New Provisions on Licensing Procedures for Forestry Product Collection in Areas of State Forest

The Ministry of the Environment and Forestry (“Minister”) has issued regulation No. P.54/MENLHK/SETJEN/KUM.1/6/2016 on Procedures for the Granting and Extension of Timber-Product Utilization Licenses and Non-Timber Utilization Licenses for the Collection of Timber Gathered from Areas of State Forest (“2016 Regulation”).The 2016 Regulation is aiming to improve the management of forestry-product collection by redefining the guidelines for the securing or extension of licenses for timber and non-timber collection in areas of state forest, specifically areas of protected forest and production forest. Previously, these matters were regulated under Ministerial Regulation No. P.46/MENHUT – II/2009 (“2009 Regulation”). [1] The 2016 Regulation is of relevance to all individuals and cooperatives who are looking to engage in the collection of forestry products within areas of state forest.Forestry-Product Collection Licenses: Types, Criteria and Area RequirementsThe 2016 Regulation specifies four types of licenses which cover the collection of the aforementioned forestry products, and these are as follows: [2]