PT Chevron Pacific Indonesia dan YKAN Luncurkan Program Pengembangan Pengelolaan Pesisir Terpadu di Riau

PT Chevron Pacific Indonesia (PT CPI) and Yayasan Konservasi Alam Nusantara (YKAN), an affiliate of The Nature Conservancy (TNC), launched the Integrated Coastal Management Development Program in Riau Province. This program is an effort to develop the management of mangrove forests and their ecosystems with a focus on three main pillars, namely ecology, social and economy.

The launch of the program was held in Bandar Bakau, Pengkalan Sesai, Dumai City, on July 27, 2019. The event was attended by the Director for the Management of Essential Ecosystem Management at the Ministry of Environment and Forestry Tandya Tjahjana, Regional Secretary for Riau Province Ahmad Hijazi, Head of the Environment Agency for Riau Province Ervin Rizaldi, Acting Regional Secretary Dumai City Hamdan Kamal, and Head of the Operations Department of SKK Migas Sumbagut Representative Haryanto Syafri. This activity also commemorates World Mangrove Day which falls every July 26.

With a mangrove forest ecosystem of 180,880 hectares spread across Dumai, Bengkalis, Rokan Hilir, Meranti, Pelalawan, Siak, and Indragiri Hilir, Riau has the potential to become a center for research and development of mangrove forests on the island of Sumatra. However, inadequate environmental carrying capacity causes a decline in the function of mangrove forests due to damage caused by rampant illegal logging for fuel, land conversion, commodity materials, and abrasion.

Looking at the potential, as an initial stage, the Integrated Coastal Management Development program in Riau Province will be implemented in two locations, namely Pangkalan Sesai, Dumai City, and Teluk Pambang, Bengkalis Regency. “Currently, we will focus on the study of the design of the coastal area restoration plan in Pangkalan Sesai and Teluk Pambang. The results of the study are expected to be completed by the end of this year, so that program implementation can begin in 2020," said Wahyu Budiarto, Sr. Vice President Corporate Affairs PT CPI.

Two days earlier, Thursday (25/7), PT CPI and YKAN held an “Integrated Coastal Management Workshop” in Pekanbaru. The goal is to build synergy in integrated coastal management planning in Riau. The participants came from representatives of the provincial government, non-profit organizations, academics, environmental activists, and the media.

“We, on behalf of the Riau Provincial Government, strongly support the Workshop on the Development of Integrated Coastal Management in Riau. This workshop is very important to build synergy in integrated coastal management planning in Riau which will later be implemented through the MERA program,” said Deputy Governor of Riau Edy Natar Nasution.

The Riau Province Regional Secretary Ahmad Hijazi said the same thing in a discussion session in Bandar Bakau, Saturday (27/7). “Currently there are many breakthroughs from regional heads who are developing mangrove areas as ecotourism. Protecting mangroves is a shared task, we need the participation of various parties to increase our capacity.”

On the same occasion, KLHK's Director of Essential Ecosystem Management, Tandya Tjahjana, said that if half the coastal area of Riau Province, which is 2,000 kilometers long, has good mangrove forests, the impact will be extraordinary considering that mangroves are very important coastal ecosystems. With the development of understanding of mangroves, in several places in Indonesia the use of mangroves has now been developed for food, energy, and medicine needs.

Darwis Mohammad Saleh, one of the mangove conservation activists in Bandar Bakau Dumai, stated that saving mangrove areas should be prioritized. This is because, he continued, the mangrove forest acts as a fortress for the defense of coastal areas. It is estimated that 80 percent of the world's catch of fish depends on mangrove forests, either directly or indirectly.

“Bandar Bakau belongs to everyone, not just the marine nature lover community. We have a mission, Bandar Bakau from Dumai to Riau, from Riau to Indonesia, and from Indonesia to the world,” said Darwis.

The Integrated Coastal Management Development Program is part of the collaboration between PT CPI and YKAN through the Mangrove Ecosystem Restoration Alliance (MERA) Program. This partnership alliance aims to develop, introduce, and implement integrated and sustainable coastal area management. The mangove restoration work series is part of a joint agreement between PT CPI and YKAN for 12 months in a five-year cooperation period.

MERA is an initiative developed by YKAN to address concerns about the destruction of natural resources, especially mangoes. “This multi-stakeholder MERA partnership is the answer to solving coastal area management problems. Restoration and conservation of the mangove forest ecosystem is a priority action for improving the welfare of coastal communities and preserving biodiversity,” explained YKAN Chairman Rizal Algamar. Apart from Riau, the MERA program has also been implemented in mangrove forests in Jakarta Bay and Semarang.

Tentang Chevron

Chevron adalah salah satu perusahaan energi terintegrasi dunia terdepan dan melalui unit usahanya di Indonesia, telah beroperasi di negeri ini selama 95 tahun. Dengan inovasi dan komitmen karyawan kami yang sangat terampil dan berdedikasi, PT Chevron Pacific Indonesia menjadi salah satu produsen minyak mentah terbesar di Indonesia. Dari lapangan-lapangan minyak kami di Riau, kami telah memproduksi lebih dari 12 miliar barel minyak demi memenuhi kebutuhan energi untuk pertumbuhan ekonomi Indonesia. Dalam mengoperasikan blok migas, PT Chevron Pacific Indonesia  bekerja di bawah pengawasan dan pengendalian SKK Migas berdasarkan kontrak bagi hasil atau Production Sharing Contract (PSC). Informasi lebih lanjut mengenai operasi PT Chevron Pacific Indonesia dapat diakses melalui www.indonesia.chevron.com.