PT DAHANA participated in the 2023 National Watershed Recovery Movement (GNPDAS) event organized by the West Java Provincial Environmental Service. This event, which was also attended by the Central and Regional Governments, was held with the planting of mangrove in Legonkulon in Subang, West Java, on 27 November 2023.
Chair of DAHANA’s Social and Environmental Responsibility (SER) Unit, Eman Suherman, said that the Company’s participation in this activity shows DAHANA’s commitment to protection of the surrounding environment, especially in the Subang Regency area as the north coast of Subang, especially Pondok Bali, has experienced massive abrasion which has threatened the local population.
“As we know, the Pondok Bali Legonkulon Subang area has experienced severe erosion; people’s fish farms that previously dominated the north coast of Subang have been completely washed away by the sea. “Therefore, as a state company, PT DAHANA is also present in planting of mangroves which was initiated by the West Java Provincial Environmental Service,” said Mr Suherman.
As reported by the Indonesian Ministry of Environment, mangroves are a type of forest that grows in tidal areas, especially on protected coastal areas, lagoons and river estuaries that are flooded at high tide and free from inundation at low tide whose plant communities are tolerant of salinity.
Mangrove forests carry physical, ecological and economic functions and benefits. Physically, the benefits of mangroves include protection against sedimentation, abrasion and sea water intrusion, resistance to storms and salt-laden winds, and to reduce carbon emissions. Ecologically, mangrove forests function as a place to live in, protection and food source for marine biota and species in the surrounding area. Meanwhile, economically, mangrove forests function as a tourist recreation area, a source of raw materials for buildings and firewood as well as a source of livelihood for the fishermen community who catch fish, shrimp, crabs and others.
“Hopefully, by planting mangroves, the community will not only get a solution to the abrasion, but will also get other benefits such as clean air and economic income through mangrove tourism and increased fishermen’s harvest of fish, shrimp and crabs,” hoped Mr Suherman.
At the end of the activity, Mr Suherman symbolically handed over the mangrove trees from the Indonesian explosives mecca company to the Head of the West Java Office of Environment’s Watershed Management Division, Irawan. In addition to that, Acting Governor of West Java Bey Machmudin handed over a certificate of gratitude to DAHANA. This activity was also attended by the Regent of Subang Ruhimat and various other provincial and district officials.
