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Sawdust has not completely disappeared. The logs, skid trails and loggers’ huts have not moved from their places either. All are evidence of illegal logging in the Untan Education Forest area.
The location is in the upstream of Kenak River, Peniti Dalam II Village, Segedong Sub-district, Mempawah District, or about 50 kilometers from Pontianak, the capital city of West Kalimantan Province.
Together with three guides, Yoga, Riyanto and Irwan, we boarded a boat belonging to Ahin, a local resident of the village. It took two hours and a half to get there.
The narrow and winding river path often hampers the boat. Every now and then I have to get out of the boat, push and clean the engine propeller that gets stuck in the wood roots.
The sawmill becomes a sight during the trip before entering the forest area. However, no one was active. The place looked deserted. The remaining wood was also not visible. There are only mountains of sawdust.
To read the full story in bahasa Indonesia, click here.