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Royal Golden Eagle Group/APRIL (RGE/APRIL) started its forestry and mill operations in 1996. Since the early years, RGE/APRIL has been criticized by researchers and NGOs for its legally questionable land grabbing and deforestation activities, and their negative impact on the nature and local communities. There is no accurate and credible calculation of RGE/APRIL’s historical deforestation, though Eyes on the forest estimated that the company’s wood suppliers deforested 595,000 hectares of natural forest inside its Riau concessions alone until 2012 since starting its operations, and far more through its suppliers with significant negative impacts on Indonesia’s forests, biodiversity, people as well as the global climate.
In 2021, RGE/APRIL remains one of the few companies that are disassociated by FSC.
DEFORESTATION HISTORY
There has been no precise calculation of RGE/APRIL’s historical deforestation, though EoF estimated that the company’s wood suppliers deforested 595,000 hectares of natural forest inside its Riau concessions alone until 2012 since starting its operations, and far more through its suppliers, with impacts on Indonesia’s forests, biodiversity, people as well as the global climate.
1996
Starts its pulp production in Riau, Sumatra, Indonesia.
Company publishes a policy to “protect High Conservation Value Forest”, though its implementation has been generally considered a failure.
Company misses its own deadline to source from plantations forest only. An Eyes of the Forest report demonstrated in 2012 that APRIL was Sumatra’s biggest forest pulper from 2009 to 2012.
FSC ends its association with the RGE group
Company publishes a new “sustainability forest management plan” which has been cautiously received by many NGOs. It pushes the deadline to source from plantation forests only from 2009 to 2019.
Company announces an upgraded Sustainable Forestry Management Plan (SFMP 2.0) containing an immediate moratorium on natural forest clearing and new peatland development.
WWF-Indonesia suspends its membership in APRIL's Stakeholder Advisory Committee (SAC) due to lack of progress by APRIL and RGE to implement SFMP 2.0 and the "Forestry, Fibre, Pulp & Paper Sustainability Framework"; violations to government policy towards peat protection and restoration; and lack of transparency and misleading information to hide "business as usual" operations.
APRIL’s Riau completes its third mill and increased its production capacity around 30%, despite not having enough plantation supply in Riau province.
December 2018
APRIL’s sister company PT Asia Pacific Rayon (APR) - one of the largest viscose-rayon producers in Asia - starts their operation in December 2018 with a capacity of 240,000 ton/year. A group of NGO’s report on their concern on the endless deforestation particularly on peatland.