(Riau, Indonesia): APRIL will continue to work with WWF and the Government to fight illegal logging and preserve High Conservation Value Forests, even as recent preventive actions by the company drew public protest actions and threats of attacks from illegal loggers.

KOMPAS, one of Indonesia's leading newspapers, reported protests from the illegal loggers of 2 villages, following the closure of 24 access roads. The local community built these roads to gain entry into the Tesso Nilo National Conservation Area. APRIL, in conjunction with the local government, dug wide ditches across these access roads, to stop entry into and the transportation of logs out of the forest. The newspaper article further said that illegal loggers threatened to use force if these access roads are not re-opened.

"APRIL's anti-illegal logging activities have made an impact and we will not bow to external pressure to stop," said Mr A.J. Devanesan, President and Chief Operating Officer of APRIL. "However, we understand that poverty is at the root of this problem so our approach to wipe out illegal logging is two-fold - prevention through our own and multi-stakeholder initiatives, and poverty alleviation through the creation of economic and social development opportunities."

APRIL applies the Mosaic Plantation Concept* to its forest concessions, which balances commercial and development needs with environmental and social values. The company plants more than 50,000 hectares of fiber plantations on degraded forest lands annually.

*The Mosaic Plantation Concept is a forest management strategy that balances environmental and social values with commercial and developmental needs. In APRIL's concessions, this translates into an average of 20% -30% of any concession area being set aside for environmental conservation purposes. This includes the High Conservation Value Forests, which APRIL protects by planting a ring of Acacia around to prevent illegal access and prevent human-animal conflict. Another 20% is usually also set aside for the local community.

About APRIL
APRIL, with offices around the world and manufacturing operations in Indonesia and China, is one of the largest producers of pulp and paper and a leading developer of fiber plantations. APRIL operates one of the world's largest pulp mills with an annual production capacity of 2 million tonnes in Indonesia. The company is committed to protecting the natural resources in its care through sustainable management of its mills and forestry operations to benefit our stakeholders, both now and in the future.

Asia Pacific Resources International Ltd (APRIL)

Asia Pacific Resources International Ltd (APRIL)

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