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Palm Oil Industry Key Culprit Behind Deforestation, Haze In Indonesia

New report by Greenpeace details the failure of RSPO in halting deforestation, and highlights Wilmar, Genting and Surya Dumai as firms with concessions behind the recent haze crisis in Singapore and Malaysia The palm oil industry is destroying Indonesia’s forests, said Greenpeace International in a new report on Tuesday, as the Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) is set to meet for its first European Summit in Berlin.      In the investigative paper, “Certifying Destruction”, Greenpeace higlighted the failure of the sustainable palm oil and certification body in halting deforestation. RSPO concessions accounted for as much as 39 per cent of the fire hotspots on palm oil concessions in Riau during January to June 2013, when the most severe haze outbreak in history affected neighbouring Singapore and Malaysia. The report, which gives a mapping anaylsis of the concessions, charged that RSPO standards are severely lacking, leaving members “free to destroy forests” that contribute to more greenhouse gas emissions, human rights violations, loss of endangered species such as the Sumatran tiger and orang-utan and the Borneo orang-utan, and the yearly regional haze. RSPO members account for about 40 per cent of global palm oil production. With the launch of the report, Greenpeace is calling for the industry, especially those gathering at the summit, where the future of palm oil sustainability will be discussed, to take action against deforestation. Bustar Maitar, Greenpeace International’s head for the Indonesia Forest Campaign, told Eco-Business: “We want to see the companies, palm oil producers and the buyers to act more to stop deforestation … We want to see the customers make sure that their product is not associated with deforestation. Customers can’t just say that because they are buying from RSPO companies then they have no relation with deforestation and peat land destruction…” According to Indonesia’s Ministry of Forestry maps, the country has lost 1.24 million hectares of forest from 2009 to 2011. In the same period, about 300,000 hectares or a quarter of this total forest loss was due to identified palm oil concessions, said Greenpeace, making the palm oil sector the largest driver of forest destruction in Indonesia.    Illegal land clearing and unsustainable sourcing “ Even among the RSPO’s own members, dirty palm oil remains the common currency – RSPO standards are inadequate, poorly enforced and offer palm oil consumers no guarantee that the oil they buy has been produced responsibly Greenpeace International “Year after year, Indonesia’s forest fires and haze wreak havoc on the region, and the palm oil sector is a main culprit,” said Maitar. He added, “While RSPO members might have no-fire policies, the peat land they have cleared and drained is like a tinderbox – one spark is all it takes.”      According to anaylsis by Greenpeace, Singapore-based Wilmar International, the world’s largest palm oil trader, along with Genting and Surya Dumai, are “the three privately-owned RSPO members with the largest areas of identified deforestation”. Wilmar prohibits burning on its own plantations, but it sources more than 90 per cent of its crude palm oil from third-party suppliers. Some of palm oil products it has received come from illegal plantations inside the Tesso Nilo National Park in Riau as recently as 2012, according to a WWF investigation, cited the Greenpeace report. While the agribusiness firm denied this and mentioned of procedures stopping such practices, the lax criteria on third-party supply does not promote the strict use of clean palm oil into global supplies, said Greenpeace. This fresh fruit bunch (FFB) or palm oil products sourced from third-party suppliers could have been produced through illegal land clearing, they added. Inadequacies of RSPO The RSPO lacks standards encouraging transparency in sourcing or mechanisms that offer traceability throughout the entire palm oil supply chain, from plantation to the end consumer product sold on supermarkets and other retail stores.      The report showed a visual flowchart of the RSPO supply chain illustrating three different supply systems –  segregated supply, mass balance, and book and claim – that translate to different palm oil products, as well as different claims of palm oil certification. “Even among the RSPO’s own members, dirty palm oil remains the common currency – RSPO standards are inadequate, poorly enforced and offer palm oil consumers no guarantee that the oil they buy has been produced responsibly,” said Greenpeace. In fact, of the 250 palm oil consumer companies interviewed by the environmental group , those who replied stated they still rely on RSPO’s sustainability measures.      Procter and Gamble, one of the respondents, said, “By 2015, 100 per cent of our palm oil purchases will be confirmed to have originated from responsible and sustainable sources… [We are] aiming to source certified sustainable palm oil and PKO (palm kernel oil) via the RSPO Mass Balanced Supply Chain model, but will also be source via the Book and Claim model.” However, Greenpeace emphasised that the RSPO is “not fit for this purpose”. The report outlines how the RSPO faces criticism from consumer companies and non-government organisations, despite having recently revised its principles and criteria and having the support of the Consumer Goods Forum and the Sustainable Palm Oil Investor Working Group.      Kellogg, the company behind well-known cereals and energy bars, recently received backlash from consumer activist group Sum of Us due to its joint venture with Wilmar International. Campaign director Rob Wohl, in an article with trade website Bakery and Snacks, said, “Sourcing RSPO-certified palm oil is nice, but Kellogg’s (and really, all global corporations) need to be doing everything in their power to stop deforestation. Ideally, Kellogg should follow Nestlé’s lead by adopting strong deforestation-free principles and allow independent oversight of its supply chain.” Going beyond the RSPO Greenpeace likewise named the Swiss multinational company as an example of a consumer goods firm that has taken palm oil sustainability seriously. The environmental NGO, back in 2010, lambasted the firm’s use of unsustainable palm oil from Indonesian supplier Sinar Mas for its Kit Kat chocolate bar. Since then, Nestlé has addressed its sourcing, even including a goal on the use of sustainable palm oil by end of the year on its list of published environmental targets for 2020. Golden Agri-Resources, New Britain Palm Oil and Agropalma are the other exemplary companies cited by Greenpeace in the report. According to Areeba Hamid, the NGO’s forest campaigner, “The only solution for palm oil consumers and producers is to go beyond the RSPO – as some members are doing already. This is the challenge we set to the industry.” The Palm Oil Innovation Group, an initiative by some palm oil firms and NGOs including Greenpeace, is an example of industry efforts outside the RSPO. The group is for the conservation of high carbon stock forests and also secondary forests, which the RSPO does not protect in its stipulated forest clearance ban. Greenpeace, in the report, recommended what other actions the RSPO should take to improve its standards. They also listed their solutions and demands for palm oil consumer companies, traders and processors, and producers. Hamid said, “Brands must find out where their palm oil comes from, and guarantee consumers around the world that forest destruction is not making its way into our products.” Wilmar, as well as Golden Agri and Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd (KLK), showed that having questionable business operations has repercussions. Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, the richest in the world at US$737 billion, sold its investments in the palm oil producers last 2012, citing concerns on deforestation. Continue reading

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Analysis: Indonesia Renews Moratorium On Logging, Palm Plantations

Commentary/Analysis by Kemen Austin, Fred Stolle and Ariana Alisjahbana, WRI May 16, 2013 Editor’s note: This commentary is an analysis by three experts from the World Resources Institute (WRI). The post originally appeared at Indonesia Extends Its Forest Moratorium: What Comes Next? . Indonesia’s President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono made a bold and courageous decision this week to extend the country’s forest moratorium . With this decision, which aims to prevent new clearing of primary forests and peat lands for another two years, the government could help protect valuable forests and drive sustainable development. Enacted two years ago, Indonesia’s forest moratorium has already made some progress in improving forest management. However, much more can be done . The extension offers Indonesia a tremendous opportunity: a chance to reduce emissions, curb deforestation, and greatly strengthen forest governance in a country that holds some of the world’s most diverse ecosystems. Boosting Achievements from Indonesia’s Forest Moratorium Indonesia ranks as one of world’s biggest greenhouse gas emitters, largely due to the clearing of forest and peat lands. The forest moratorium aims to address this problem by prohibiting any new licenses to log, clear, convert, or otherwise alter pristine forest and peat lands, an area encompassing more than 43 million hectares of land. Forest users with existing licenses are still allowed to operate in these regions, and there are several exceptions to the rule. The biggest achievement of the moratorium thus far is that it created a much-needed window of opportunity to begin developing critical forest governance reforms. Now that the government has extended the moratorium, it’s important that these reforms are not only implemented, but strengthened to truly benefit Indonesia’s forests and the people who depend on them. Deforestation in Indonesian Borneo. Photo by Rhett A. Butler A few opportunities for further reforms include: Tracking Forest Permits : Currently, national agencies and local government offices oftentimes do not share information with each other on permits for logging, mining, palm oil development, and other forest uses. As a result, multiple forest users may operate in the same area, creating confusion and conflict. Indonesia’s REDD+ Task Force , the government body in charge of coordinating all REDD+-related activities , is currently capitalizing on the moratorium to develop an online, publicly accessible database of all forest licenses in the country. The team aims to publicize all permits from one province, Central Kalimantan, by June 2013. The Task Force should expand this process to Indonesia’s remaining 33 provinces after the pilot project. Strengthening the Permit Review Process : Before the moratorium, government agencies lacked technical guidance on how to review a permit’s compliance with Indonesian regulations—such as the limits on converting peat lands and the steps required to obtain a forest license. The REDD+ Task Force is currently piloting a new review process in three districts in Central Kalimantan and evaluating how permits comply with Indonesian rules and regulations. However, it is unclear if or how this assessment will impact illegal permits. If successful, this initiative should give rise to a stronger national policy on granting and reviewing forest permits. Designating Forest Area : Indonesia, like many nations, designates “official” Forest Estate ( Kawasan Hutan ) through zoning. The designation of forest area provides the foundation for deciding what types of forest use can occur and where. It’s a critical first step for improving land-use planning and forest management. However, due to conflicts between national and subnational governments, Indonesia’s forest delineation process is only 14 percent complete . The moratorium allows the REDD+ Task Force, in close collaboration with the Ministry of Forestry and local governments, to pilot measures to overcome conflicts and accelerate delineation. The Task Force has begun this work in one district, South Barito in Central Kalimantan, but it still needs to be completed and then applied to the rest of the country. Accelerating Spatial Planning : A slow Forest Estate delineation process has stalled the development of district and provincial land use plans, which help direct public and private investments. Only 45 percent of Indonesian provinces and 56 percent of districts had finalized their spatial plans as of April 2013. The moratorium prompted creation of an agency to guide this process, but it has not yet accelerated spatial planning to the degree necessary. Formalizing Community Plans : Regions occupied by local, traditional communities, known as adat areas, have historically been left out of Indonesia’s formal spatial planning system, the Rencana Tata Ruang Wilayah (RTRW). Ignoring adat communities’ land rights spurs poverty, hinders economic development, and deters environmental stewardship. During the moratorium, the REDD+ Task Force invited civil society to submit community maps and land use plans. However, because the moratorium doesn’t require full recognition of adat lands, government ministries must provide further clarity on how community plans will be incorporated into the formal spatial planning process. Peat forest clearing for an oil palm plantation in Indonesian Borneo. Photo by Rhett A. Butler 3 Ways to Strengthen Indonesia’s Forest Moratorium Extending the forest moratorium can help ensure that ongoing governance reforms reach their full potential. But to really capitalize on the extension and improve the forest sector, the government should also pursue new reforms, such as: Evaluating Greenhouse Gas Emissions During Permitting : Authorities who issue forest use permits lack the tools they need to evaluate the proposed activity’s potential greenhouse gas emissions. The new online permit database should be combined with data on forest cover, peat land extent, and carbon stocks to account for emissions risks. This review process could also support efforts to shift agricultural expansion from forested land to non-forested , “degraded land.” WRI estimates that there are more than 14 million hectares of low-carbon, degraded land in the four Kalimantan Provinces alone. Disseminating Technical Guidance at the Local Level : WRI and partners recently interviewed forest agency officials in eight districts to assess the level of local understanding of the moratorium. While all respondents were aware of the moratorium, just five out of eight knew the types of land protected, while only three had accessed the map delineating these areas. Ensuring a basic level of understanding at the district level will be a critical next step for boosting the moratorium’s application. Better Monitoring and Enforcement : The same forthcoming study revealed that half of district forest service respondents did not know who was responsible for monitoring the moratorium. Many said there were no mandated monitoring activities, and if there had been violations, they did not know where to report them. A robust monitoring and enforcement system is essential to ensuring an effective moratorium . Curbing deforestation, reducing emissions, and improving quality of life for millions of Indonesian citizens all hinge on sound forest governance. Extending the moratorium for two more years does not guarantee more emissions reductions or better forest management, but it’s a critical starting point. Now it’s time to capitalize on this opportunity and move forward with forest sector reforms. Read more at http://news.mongabay…D8Rytbh7EFur.99 Continue reading

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