2,733 Ha of Tinauka Village Forest land located in the Banawa Lalundu KPH forest area has been granted access permit by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, through a decree number SK.10882/MNLHK-PSKL/PKPS/PSL.0/9/2023. With 45 Ha of Protected Forest (HL), 18 Ha of Limited Production Forest (HPT), 1,074 Ha of Permanent Production Forest (HPT), and 1,596 Ha of Convertible Production Forest (HPK).
Granting access to village forest permits through the Social Forestry scheme in Tinauka Village is a long-term achievement of the Tinauka community, who have been struggling for almost 7 years to ensure the authority over their People's Management Area (WKR).
The issuance of the Village Forest permit is also one of the efforts made by the Tinauka Village community, to protect the WKR threat from the expansion of Palm Oil Plantations, the Development of the Das Lariang Hydroelectric Power Plant, and other individuals who arbitrarily claim that the land is right in the forest area that is being proposed to become a Village Forest. These individuals include former officials, Regents, Governors, Police, and the Army. Oddly enough, the claimed land has never been processed by the authorized institution even though the community has reported it several times.
Land conflict in Tinauka Village has become a prominent problem since the presence of PT Lestari Tani Teladan (LTT) and the plan to build the Lariang Das Hydroelectric Power Plant in Riopakava District. 1043 Ha of community land overlaps with PT LTT's HGU, the plan to build the Lariang Das Hydroelectric Power Plant 550 Ha, the Forest Area 2,943 Ha, and Control by Individuals 971 Ha.
If calculated based on the total area of Tinauka Village of 9120 Ha, the land managed by the community in the APL area is only 1,112 Ha from a total population of 1754 people and 752 Ha of settlements. The narrow management space faced by the Tinauka Village community creates a very deep social gap, so that they are forced to work as farm laborers in oil palm plantations and look for oil palm fruit, in addition to farming subsistence crops such as corn, vegetables, and tubers.
Zainudin S Sura Palu Head of LPHD Tinauka Bersatu said, Tinauka Village Forest will be utilized as well as possible to improve community welfare, by utilizing non-timber forest products and planting woody plants such as durian, avocado, candlenut and rambutan. In the Lalundu Riopakava area, especially Tinauka Village is known as one of the largest local durian producers, which is sold to Palu City and even to South Sulawesi and most of the durian plants are planted by the community in the Village Forest location.
The issuance of the Tinauka Village Forest permit is also one of Walhi Sulteng's efforts to save the Last Forest in Lansekap Hilir Lariang Village which is being attacked by large-scale oil palm plantations, the Village Forest management process will use the Agroforestry approach, combining forest plants and agricultural plants. As an effort to realize fair ecological governance, maintaining the balance of nature and humans to avoid the risk of environmental damage.
LPHD and Tinauka Village Government are at the forefront of managing and utilizing Village Forests to truly realize community welfare. To encourage well-organized management, Walhi Sulteng will help facilitate the planning (RKU - RKT) and business entities such as KUPS and the Village Government will issue PERDES to regulate its management.
