PUI Mangrove Supports Carbon Storage in Lubuk Kertang Village
PUI Mangrove Supports Carbon Storage in Lubuk Kertang Village
Published by
David Kevin Handel Hutabarat
Published at
Thursday, 10 February 2022
Mangrove is a type of plant that is generally located in the transition area of land and sea ecosystems. Mangrove forests have a major role for marine life and also as a barrier to the land behind it. Today, mangrove forests also serve an important function as carbon sinks. One example of mangrove plants that have nutritional components that can be utilized, for example: red pidada (Sonneratia caseolaris), white pidada (Sonneratia alba), and jeruju (Acanthus ilicifolius L).
In 2020, PUI Mangrove Universitas Sumatera Utara performed Desa Binaan activities in Lubuk Kertang Village, Langkat Regency, North Sumatra. PUI Mangrove is one of the Centers for Excellence in Science and Technology at the Universitas Sumatera Utara. The village has been the center of research and community service activities of USU lecturers, especially those from the Faculties of Forestry, Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Agriculture, and Medicine, especially in the development of mangrove areas since 2015.
PUI Mangrove continued its activities from October to December 2021 by assisting several community groups, including the Mitra Kelompok Perempuan Tani Abadi Mangrove. The assistance carried out was the processing of PIRT for expired partner food products (pidada syrup and jeruju crackers) and new products from 2020 activities, namely jam, dodol, bread, and nastar filled with pidada fruit jam by the Team Coordinator, Era Yusraini, S.T.P., M.Si. and member Dr. Erni Jumilawaty. Licensing arrangements that have been carried out are the Home Food-Industry Number to the Langkat Regency Health Office and the Business Identification Number to the One-Stop Licensing Office, namely the One-Stop Integrated Investment and Licensing Office of Langkat Regency, Stabat.
The output activities that have been produced are that partners have a new SPP-IRT for jeruju cracker products (2061213120351-26), spicy jeruju crackers (2061213130351-26), pidada fruit syrup (2091213010350-26), mangrove pidada fruit jam (2081213020351-26), mangrove pidada pineapple tarts (2061213830351-26), mangrove pidada bread (2061213840351-26), and mangrove pidada dodol (2061213850351-26), as well as a Business Identification Number from the Ministry of Investment / BKPM (Investment Coordinating Board): 1011210017176. The obtained licenses are expected to help the partners, led by Daliana and group facilitator Ratnasari Keliat from Persaudaraan Perempuan Nelayan Indonesia, to increase sales of their products in the future.
In early 2022, the PUI Mangrove assisted group, along with several other groups (Ecoprint, Ecotourism, Lestari Mangrove), was visited by SEAMEO Biotrop, which was received directly by the Village Chief of Lubuk Kertang, Zul Ihsan, on January 20. Director of SEAMEO Biotrop Dr. Zulhamsyah Imran who was accompanied by the Dean of the USU Faculty of Forestry, Dr. Rudi Hartono, Vice Dean III, Dr. Agus Purwoko, Chairman of PUI Mangrove, Prof. Dr. Mohammad Basyuni, and several members of PUI Mangrove (Dr. Oding Affandi, Era Yusraini, S.T.P., M.Si. and Astrid Fauzia Dewinta, SSt.Pi., M.Si.), highly appreciated the activities that PUI Mangrove USU has carried out because it supports the preservation of nature.
Dr. Zulhamsyah explained if PUI Mangrove activities in Lubuk Kertang Village can include data on the calculation of carbon that has been captured and absorbed, it is not impossible that in the future, Lubuk Kertang Village can become one of the areas that are calculated as carbon sequestration areas and can receive funds as a return on the carbon services that have been provided. According to the goal of the COP26 climate change summit in Scotland in November 2021, carbon sequestration can help hold the earth's temperature rise to no more than 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial times. (RJ/Era)
