DOMAVOLA Company Limited, a logging company, has decided not to proceed with operations in the rainforest on Vangunu, Marovo, Western Province. Despite receiving a Development Consent from the Environment Advisory Committee (EAC) in the Ministry of Environment, Climate Change, Disaster Management and Meteorology (MECDM) in 2022, the company opted out due to strong opposition from the local Zaira community.
Thomas John Crawford, an Australian and Director of Renown Surf and Cargo Limited, the parent company of Domavola, confirmed this decision to the Solomon Star, Thursday. According to Mr Crawford, the company’s decision was driven by the sustained resistance from the Zaira Community Resource Management Area (ZCRMA), which opposed logging activities on their land since 2020.
This opposition began when the Western Province government initially issued a timber rights license to Dokoso Lumber Company Limited. Two prominent figures – a political appointee in the Official Opposition Office and a former Premier of Western Province, Wayne Maepio and a former Member of Parliament and businessman Bodo Dettke are directors of Dokoso Lumber Company Limited. Mr Maepio also serves as one of the directors of Domavola Company Limited.
