forests – Gunung Leuser National Park, Kerinci Seblat National Park and Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park – are reportedly in a chronic state

Jakarta – Environmental group Greenpeace International called on President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to strengthen legislation to protect all peatland and forests in the country.

Vita A.D.

Josua Gantan, Jakarta – In November 2013, a group of researchers who partnered with Google and NASA noted that there was an alarming increase in the rate of deforestation in Indonesia.

Jayapura – Almost 226,000 hectares of forest in Papua will be cleared and converted into plantations, an environmental group said.

Pekanbaru – The Riau Police are intensifying their investigation into haze by probing a number of companies in Bengkalis and Indragiri Hilir regencies in connection to forest and peatla

Pekanbaru – Indonesian Environment Minister Balthasar Kambuaya said on Monday that as many as 23 companies were allegedly responsible for fires and haze that struck Riau earlier this ye

Jakarta – Climate change experts have said that stronger law enforcement was needed to prevent future disastrous wildfires in susceptible areas such as the peatlands of Riau, Sumatra.