Fidelis E. Satriastanti Jakarta Globe 3 Jan 11;
Indonesia’s much-hyped promise to enact a moratorium on new logging concessions from Jan. 1 has been held up over the question of which of the two draft presidential decrees on the issue should be signed.
The two-year moratorium on new concessions in peatland and primary forests is part of a bilateral deal with Norway, in exchange for which Indonesia will receive $1 billion in funding for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD-Plus) schemes.
In order to make the moratorium legally binding, it must be backed by a presidential decree. However, the government has drafted two substantially different texts.
The version submitted by the Ministry of Forestry is titled “Suspension of New Permits for Primary Forest and Peatland Conversion.”
Another draft was later penned by the national REDD-Plus task force. It is titled “Suspension of Services and Issuance of New Permits for Primary and Secondary Forests and Peatland in Forest Areas and Other Uses Areas.”
Copies of both drafts were obtained by the Jakarta Globe. The REDD-Plus task force’s draft text was more specific about which kinds of permits would no longer be issued. Such permits included those for logging, plantations and mining.
The Ministry of Forestry draft, by contrast, only states that the moratorium applies to “new conversion permits for primary forests and peatland for two years, starting Jan. 1, 2011, to Dec. 31, 2012.”
T he task force draft also gives specific instructions to the Forestry Ministry, the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry, the National Land Agency, the national REDD agency, governors and district heads to cease granting permits related to the management of primary and secondary forests.
The Forestry Ministry’s version only issues this instruction to the Home Affairs Ministry, governors and district heads.
Agus Purnomo, the presidential adviser for climate change, said both drafts were still being examined by the president’s office and that no decision had been made on which to sign.
He could not confirm how many drafts had been submitted, but said at least three had been drawn up.
“I don’t know exactly how many draft decrees have been proposed for the moratorium,” he said. “There was one from Emil Salim [the presidential adviser for environmental affairs], one from the Ministry of Forestry and one from Kuntoro Mangkusborto [head of the REDD-Plus task force].”
Agus added that it was unclear which of the drafts President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono would finally sign.
“All I know is that all those institutions are still working out how to formulate the final draft,” he said.
He added that the government had missed the deadline to make the moratorium legally binding, but said the deal would still be valid once the decree was finally signed.
Indonesia's Forestry Freeze Plan is Still on Ice
Fidelis E. Satriastanti Jakarta Globe 5 Jan 11;
Despite repeated setbacks for a long-awaited moratorium on new forestry concessions, the Forestry Ministry is still arguing over the details of the plan.
Hadi Daryanto, the ministry’s director general of forestry management, insisted on Tuesday that it should be in charge of implementing the freeze.
“The Forestry Ministry will be most effective because the ministry has the authority over forest lands, whether they are for mining activities or for plantations,” he said. “If there are others involved, then it would only create more red tape.”
Hadi said the minister of forestry and district heads were responsible for granting permits, while governors could only give recommendations.
The two-year moratorium on new concessions in peat lands and primary forests was agreed to by Indonesia as part of a $1 billion deal with Norway. The funding was meant for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD-Plus) schemes, which had initially been scheduled to begin on Jan. 1.
But President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has yet to issue an instruction on the moratorium and at least two substantially different drafts of the moratorium exist, one prepared by the Forestry Ministry and the other by the national REDD-Plus task force.
The task force’s draft text was more specific about the types of permits that would no longer be issued, including those for logging, land lease, plantations and mining.
The Forestry Ministry’s draft, by contrast, only states that the moratorium applies to “new conversion permits for primary forests and peat lands for two years, starting Jan. 1, 2011, to Dec. 31, 2012.”
The task force’s draft also details specific instructions for the ministries of forestry and energy and mineral resources, National Land Agency (BPN), National REDD Agency, governors and district heads to cease granting permits related to the management of primary and secondary forests.
The Forestry Ministry’s version only issues this instruction to the Home Affairs Ministry, governors and district heads.
Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan, meanwhile, said there were still plenty of drafts regarding the moratorium and they were all up for discussion. “The drafts are still being discussed at the Coordinating Ministry for the Economy,” he said. “I have already said that there was a January 1, 2011, deadline, but, as we are still discussing it, I don’t know when it will be issued. I am still hoping that it will be this month.”
Commenting on the competing drafts, Hadi, who is also a member of the task force, said there were few differences because the task force’s draft was derived from the ministry’s.
“There are no differences between them, the task force only added their input to our draft, including to add the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources and National Land Agency into the presidential instruction,” he said, adding that he did not know if the task force’s draft had already been submitted to the president.
The next stage in the process is for the drafts on the moratorium to be discussed at the cabinet level.
Indonesia Divided Over Forest Moratorium
Olivia Rondonuwu PlanetArk 6 Jan 11;
Indonesia's government is still trying to thrash out the details of a two-year moratorium on forest clearing under a $1 billion climate deal with Norway, leading it to miss a planned January 1 start and continued uncertainty for plantation firms.
The divergence of views between different Indonesian government ministries mirrors the inability of nations to agree a concrete pact to limit global greenhouse gas emissions at U.N. talks in Cancun last month.
While the government still hopes to finalize the ban in coming weeks, the potential for further delays or a watered-down version of a much-lauded bilateral agreement would be another blow for global efforts to slow climate change.
The delay means continued uncertainty for palm oil, pulp and paper and mining firms hoping to expand.
At issue are different views on how much forest and what type of forest to include in the ban. There is also uncertainty on whether to allow holders of existing permits to clear forest to go ahead or to compensate them instead.
"We are dealing with so many stakeholders, so in a democratic process we need negotiation, discussion, compromises -- as long as the principle is still being held we are on the right track," Kuntoro Mangkusubroto, a respected technocrat who heads the president's special delivery unit, told Reuters.
The dispute shows the difficulties for Indonesia of slashing emissions while still spurring economic growth, as the country earns billions each year from cutting down forests to sell timber, paper and palm oil.
Mangkusubroto, tasked with steering the climate deal with Norway, and the forestry ministry have submitted competing drafts for the proposed moratorium, seen by Reuters, and the decision on how to proceed now rests with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
He has to choose between two starkly differing drafts: the forestry ministry wants the ban only on new permits to clear primary forests and peatlands for two years, while the presidential delivery unit wants it to include secondary forests, to review existing permits and consider extending the timeframe.
Primary forests are untouched while secondary forests have been selectively logged, though boundaries are often unclear and illegal logging is rampant in one of Asia's most corrupt countries. Forests soak up the main greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2).
FOR PEAT'S SAKE
Peatlands emit huge quantities of greenhouse gases if drained and cleared, and heavy deforestation led the World Bank to name Indonesia the world's third largest emitter in 2005.
Yudhoyono aims to slash 26 percent of the country's emissions by 2020 versus business-as-usual levels, or 41 percent with international support. The Norway deal, which rests on emissions cuts from saving forests being proven, was heralded as an example of how bilateral deals could help fight climate change.
Plantation and mining firms have opposed the moratorium, which could slow the expansion of firms such as Astra Agro Lestari and delay coal and mining projects worth $14 billion by the likes of BHP Billiton.
So far there are few signs that palm oil exports from the world's largest producer will be hit. Indonesia's trade minister said on Wednesday palm oil exports are expected to grow 16 percent in value this year amid new investment in the sector.
However, the draft from Mangkusubroto calls for a review on existing permit holders, though firms would be excluded if they have already invested in projects by December 2010 and the forest was heavily damaged.
Mangkusubroto said he is preparing incentives and compensation for firms such as land swaps.
"We cannot just leave them like that. We have to give them options," he said.
On the other hand, forestry minister Zulkifli Hasan, a politician from a political party allied with Yudhoyono, told Reuters he wanted the freeze applied only to new permits to maintain business and legal certainty.
"Businesses which already hold permits can go ahead, we cannot and may not stop them, because we have exploited (the forest) for 40 years, so there are many firms who hold forest permits," Hasan said in an interview.
The ministry has identified 35 million hectares (87 million acres) of land that can be used selectively for business, and nine plantation firms have submitted requests to use 320,000 hectares of forest.
He added the ban will still protect 43.8 million hectares of primary forests and half of the 20 million hectares of peatlands, while applying sustainable forest management practices to another 48.5 million hectares.
"This is already January 2011 and after seven months of discourses and reviews in the public and within the government, the government is yet to produce a clear strategy and legal framework," said Fitrian Ardiansyah, forest climate policy analyst at WWF.
(Editing by David Fogarty)
