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Scientists say forest moratorium needs action
Local and international experts say the planned forest moratorium sounds good in theory, but remained skeptical of the actual implementation of the US$1 billion policy
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ocal and international experts say the planned forest moratorium sounds good in theory, but remained skeptical of the actual implementation of the US$1 billion policy.
Signing a letter of intent (LoI) with Norway in May, the Indonesian government decided to halt issuing new permits to convert natural forests and peatland for two years beginning in 2011. Under the agreement, Norway would pay Indonesia for carbon emission it obtained through preventing deforestation.
On its own, the policy is good, but it needs to be matched with “real actions”, the Indonesian Institute for Sciences (LIPI) Center for Innovation director Bambang Subiyanto said.
“The moratorium is acceptable, but it will not be effective if certain important issues remain unresolved,” he said, adding that the main issues surround the local communities’ land-clearing habits.
Big companies’ compliance was easier for the government to monitor compared to the more sporadic activities of small-scale oil palm growers, Bambang said.
“Our problems lie in how to provide them with the technology and economic alternatives that would empower them,” he said.
“Their skills and their entrepreneurial abilities must be refined so they can take advantage of their local resources.”
The “politically preoccupied” government lacks a scientific research model for addressing the challenges of policy implementation, he said.
“The government has never organized a serious meeting with researchers from various disciplines to discuss issues,” he said, adding that the absence of such collaboration resulted in overlapping policies.
“The government’s commitment to moving under a single top-to-bottom chain of command is a key to implementing the moratorium successfully,” he said.
The outlook of Indonesia’s entrepreneurs, who often preferred a merchant mentality rather than focusing on “improving quality, efficiency and product research”, also needed to be challenged, Bambang said.
“The businessmen expect profits the day after they make investments,” he told The Jakarta Post.
Okamoto Masaaki, a scientist from Kyoto University performing research on the political and economic aspects of Indonesia’s oilpalm industry, said the policy’s success rate would depend on President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyoyono’s commitment to implementing it.
“It can be done if the government collaborates with local administrations that are ready to run with the policy, instead of simply pointing out who should be included,” he said.
“The government must sanction local administrations that fail, perhaps by cutting their allocation funds.”
Clearing forests for oil palm plantations was unnecessary because there was still room to increase the low productivity of Indonesia’s existing cultivated land, Okamoto said.
“But businessmen will surely oppose this idea,” he said. “Clearing land is cheaper and the timber will fetch far bigger profits.”
The oilpalm business consortium decried the policy, saying they needed more land to expand their businesses because of the increasing demand for palm oil.
Exhaustive tests must be carried out on peatland during the moratorium to provide data on its effects on carbon emissions, Kyoto University peatland researcher Mamoru Kanzaki told the Post.
Together with Malaysia, Indonesia reaps huge revenue by supplying nearly 90 percent of palm oil world wide. This revenue is an essential economic driver in both nations.
However, the push to export more palm oil comes at the expense of clearing forests and converting peatland to oil palm plantations, which aggravates global warming by releasing rich carbon emissions deposited in the earth, Kanzaki said.
“No one knows exactly how much carbon comes from peat swamps after development,” he said.
“If the value turns out to be high, it means it’s time to slow down development.”
Non-government organizations are at odds with businesses, and demand the government make the moratorium permanent.
The government has proceeded with the moratorium plans because of an increase in global awareness of the urgency to mitigate climate change.
Indonesia plays a critical role in maintaining the global climate because of its high rainfalls. This means changes in the archipelago’s climate can offset global climate changes, Kobe University climatology researcher Manabu D. Yamanaka said.
However, Indonesia is also sensitive to climate change, he said, adding that the government understands this very well and is making efforts to increase its capacity to cope with potential impacts of climate change. (gzl)
