Opinion: Julia Maturana

When Governments, institutions or NGO’s think of reforesting an area either for the provision of tree products or for environmental concerns, they usually think in terms of projects with specific objectives and locations.

These projects usually plant trees in a very concentrated pattern across large areas, producing large patches of evenly aged and evenly balanced species. But often these projects fail to deliver their promised social and environmental benefits. And most are unsustainable in the long-term, tending to disappear once the supporting funds dry up.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. Institutions and organizations interested in plantation development could learn a lot from what is happening on the densely populated island of Java in Indonesia.

With an area of 132,000 km², 114 million inhabitants and 864 people per km², it is a wonder any trees survive there at all. Let alone small, community organized teak plantations on private land. These “home-made” plantations achieve goals that many externally implemented projects don’t. They provide sustainable and widely-shared environmental and social benefits.

A survey by CIFOR revealed a high frequency of teak plantations in all the 44 districts visited - some 50% of Java’s total number of districts. Plantations ranged in age from 6 months to 40 years, indicating a regional succession process that makes these areas a sustained source of products and services.

Teak planting in Java owes much of its success to its great social acceptance. Teak was first introduced in Java in the 14th century, followed by the establishment of large state-owned plantations during the Dutch colonial era. Generations of Javanese people have worked in the state plantations and the people have learned how to plant and manage teak. At the same time, teak has become very popular domestically for furniture and housing. In short, people like teak.

But simply ‘liking’ teak is not enough to produce the miracle seen with Java’s private teak plantations. Additional enabling conditions are essential.
Following the country’s political turmoil in 1998,a series of decentralization policies and regulations supporting people’s involvement in forest management allowed private companies to provide and promote teak. Also crucial was the Ministry of Forestry’s decision to encourage teak planting by giving away free seedlings. In fact, over 54% of the teak plantations observed were planted after 1998.

The active teak wood market also makes planting teak a viable business option. Harvesting, transportation and permit costs are low and straightforward and a well established network of buyers and traders visit the farms regularly to buy standing trees.

These people take care of the harvesting, transportation, permits, and marketing. This is a good arrangement for the local growers. Of the 78 teak farmers CIFOR interviewed, over 70% said they wait for buyers to come to them.

Also important is that people can keep their teak trees for as long as they wish — which implies more money for each tree — or they can sell them during times of financial need. And, of course, they provide a ready supply of timber for building purposes.

Such flexibility plays an important role in the livelihood value of teak trees in Java, which usually cover about 40% of a farm’s area. And being planted close to the house, they are generally safe from theft, pests or fire.

The costs of establishing and maintaining teak farms are low. CIFOR’s research shows over one third of teak farmers did not invest any capital in the plantations. With free seedlings available from Java’s state-owned plantations and a good supply of cheap-labour, starting a small teak farm is not too onerous.

By contrast, the return is high. With the average price for a 15 year old teak tree being about US$150 CIFOR’s research suggests a small 0.8 hectare plantation can generate US$290 monthly. That compares favourably to the average national wage of US$42 a month.

The success of teak farming in Java is a miracle that has resulted in a massive level of tree planting. Quite clearly, governments, institutions and NGO’s thinking about reforesting and plantation development must consider the people and not just the trees. They should focus on supporting self-generating processes rather than trying to establish new projects.

Julia Maturana was a scientist with CIFOR’s Forests and Livelihoods Programme in 2004-05. Julia’s appointment at CIFOR was supported by the Netherlands Government. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent the views of CIFOR or its partners.