Land Use Change in Puncak Biang Kerok of Major Flood, PTPN Admits Mistake

PT Perkebunan Nusantara (PTPN) III (Persero) acknowledges negligence in land management in the Puncak area, Bogor, which has become one of the causes of the major flooding in the Jakarta, Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, and Bekasi (Jabodetabek) region in early March 2025. The President Director of PTPN III, Muhammad Abdul Ghani, stated that previously the Gunung Mas area in Puncak, Bogor was managed by PTPN VIII, which has now merged with PTPN I since December 2023. The process of cooperation for land use change in that area has been ongoing since the era of PTPN VIII. According to him, the current land management that has caused damage is the fault of PTPN because many lands have been cooperated with other parties. He acknowledged the violations committed by PT Jaswita Jabar, which built Hibisc Fantasy Puncak, as a result of negligence in managing the land in cooperation with partners. This is because Jaswita has a permit to build in the PTPN area covering 5,000 square meters but has expanded without permission to reach 21,000 hectares.

<

"PTPN is responsible for ensuring that the partners comply with the applicable licensing and environmental regulations. 'Indeed, with the incident in early March, the occurrence of the major flood made us realize that there was something we overlooked. This is PTPN's mistake, we correct ourselves, PTPN should not wash its hands off. Moving forward, I have requested PTPN I, because many of its lands are in partnership,' he said in a YouTube Hearing Meeting with Commission VI of the Indonesian House of Representatives, Wednesday (19/3/2025)."

He stated that out of the total area of the Land Use Rights (HGU) of PTPN in the Gunung Mas area, which is 1,623 hectares, about 500 hectares or 30.69% have been occupied. The forms of occupation consist of two categories, namely land planted with vegetables and land used for villa development. There are also 306 hectares of land that are in partnership with 33 partners and an area of 235.52 hectares is used for tea cultivation. In addition, there is land that is reserved and will be rejuvenated for ecosystem improvement. "The permits used for activities in the Gunung Mas area come from the Bogor Regency Government, not from the Central Government."

"So, there are laws and so on. But, when dealing with permits, the permits go through the district and there is nothing signed by the governor or the minister for our area," he said. He explained that there are various regulations governing the use of private land in the area to be developed into tourist sites. One of them is the Regional Regulation of Bogor Regency Number 7 of 2020. Nevertheless, PTPN cannot simply be considered to be complying with all the provisions correctly even though it has a legal basis as a reference in land utilization."

The step was taken following the sealing of three locations that violated the river basin area (DAS) by the Coordinating Ministry for Food Affairs and the Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLH) in the Sentul and Gunung Mas areas. The three locations are Gunung Geulis Country Club, Summarecon Bogor, and Bobocabin.

Gunung Mas itself has land owned by PTPN covering 1,623 hectares. He added that his party has met with the Coordinating Minister for Food Zulkifli Hasan and the Minister of Agriculture Andi Amran Sulaiman to discuss land use in Puncak Bogor. In the future, this land will be used to support the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) program. "We support the government for that nutritious lunch, to open up the possibility of collaborating with us for dairy cattle farming," he said. PTPN will appoint an independent consultant as directed by the Bogor Regency Government to conduct verification and audits of their partners' compliance with environmental regulations in conducting business. PTPN will take firm action by dismantling tourist spots in the Gunung Mas area that are proven to violate environmental regulations, lack permits, and do not meet valid environmental aspects in state-owned plantation areas. "For those who do not comply, we will dismantle together, the dismantling will be carried out in cooperation with the government," he said. In the future, buildings that do not meet environmental and licensing aspects will be dismantled and replanted with trees. PTPN Group will also implement a series of strategic steps to support sustainable business in the area. One of them is by planting trees in the critical land of Gunung Mas to reduce erosion and maintain ecosystem balance. "We are ready to replant, both tea plants and tree plants," said Ghani.

"Then, PTPN will issue a circular letter (SE) to all partners to temporarily halt activities and construction until the environmental audit is completed. In addition, it will enhance environmental supervision and compliance with environmental licensing to ensure that all activities are in accordance with regulations and do not harm the ecosystem. They will coordinate with the West Java Provincial Government and the Bogor Regency Government to plan harmonious spatial planning between development and environmental preservation."

Source : Bisnis.com

#Sustainability #Nature #Sustainability #flood #PTPN #mismanagement #flooddisaster #flood2025 #towardsgoldenindonesia #goldenindonesia2045