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Peatland decree not pro-people, needs revision: Academics
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Tropical Peat Research Laboratory staffers walk past burned wild peatland in Miri, Sarawak, Malaysia, on Feb. 22. The NGO claims that it has introduced a soil-compaction method to utilize peatland without spoiling its vital functions. (JP/Anton Hermansyah)
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cademics from several universities across Indonesia have recommended the government revise Government Regulation (PP) No. 57/ 2016 on Peat Ecosystem Protection and Management Regulation, saying that the regulation is not pro-people and its implementation could damage plantation activities in Indonesia.
Indonesia Land Science Association (HITI) chairman Budi Mulianto said the recommendation would be immediately conveyed to the government to show their concerns over the fate of farmers and plantation companies, which might face economic impacts from the implementation of the PP.
(Read also: Conversion of peatland concessions into conservation areas commences)
Budi, who is also a land expert from the Bogor Institute of Agriculture (IPB), said many farmers and plantation companies cultivated oil palms on peatlands. He said he was worried that if PP 57 was not revised, farmers and plantation companies operating on peatlands would have to stop their plantation activities
“To anticipate the matter, we will recommend the government revise PP 57. Within the next two weeks at the latest, the recommendation will have been sent to the government,” Budi told The Jakarta Post after a seminar at the North Sumatra University in Medan on Thursday. (ebf)
