PERMENHUT 34/2010: Community-Based Forest Management Systems

Peraturan Menteri Kehutanan Nomor 34 Tahun 2010 addresses community-based forest management (Pengelolaan Hutan Berbasis Masyarakat/PHBM), granting local communities rights to manage and derive benefits from state forest areas. This regulation operationalizes Indonesia's social forestry policy, recognizing that sustainable forest management requires active participation and equitable benefit-sharing with forest-dependent communities.

Social Forestry Rationale

Indonesia's 120.6 million hectares of state forest are home to approximately 25 million people in and around forest areas. Historically, centralized forest management marginalized these communities, contributing to illegal logging, encroachment, and forest-community conflicts. PERMENHUT 34/2010 shifts toward participatory models where communities become forest stewards rather than threats.

Community Forest Management Schemes

The regulation establishes multiple tenure arrangements:

Hutan Kemasyarakatan (HKm): Community forestry permits allowing groups to utilize production and protection forests for cultivation, agroforestry, non-timber forest products.

Hutan Desa (HD): Village forest rights where administrative villages manage forest areas for community welfare.

Kemitraan (Partnership): Collaborative management between communities and forest concessionaires or state forest companies.

Each scheme grants specific rights (utilization, management) while communities fulfill obligations (conservation, fire prevention, monitoring).

Permit Process and Requirements

Communities apply through local governments, submitting:
- Community organizational documents
- Management plans demonstrating sustainable practices
- Maps of requested forest areas
- Agreements on benefit-sharing and obligations

Permits are granted for 35 years (renewable), providing long-term tenure security incentivizing sustainable management.

Economic and Conservation Outcomes

Studies show community-managed forests often achieve better conservation outcomes than state-managed areas, as local knowledge, continuous presence, and direct livelihood dependence motivate careful stewardship. Economic benefits include:
- Sustainable timber and non-timber forest product harvesting
- Carbon finance opportunities (REDD+)
- Ecotourism development
- Agroforestry income diversification

Challenges and Evolution

Despite PERMENHUT 34/2010's progressive framework, implementation faces hurdles:
- Slow permit processing (average 3-5 years)
- Limited technical assistance for management planning
- Market access constraints for forest products
- Unclear conflict resolution mechanisms

Subsequent regulations (PermenLHK 83/2016, PermenLHK 9/2021) have refined and expanded social forestry provisions, addressing these challenges and accelerating permit issuance.

Conclusion

PERMENHUT 34/2010 represents paradigm shift in Indonesian forest governance, from exclusionary state control to inclusive community participation. By granting tenure security and management rights to forest communities, the regulation promotes both social equity and environmental sustainability, demonstrating that forest conservation and poverty alleviation can be mutually reinforcing when communities are empowered as partners rather than excluded as problems.

Sumber Hukum: Archives indicate PERMENHUT 34/2010 in vault; verify status via BPK Database

Peraturan Terkait: PermenLHK 83/2016, PermenLHK 9/2021

Sektor: Community Forestry, Social Policy

Status Regulasi: To be verified (likely superseded by later social forestry regulations)

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