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View all search resultsForestry minister brushes off rumored Padar Island luxury villa project
The forestry minister has dismissed a rumor that over 600 luxury villas would be developed on the island in Komodo National Park, saying that such a project would fly in the face of conservation while adding that a plan to restrict visitor numbers was in the works.
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Rugged mountains jut out amid azure waters off sandy white beaches on Padar Island, located between the islands of Komodo and Rinca in West Manggarai regency, East Nusa Tenggara, in this undated stock image. (Shutterstock/File)
T
he Forestry Ministry has dismissed reports that 600 villas are to be built on Padar Island in Komodo National Park, East Nusa Tenggara, saying that development in the protected area remains strictly limited.
While it acknowledged that PT Komodo Wildlife Ecotourism (PT KWE) had held a concession on the island since 2014 to develop tourism facilities, it emphasized that the approved area for development covered only 15.37 hectares, or around 5.64 percent of the 274.13 ha under the company’s business license.
“The law is very strict, the maximum development permitted is 10 percent. So if anyone says there will be 600 villas, that is simply a hoax,” Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni said on Monday during an event to mark National Nature Conservation Day, as quoted by Antara.
Raja Juli underlined that any development must take place within the designated utilization zone, preceded by a lengthy approval process that included a public consultation and an environmental impact assessment (AMDAL).
A team of multidisciplinary experts is responsible for conducting an AMDAL using scientific and participatory methods, and the findings are presented during a public consultation involving local officials, community leaders, NGOs, business representatives and academics.
After passing this process, the proposed project must be submitted to UNESCO for review, as is required due to Komodo National Park’s 1991 designation as a World Heritage Site.
He added that all facilities in the park must be semipermanent so they could be relocated if necessary, and that no construction had begun to date.
