No regulations yet on ocean carbon trading , says climate council

Adianto P. Simamora ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Fri, 05/01/2009 2:00 PM  |  National

The Climate Change National Council (DNPI) said that Indonesia needed to put its ambitions to trade carbon absorbed by the ocean on hold due to the absence of regulations in international markets.

DNPI secretary Agus Purnomo said that the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) might issue findings from scientific research on whether the ocean could absorb or release the carbon in 2014.

"That is why it is impossible to trade carbon absorbed by the ocean this year. It will take years to negotiate," Agus told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

The IPCC is the highest level independent panel, consisting of thousands of climate experts, including those from Indonesia, who will have the final say on climate change issues.

Negotiations on climate change issues were based on scientific reports from the IPCC.

Agus, however, hailed the initiative of the government to promote the carbon issue in the World Ocean Conference in Manado slated for May 11.

He said Indonesia could start formulating a methodology to calculate the carbon in the ocean.

Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Freddy Numberi has said that carbon absorbed by the ocean should be traded under the existing Clean Development Mechanism, a legally binding carbon trading system in the Kyoto Protocol.

Minister Freddy said that Indonesia's oceans could absorb about 67 million tons of carbon equal to 245.6 million tons of CO2, the main contributor to global warming.

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