Banda Aceh — The Aceh Forest, Nature, and Environment Foundation (HAkA) recorded that throughout 2023, Aceh lost 8,906 hectares of forest cover, equivalent to 1.5 times the area of ​​Lake Lut Tawar in Takengon.

“So, 8,906 hectares is equivalent to 1.5 times the area of ​​Lake Lut Tawar. That’s just one year,” said HAkA GIS Manager, Lukmanul Hakim, during a discussion by the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) in Banda Aceh City entitled “Aceh Deforestation and Its Solutions” at the AJI Banda Aceh Secretariat on Thursday (February 29).

According to Lukman, of the 8,906 hectares of forest cover lost, 4,502 hectares were within the Laker Ecosystem Area (KEL). The remainder, approximately 4,854 hectares, were outside the KEL.

“According to our data, the remaining forest cover in 2023 will be 2.94 million hectares, but we believe the remaining forest in Aceh will be even greater than this,” he said.

Lukman explained that Aceh’s forests are currently considered better than those of the other nine provinces in Sumatra. Nationally, Aceh even ranks ninth in Indonesia for the highest percentage of forest cover.

“Our 55 percent forest cover is still larger than the average forest cover in Indonesia. Indonesia’s national average is 51 percent, so we are still above the national average,” he said.

According to Lukman, the trend of deforestation in Aceh has actually been declining. According to HAkA data, in 2015, the deforestation rate was around 21,000 hectares. Then, it dropped steadily to 15,000 hectares between 2018 and 2020.

“Meanwhile, in the last three years, it has also remained stable at 3,000 hectares,” he said.

He explained that in 2023, the three regencies with the highest deforestation rates were South Aceh (1,854 hectares), Subulussalam (911 hectares), and North Aceh (866 hectares). From 2017 to 2023, Central Aceh had the highest deforestation rate compared to other regions.

Lukman added that from 2019 to 2022, Aceh was the province with the best forest cover in Sumatra. However, Aceh also had the highest number of disasters in Sumatra.

Editor: Boy Nashruddin

This article was previously published; read the full article at: habaaceh.id