Erwida Maulia Jakarta Globe 16 Dec 14;
Fifty-one people are believed to have died in the landslide in Banjarnegara, Central Java on Dec. 13, 2014. (JG Photo/ Dhana Kencana)
Jakarta. Indonesian environmentalists expressed concerns that “disappointing” outcomes of the United Nations’ climate change meeting that concluded in Peru over the weekend will dampen Indonesia’s efforts to reduce carbon emissions.
More than 190 nations who sent their representatives to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)’s 20th session conference in Lima, Peru, agreed on Saturday on “ground rules” on how all countries can submit their contributions to a new climate deal scheduled for approval in Paris late next year.
The Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs), nations’ commitments to the climate agreement, will form the foundations for action until 2020, when the new agreement is set to come into effect.
Nongovernmental groups have criticized the Lima outcome, with the World Wildlife Fund calling it a “half-baked” plan to cut emissions.
“Governments crucially failed to agree on specific plans to cut emissions before 2020 that would have laid the groundwork for ending the fossil-fuel era and accelerated the move toward renewable energy and increased energy efficiency,” Samantha Smith, leader of WWF’s global climate and energy initiative said in a statement.
The nonprofit organization criticizes developed nations’ lack of commitment during the two-week negotiations.
“Governments [of developed countries] couldn’t even manage to explain how they will deliver the long-promised $100 billion per year in climate finance by 2020,” Smith said. “In a move that seemingly dismissed the plight of the most vulnerable countries, they completely removed any meaningful language about ‘loss and damage.’ ”
In Indonesia, one of the main contributors of global greenhouse gas emissions through deforestation, environmentalists worry the Lima outcome would demotivate the government in tackling climate change. The new administration of President Joko Widodo is already seen as being less ambitious than his predecessor, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, in climate and environmental commitments.
“The prospect for [intensified measures] to reduce carbon emissions is getting smaller,” said Zenzi Suhadi, a forest campaigner with the Indonesian Forum for the Environment, or Walhi.
Zenzi expressed his disappointment especially with the refusal of wealthier nations to take responsibility, saying it will only burden island nations of the South, including Indonesia, who would be hit hardest by rising sea levels and extreme weather triggered by global warming.
He accused big corporations, including those with an interest in Indonesia’s forestry sector, of impeding climate talks and deals for their own benefit.
“We know how major corporations in Indonesia’s plantation and forestry industries are trying to legitimize their businesses through ecological restoration schemes,” Zenzi told the Jakarta Globe.
“But that is ‘greenwashing.’ They claim they are saviors of the environment by campaigning for such schemes, when the restoration zones are much smaller than the forested areas they have destroyed.
“And many of the areas they claim to use for restoration are actually primary forests, or were grabbed from the local population,” he added.
Rizaldi Boer of the Bogor Institute of Agriculture (IPB) criticized developed nations for focusing on mitigation efforts in climate negotiations, while giving less attention to adaptive measures.
“Adaptation has been sidelined, when there should be a balance between mitigation and adaptation,” Rizaldi said.
But despite the “disappointing” Lima conclusion, Indonesia must make the most of some of the meeting’s outcomes, such as the $10.2 billion pledged for the Green Climate Fund. The government should apply for a portion of the funds to support the development of renewable energy and other green technologies to reduce carbon emissions, he said.
“How should Indonesia benefit from opportunities offered in the international [forum]? We can do it as long as we’re committed [to environmental causes and reducing emissions],” Rizaldi added.
Agus Purnomo, coordinator of Indonesia’s National Council for Climate Change (DNPI) during Yudhoyono’s term, is confident Indonesia will stick to its commitment to reducing carbon emission by 26 percent by 2020 using its own resources, and 41 percent with international assistance.
“But we need to take this opportunity, provided by the Lima deal, to make clear our commitments beyond 2020,” Agus said.
