Indonesia 'should ratify haze pact'

It may get aid if it shows will to tackle burning: UN official
Straits Times 15 Oct 09;

INDONESIA needs to ratify a seven-year-old regional haze agreement to prove its commitment in tackling climate change, a top United Nations official said at a conference in Singapore yesterday.

As negotiations on a new climate change treaty in Copenhagen draws nearer, international financial aid to help coastal populations cope with the threat of rising sea levels, for example, will be more forthcoming if the treaty was ratified, said Mr Bakary Kante, director of the division of environmental law and conventions at the United Nations Environment Programme.

Asean nations, except Indonesia and the Philippines, signed the agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution in 2002.

Mr Kante said ratifying the agreement was of 'paramount importance' as it would demonstrate a 'political will' as well as a moral obligation to combat forest burning.

He was speaking to The Straits Times on the sidelines of a three-day conference here that brought together environment agencies from 14 countries in Asia, discussing how environmental protection laws can be better enforced.

The meeting was jointly organised by the Asian Environmental Compliance and Enforcement Network (Aecen) and National Environment Agency.

'The problems you are dealing with are on the top of the agenda for the international community,' said Mr Kante.

'Soot particles emanating from slash-and-burn farming...are having a major impact on the melting of Himalayan glaciers and slowing down the monsoon season, which is threatening food security and rice yields.'

Deforestation, through burning gases released from deforested soil and smouldering peat, accounts for 80 per cent of Indonesia's emissions, making it the world's third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases that exacerbate global warming.

But Indonesia has constantly pointed to a lack of technical expertise and financial muscle to tackle illegal slash-and-burn farming practices effectively.

Mr Kante added that comments by Indonesia's Forestry Minister, Mr Malam Sambat Kaban, that the government would take action on the issue only if its regional neighbours complained, were 'worrisome'.

'If one understands how damaging the haze is for the region, particularly considering how it affects the monsoon season, he would be careful with his words.

'This is a serious matter that no single country can solve by itself. It is through cooperation that governments will find a solution,' Mr Kante said.

Dr Supat Wangwongwatana, chairman of the Aecen executive committee, said tackling the haze had to go beyond a 'carrot and stick' approach to sharing best practices with fire-starters.

'Sometimes, polluters are willing to curb their farming methods but they do not know what to do. They need help.'

Delegates at the three-day forum, which ended yesterday, agreed that environment ministers from the Asia-Pacific region would meet in Japan next September to further diplomatic efforts.