New desalination process can save energy, cut costs

Audrey Tan, The Straits Times AsiaOne 28 Nov 15;

The sea may surround Singapore but the costly process of turning seawater into potable water has been a major obstacle in purifying it for daily use.

But a new technology developed by American company Evoqua, with funding from Singapore's water agency PUB and the Economic Development Board, is paving the way for a more cost-effective desalination process.

The discovery - from a three- year pilot project started in 2010 at the PUB Variable Salinity Plant in Pasir Ris - uses half the amount of electricity required by conventional seawater reverse osmosis.

As a result, PUB told The Straits Times that it will roll out the Evoqua technology at its Tuas Water Reclamation Plant next year, with the capability to produce up to one million gallons of water a day.

PUB also hopes to further reduce the amount of energy needed for the process to just 1.5kWh for every cubic m of desalinated water.

The existing requirement using Evoqua technology is about 1.65kWh to 1.8kWh of electricity.

But with the conventional reverse osmosis method, 3.5kWh of electrical energy is usually needed.

The desalination process in reverse osmosis essentially involves pumping filtered seawater through a membrane with tiny pores under high pressure, to remove dissolved ions such as sodium, chlorine, calcium and sulphates.

On average, the concentration of these ions in seawater is about 3.5 per cent.

The goal is to reduce it to a level that meets drinking-water standards.

With the Evoqua technology, the ions are removed by a process known as electrochemical desalination.

These ions, which carry either a positive or negative charge, are eliminated from the water when they are attracted to electrodes of the opposite charge.

As a result, there is no need to pump the seawater through the tiny pores of a membrane under high pressure, thus saving on energy.

This energy-efficient method makes desalination a more viable and sustainable alternative for water- scarce Singapore.

Currently, Singapore uses 400 million gallons of water a day. The demand could almost double by 2060.

Up to one-quarter of the present demand is met by desalinated seawater. PUB hopes desalination can continue to supply the same proportion even in the long term when demand goes up.

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Singapore’s Coney Island: 10 things to know

A new hotspot for nature-loving cyclists, Coney Island has received tens of thousands of visitors since re-opening on Oct 10, after redevelopment under the Punggol 21 plan. Home to a wide variety of flora and fauna, here are 10 things you may not know about Coney Island Park.
Ray Yeh Channel NewsAsia 27 Nov 15;

SINGAPORE: Coney Island is Singapore's latest nature destination. The island, about 100 hectares in size, consists of the Coney Island Park, a future interim park and an area zoned for sports and recreation.

The Coney Island Park occupies the northern half of the island. Its popularity with cyclists is evident especially on weekends, when large groups of cyclists whizz past trekkers on the main gravel track that cuts through the island from the east to the west.

Many visitors to the island, which was once owned by the Haw Par Brothers, are curious about the holiday beach villa the brothers built in the 1930s. Another star attraction is the elusive free-roaming Brahman bull, whose presence on the island remains a mystery.

Whatever your reason for dropping in, here are 10 things about Coney Island Park that you should know:

1. THE ISLAND IS OFF THE GRID

Coney Island is not connected to the mainland’s power grid or water system, in an effort by the National Parks Board (NParks) to keep the park as rustic and environmentally-sustainable as possible. Since no lighting is provided after dark, the park closes at 7pm daily.

The only toilet at the park uses zero energy, and is self-sufficient. Water harvested from the rain is used for flushing and hand-washing. Solar energy powers the pumps. Diffused sunlight provides indoor lighting, and the green roof reduces ambient temperature.

Lamp posts found near the park entrances are attached with solar panels that harvest solar power for lighting without the need for electricity.

2. RECYCLED CASUARINA TIMBER MAKES GOOD FIXTURES

“Last year we had a storm, and quite a number of trees got uprooted. So we recycled some of the wood for benches, signage, and we recycled most of them for a boardwalk at the mangrove area,” said Ms Ang Chiean Hong, NPark’s Deputy Director of Parks.

NPark also built a playground out of recycled wood, called the Casuarina Exploratory, near the West Entrance. “It’s interesting to see how the children interact with these wood pieces, and imagine a way to play with them. It helps children identify with nature,” Ms Ang said.

3. THE NAME CASUARINA IS DERIVED FROM MALAY

Casuarinas are tall, conical-shaped trees with needle-like twigs and fruits that look like tiny durians. These characteristics allow them to thrive in coastal regions where they are exposed to high wind and high salt spray. Coney Island is dominated by these trees.

The name Casuarina is derived from the Malay word for the cassowary, kasuari, a flightless bird. It alludes to the similarities between the bird's feathers and the plant's foliage. However, in current standard Malay, the tree is called Rhu.

4. THE RESIDENT OTTERS BELONG TO A GLOBALLY-THREATENED SPECIES

For those who cannot get enough of the Bishan-Ang Mo Kio family of otters, you might want to check out their less famous counterparts. “In the morning, if you come at about seven plus, you’ll see otters,” Ms Ang suggested. “There is a group of eight otters, and they usually play along the dam.” The dam is found at the East Entrance of the park, along Pasir Ris Industrial Drive 6.

The smooth-coated otter, found only in Asia, is a vulnerable species due to the loss of its wetland habitats.

5. 80 BIRD SPECIES LIVE HERE

Woodpeckers, Kingfishers and Bee-eaters - these are just a few bird species that make Coney Island home, at least for a few months a year. Some of the 80 species of birds found here are migrants, stopping over as they escape winter up North or down South.

To increase the availability of suitable nesting sites for these winged creatures, NParks have installed nest boxes around the island. Some of them are found on tall trees, such as those for Woodpeckers, while others are buried in sandy mounds, such as those for Bee-eaters.

You might also spot these hanging nests that look at like tear drops. They are built by male Baya Weavers who use them to attract the females. To increase their chances at pairing up, the males usually build many partial nests and start courting, and only complete the nests when they find a mate.

6. DURING A THUNDERSTORM, BIRD HIDES CAN PROTECT YOU

Bird watchers and photographers have three bird hides on the island to choose from. As the name suggests, these stainless steel structures are covered in creepers to hide humans from animals, to facilitate wildlife observation at close quarters.

These structures are built to withstand the impact of falling trees, and you can take shelter there during a thunderstorm.

7. THE LAST REMAINING CYCADS

Coney Island is home to the last two surviving cycad specimen in Singapore. The trees once grew along the coast of Singapore at Katong, but were affected by development works. NParks transplanted them to Coney Island Park, back to their native beach habitat.

Even though they grow very slowly, these trees can live for as long as 1,000 years.

8. VINTAGE RELICS

The wooden Coney Island sign that serves as the backdrop for many Instagram photos is actually a relic from a past era. NParks gave the words a fresh coat of paint, but no one knows for sure when it came to be.

It could have been left there by Indian businessman Ghulam Mahmood, who bought the island in the 1950s and wanted to turn it into a resort modelled after New York’s Coney Island.

Two other vintage pieces that can be found near the Coney Island sign: a stone bench and a metal bin. Don’t try to stuff your trash in it, it is only for display.

9. IT'S NOT SAFE TO VISIT HAW PAR BEACH VILLA

Despite the "No Entry" sign, curious visitors still find their way to the villa through the mangrove swamp.

Built by the Haw Par Brothers in the late 1930s, the villa has a central hall and an open veranda that surround the house. “It used to be quite a grand piece of architecture, I would think so, fronting the beach and also surrounded by the natural vegetation,” Ms Ang said.

The building has been left unoccupied for decades and is structurally unsound. NParks has built a fence around it to prevent entry. The statutory board also strongly discourages members of the public from visiting the villa on their own as It is situated in a mangrove area and visitors could get trapped by the rising tide.

10. EXPERIENCE THE CICADA RAIN… OR NOT

As you take a leisurely stroll along the boardwalk under the canopy of tall Casuarina trees, you might feel droplets of water falling and think it has started drizzling. While that could be true, there is another possibility.

Called “cicada rain” or “honey dew”, it is the excess liquid that cicadas expel after drinking tree fluids.

NParks' guided tour of Coney Island Park are fully registered for the rest of year.

- CNA/ry

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'Five trees' take root in Esplanade Park

Samantha Boh, Straits Times AsiaOne 28 Nov 15;

By the time lovers discovered their sheltering embrace and shade, they were already mature trees.

For decades, at least between the 1960s and the 1980s, five Angsana trees stood over young lovebirds as they sat cheek-to-cheek on the grass below them at the Esplanade Park, then better known as Queen Elizabeth Walk.

Sometimes, there were groups of friends chattering or strangers taking a break as they watched merchants going about their business.

The massive trees lent the popular spot the name, gor zhang chiu kar, Hokkien for "under the five trees".

"I used to go there to relax and chat with my friends in the 1970s before we went and ate at Satay Club," said Mr Mah Ah Wah, 67, recalling the open-air food centre nearby then.

"People there were mostly in pairs; we were the light bulbs," said the noodle seller, chuckling as he used an expression for unwanted third parties among dating couples.

But the lovers' lane just along Connaught Drive was hit by a fungal disease outbreak which infected the five trees in the 1990s.

They had to be chopped down by the National Parks Board (NParks), to prevent further spread of the disease which, at its height between 1989 and 1995, killed nearly a tree a day.

But now, gor zhang chiu kar is back, with the agency's first disease-resistant Angsana tree transplantation project there.

After months of careful planning, the NParks transplanted five Angsana trees from a field in Bidadari, where they had been cultivated to replace those removed long ago.

The transplanting process itself took about a month, during which the trees were pruned, uprooted, wrapped and ferried to the Esplanade Park, where they were carefully planted and secured down.

The exercise was completed early this month, as part of the Civic District enhancement project by NParks and the Urban Redevelopment Authority.

The trees stand in the very same spot as before, and NParks has been watering and feeding them nutrients and root hormones to keep them healthy.

Mr Oh Cheow Sheng, director of Streetscape at NParks, said the aim was to keep alive the Civic District's rich heritage and history.

"We hope uncles and aunties who have fond memories of the place will re-visit it with their children if we re-create this piece of history for them," he said.

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HDB project to introduce green features completed at Yuhua

Today Online 27 Nov 15;

SINGAPORE — A pilot programme to bring green features to Yuhua marks its completion this month, three years after it was launched.

The initiative sought to introduce energy-efficient, water management, and waste management features to the estate.

Features installed include a rainwater harvesting system, a pneumatic waste conveyance system that uses high speed air suction to transport household waste via an underground pipe network to a centralised bin centre, green roofs and vertical greenery for blocks to reduce block surface temperatures and an enhanced pedestrian and cycling network to encourage green commuting.

Yuhua, which spans 38 blocks and comprises about 3,200 households, has also been conferred the BCA Green Mark Award (Platinum) in recognition of the initiatives.

“With the completion of HDB Greenprint, we have made Yuhua more green and brought sustainable living to our residents. They now enjoy a cleaner, greener and more pleasant living environment,” said Dr Cheong Koon Hean, chief executive officer of HDB in a press statement today (Nov 27).

“HDB will continue working towards making every town and estate more liveable with sustainable initiatives that improve the lives of our residents,” said Dr Cheong.

After Yuhua, Teck Ghee in Ang Mo Kio is the second estate to undergo the HDB Greenprint project. The HDB announced in July that works to fit environmentally friendly technology in 40 blocks in the estate would be carried out over the next three years.


Yuhua now a 'green neighbourhood' after revamp
With the completion of HDB Greenprint @ Yuhua, residents there now have access to energy-efficient features, as well as water and waste management, says HDB.
Channel NewsAsia 27 Nov 15;

SINGAPORE: The completion of the HDB Greenprint @ Yuhua project means residents there are the first to experience "sustainable living" in an existing public housing estate, said the Housing and Development Board (HDB) on Friday (Nov 27).

The project, which was launched in 2012, aimed to bring energy efficient, water and waste management features to the estate. The blocks in the project range from 209 to 240 at Jurong East Street 21 and comprises about 3,200 households, the press release said.

Among the features introduced is the Pneumatic Waste Conveyance System, which makes use of high speed air suction to transport household waste to the Centralised Bin Centre. As it is enclosed and automated, this method reduces waste spillage, foul smells and pest issues, HDB said.

The project has also enabled limited resources to be used more sustainably over the long term. For example, with the Elevator Energy Regeneration Systems installed in the lifts of 16 blocks, they now use an average of 20 per cent less energy compared to conventional lifts, HDB said.

As a result of the revamp, Yuhua was awarded the Building and Construction Authority's Green Mark Award (Platinum) for existing residential buildings - the highest accolade under the award scheme, it added.

"HDB will continue working towards making every town and estate more liveable with sustainable initiatives that improve the lives of our residents," HDB CEO Cheong Koon Hean said in the press release.

- CNA/kk

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Malaysia: Endangered Leatherback Turtle Last Landed On Terengganu Shore In 2010

Bernama 27 Nov 15;

MELAKA, Nov 27 (Bernama) -- The endangered leatherback turtle's last recorded landing at the shores of Terengganu was in 2010.

Fisheries deputy director-general (Development) Zulkafli Abd Rashida said only eight nests were recorded during that landing and worse, the eggs did not hatch at all.

"Leatherback turtles will only land and lay eggs at Terengganu's shores but they will keep away because of the human activities and too many lights at the beach.

"If the situation continues, the species will become extinct," he told reporters after the launch of the Endangered Species Awareness and Conservation Programme here today.

The programme was launched by Melaka Tourism, Beach, River and Island Development deputy exco Datuk Ghazale Muhamad.

Meanwhile, Zulkafli said the population of green turtles had increased nationwide, with about 2,000 landings in 1996 to 4,000 this year.

-- BERNAMA

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Malaysia: MMEA Seizes Tugboat Trying To Smuggle Out Sand At Tanjung Sedili

Bernama 26 Nov 15;

JOHOR BAHARU, Nov 26 (Bernama) -- The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) seized a sand-laden tugboat and detained its skipper and 10 Indonesian crew members 17 nautical miles off Tanjung Sedili in Kota Tinggi yesterday.

Sedili district MMEA enforcement chief, Captain Amran Daud said his officers spotted the tugboat at about 10.00 am while they were patrolling the surrounding waters.

"Upon inspection, we discovered that the tugboat, which was registered with Bestlink XVIII, was heading towards a neighbouring country and was towing a barge laden with 4,800 tonnes of river sand," he said in a statement here this evening.

The skipper and crew members, aged between 20 and 50 years, were later taken to the Tanjung Sedili Maritime office for further investigations.

The case is being investigated under Section 135 (1)(e) of the Customs Act 1967.

-- BERNAMA

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Malaysia: Reclaimed land to fund project in Penang

TAN SIN CHOW The Star 28 Nov 15;

GEORGE TOWN: The RM27bil Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP) might be funded through the auction of two plots of reclaimed land in the southern coast of Penang island.

SRS Consortium, the appointed Project Delivery Partner (PDP) of the plan, has proposed the reclaimed land as an asset for the state to raise funds to deliver the project in a timely and sustainable manner.

The two man-made islands, located near Permatang Damar Laut, will be known as the South Reclamation Scheme (SRS) spanning 930ha and 445ha.

A third plot of 323ha reclaimed land next to the two islands has also been identified if there is a future demand for land activities.

SRS Consortium project director Szeto Wai Loong said Danist Hydraulic Institute, an internationally reputed water environment expert, recently carried out extensive studies on the southern coast of the island.

The institute, he said, confirmed that the coast was the most suitable for reclamation due to its natural bay area with weak tidal currents, shallow water and natural shelter from the effects of tsunami.

“They checked all the coastlines in Penang island, and found that the southern coast is most technically viable for reclamation as it has limited environmental sensitivity, with no seagrass or coral reefs.

“Our communications team will be engaging with the fishermen in the area. We want to hear them out,” he told reporters at a briefing in Komtar here yesterday.

Szeto said the man-made islands would see a new smart green city called SRS Smart City, aimed at re-energising Penang’s economic engine for the next 50 years.

He said the new city’s location would be close to the Bayan Lepas International Airport and this would allow the Free Trade Zone’s 471 small and medium enterprises and 117 multinational companies to expand.

“We were told 30% of the companies had wanted to expand but there’s no room for them to grow at the moment.

“SRS Smart City will be able to help these companies expand. The islands will have their own self-cleansing system to prevent erosion and siltation.

“Besides providing attractive housing solutions, there will also be a 5km beach, a 25km coastal park, a 30km waterfront and 283ha of green areas,” he said.

He added that there would be an efficient rail transit system serving the new city.

SRS Consortium is a company formed by public-listed Gamuda Bhd and two local property firms – Loh Phoy Yen Holdings Sdn Bhd and Ideal Property Development Sdn Bhd.

It was appointed by the state in August to come up with a detailed execution of the master plan and engineering designs, and to gather public feedback and obtain all state and federal approvals for each PTMP component.

Among the components of PTMP were trams, monorail, light rail transit lines, e-bus, bus rapid transit, pan-island expressway, a catamaran system and a RM100mil highway interchange upgrading project.

Szeto said they had spent RM10mil to carry out feasibility studies on PTMP.

Penang Local Government, Traffic Management and Flood Mitigation Committee chairman Chow Kon Yeow said the project was still “a work in progress”.

“The state government has not given any approval yet. Submission of detailed environmental impact assessment will only be done in June next year.

“We will be doing more than the legal provision requires. We will engage various stakeholders next month with a similar presentation. This will allow us to finetune the project after getting feedback,” he said.

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Malaysia: RM100,000 worth of fish found dead in Sabah

The Star 28 Nov 15;

KOTA KINABALU: Fish farmers in Kina­batangan, the site of Malaysia’s biggest Ramsar site, were stunned to find that all their fish, reared in cages, were dead.

“We noticed something amiss earlier. When dawn came the next day (last Friday), our worst fears were confirmed when we found all of them belly up,” said Kampung Mumiang Village Development and Security Committee head Mada Hussin.

The fish were reared in 50 cages.

Kampung Mumiang is located at the estuary of the Kinabatangan River and is about an hour away by speedboat from Sandakan.

The Convention on Wetlands of Inter­national Importance, better known as the Ramsar Convention, is an inter-governmental treaty that looks into conservation wetlands and their resources. There are six Ramsar sites in Malaysia.

Mada said the farmers lost grouper, snapper and other types of fish, adding that the cost could come up to RM100,000.

This would impact about 50 families, he said.

“We want answers from the authorities. We want to know the cause. We want compensation from whoever is responsible for our losses,” Mada said.

The villagers, he said, would usually keep some fish for their own consumption and sell the rest.

“We have lost everything now,” he added.

He said the farmers were in a dilemma as they could not depend on catching fish at the nearby river due to dwindling numbers.

“The villagers are now waiting for test results on samples taken by the Fisheries Department.”

Mada said pollutants from a plantation could have flowed into the Malangking River, a tributary of the Kinabatangan.

“The last time we lost fish on this scale was about four years ago,” he said.

Cynthia Ong, the director of Forever Sabah which works towards an equitable and green economy, said such tragic events were typically associated with oxygen depletion in dead zones caused by fertiliser, palm oil mill effluents or disturbed peat soil.

“Studies in Malaysia and around the world showed that fisheries sustained by healthy mangroves are worth hundreds of dollars per hectare to the Sabah economy,” Ong said.


Deluge of fresh water could be the cause
The Star 1 Dec 15;

I REFER to the report, “RM100,000 worth of fish found dead” (The Star, Nov 28).

The fish were reportedly reared in suspended cages at the estuary of the Kinabatangan River.

The fish were saltwater species, mainly kerapu (groupers) and jenahak (presumably mangrove snappers), hence the cages were suspended in the estuarine location where the water is saline.

The Sabah Fisheries officials had taken samples to determine the cause of the fish mortality. I hope that they had also taken water samples in the vicinity to determine, apart from other parameters, the salinity of the water going through the cages.

From my earlier experience as a staff of the Fisheries Research Institute in Penang I had encountered similar instances of large- scale fish mortality in cages placed in the estuarine region of rivers, cages that were used for rearing saltwater fish.

My investigations then revealed that fish mortality was a result of a sudden deluge of fresh water from upstream due to a spell of heavy rain and that the fresh water would have most likely killed the fish in the cages.

Saltwater fish are unable to withstand a lowering of salinity to critical levels, especially when they are caged and unable to escape to safer areas down the estuary to the coastal zone where there is tidal effect.

ALEXANDER ANANDA JOTHY
Kulai Jaya
Johor

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Indonesia to show the world how to prevent forest fires at COP21

thejakartapost.com 27 Nov 15;

Indonesia will present it's ideas on how to prevent forest fires and rehabilitate damaged peatland as part of climate change mitigation efforts at the upcoming UN climate change conference in Paris, France.

National Development Planning Minister Sofyan Djalil said on Friday that Indonesia's agenda at the United Nations Framework on Climate Change (UNFCCC) COP21 conference scheduled to begin on Nov. 30 was to promote serious management of forest fires.

"The most important thing is serious prevention, so that there will be no more forest fires, especially ones caused by humans. If they were caused by natural factors it would be different, but we also need to emphasize readiness," he said as quoted by Antara news agency.

The government has said it would accelerate peatland rehabilitation and halt new peatland clearing concessions following the massive forest fires that blanketed parts of the country over the last few months.

President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo will lead the Indonesian delegation to Paris and is scheduled to depart on Monday. The event will be attended by 147 state leaders with the aim of deliberating measures to address climate change.

Indonesia will bring its previously announced target of 29 percent lower carbon emissions by 2030 as it's Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) as part of the climate negotiations.

Sofyan said that Indonesia would focus on energy, transportation, waste management, food and other sectors in its efforts to lower carbon emission.

Separately, cabinet secretary Pramono Anung said Indonesia would also raise global awareness about the forest and peatland fires.

"Indonesia expects that the world will also be concerned about [the fires] and not only blame us. Because they have said that our forests are the lungs of the world," he said as quoted by kompas.com

Foreign Affairs Minister Retno LP Marsudi said the government would summarize Indonesia's climate change policies in the conference and also remind the world that Indonesia was geographically prone to climate change, but at the same time, also needed space to boost its economic development.

Millions of Indonesians were affected by toxic haze due to severe forest and peatland fires in some parts of Kalimantan and Sumatra in recent months from slash-and-burn land clearing methods and a prolonged dry season.

Analysis using data from the NASA satellite has shown that Indonesia's emissions from forest and land fires skyrocketed this year and surpassed those from the country's severe 2006 fires, straittimes.com reported last month.

In October, total emissions from the fires soared from nearly one billion tonnes to nearly 1.4 billion tonnes. The fires also pushed Indonesia into the position of the country with the third-biggest polluter, after China and the US. (afr/rin)


Indonesia wants united front in climate mitigation efforts
Ina Parlina and Hans Nicholas Jong, The Jakarta Post 27 Nov 15;

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo is calling for shared efforts from both developed and developing nations to address climate change ahead of the upcoming UN climate talks, COP21, in Paris at the end of the month.

Leaders from 200 countries are expected to meet on Nov. 30 during the leaders’ event at the summit, which is expected to produce the first global commitment to cut emissions, which will extend or replace the Kyoto Protocol.

The Foreign Ministry’s director general of economic development and environmental affairs, Toffery P. Soetikno, said Indonesia would demand that developed countries contribute more to supporting developing countries in their efforts to reduce carbon emissions through, for example, increased financial support.

“There are differences [in the amount of carbon emitted]. We ask developed countries to put in more effort, while developing countries also contribute to addressing this issue,” Toffery said on Thursday.

Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi has said that Jokowi will also address the importance of respecting the principle of common but differentiated responsibility and respective capabilities.

Jokowi is set to arrive in Paris on Nov. 29 and is scheduled to deliver his statement during the leaders’ event on Nov. 30.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Arrmanatha Nasir said Indonesia would also seek political push for the joint efforts.

Jokowi has used various international forums in the past weeks, for example, the G20 Summit and the ASEAN Summit, to call on developed countries to act as role models in reducing carbon emissions, leading the action to make cuts, as well as to support the efforts of developing countries. Jokowi has also demanded that developed countries increase their financial contributions to developing countries and participate in technology transfers and capacity building.

Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung said earlier that Jokowi would also bring to the table issues related to peatland management and fires.

“Peatland [fires and management] has become a global issue; therefore, Indonesia, of course, hopes the world also thinks about the issue,” Pramono said on Wednesday. “So, stop placing blame [ on us when fires occur] but treat us as the lungs of the world when nothing [no fire] occurs [here].”

Singaporean Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean, who is also Singapore’s coordinating national security minister, recently expressed his commitment to work with Indonesia to prevent haze in the future, while Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said during the recent ASEAN Summit that each member should work hand in hand to find solutions to the haze issue and other environmental problems.

During a national tree-planting event at the Sultam Adam Forest Park in South Kalimantan on Thursday morning, Jokowi renewed the government’s commitment to reduce carbon emissions by 29 percent by 2030, as laid out its Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC), an outline of the post-2020 climate actions a country intends to take to reduce its emissions of greenhouse gasses.

A number of countries have submitted their INDCs, which are expected to shape negotiations at COP21.

“We also urge developed industrial countries and developing countries to share a similar commitment [to reducing carbon emissions],” Jokowi said.

Meanwhile, the government, through the Finance Ministry, plans to establish a management body (BLU) tasked to manage the country’s climate change funding in a bid to woo donors during COP21.

Climate Change Mitigation Board chairman Sarwono Kusumaatmadja said on Thursday that the government was designing the mechanism of the BLU.

“Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar is having intensive discussions with Coordinating Economic Minister Sofyan Djalil and Finance Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro,” he said. “It looks like we can achieve something ahead of Paris and announce the principles that we want to adopt for our climate change finance mechanism.”


President Jokowi to deliver Indonesia`s vision at cop21
Panca Hari Prabowo Antara 27 Nov 15;

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) will deliver Indonesias vision during the negotiation process at the Climate Change Summit in Paris next week.

Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi informed reporters at the Presidential Palace on Friday that President Jokowi along with 147 other leaders will deliver Indonesias vision and stance on various issues relating to climate change.

"During the leaders meeting, the president will deliver his statement for approximately three to five minutes. The statement will highlight several subjects, the first of which being to lend political support to ensure the success of these negotiations," stated Retno.

Minister Marsudi said Indonesia also explained the strategic position of Indonesia, considered as one of the countries with the largest forest area, but also susceptible to climate change due to its geographic position.

"With 17 thousand islands of which most are small, more than 70 percent of Indonesia comprises water, sea, and much more. It makes us highly vulnerable, and we, as a developing country, still need sufficient room to bring about economic development," noted Marsudi.

Minister Marsudi remarked that Indonesia had earlier conveyed its commitment on emission reduction.

Meanwhile, State Secretary Pratikno revealed that besides attending the climate change meeting, President Jokowi will also hold bilateral meetings with the leaders of other countries.

EDITED BY INE
(T.A050/B/KR-BSR/F001)

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Indonesia: President Urges Community to Get Involved in Forest Conservation

Donny Andhika Mononimbar Jakarta Globe 27 Nov 15;

Jakarta. President Joko Widodo has called for greater community efforts to reforest Indonesia, following slash-and-burn clearing this year that razed some two million hectares of forests.

Speaking at an event to mark National Tree-Planting Day in Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, Joko stressed the importance of forest ecosystems.

“Indonesia can reclaim its crown as a source of biodiversity and the lungs of the world,” he said in a statement.

Joko and his wife, Iriana, used the event to kick off a campaign by the local government to plant 10,000 trees, with the help of hundreds of primary school students.

The reforestation program, in the Sultan Adam forest area outside Banjarmasin, will be first in a series of similar programs to redress the devastation caused by the fires through much of the middle of this year. The Sultan Adam area itself lost 105 hectares of woodland to the fire.

Joko also used the occasion to witness the signing of an agreement between the Environment and Forestry Ministry and leaders of nine interfaith organizations to commit to boost community awareness of and participation in environmental conservation efforts.

Indonesia last year overtook Brazil in the volume of deforestation, while the forest fires this year, much of them in carbon-rich peatlands, resulted in more greenhouse gas emissions than the entirety of US economic activity on several days, according to the World Resources Institute.

The fires also caused haze that sickened hundreds of thousands in Indonesia and spread to Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines.

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Indonesia: Minister calls for support palm oil industry to bring more forex earnings

Antara 27 Nov 15;

Nusa Dua (ANTARA News) - The palm oil industry must be supported as it produces a strategic commodity, which can bring significant foreign exchange earnings, Agriculture Minister Amran Sulaiman stated.

"Palm oil is a strategic commodity, so it must be supported. In 2014 alone, palm oil contributed Rp250 trillion to foreign exchange earnings," he noted at the 11th Indonesian Palm Oil Conference (IPOC) in Nusa Dua, Bali, on Friday.

Despite being the worlds largest palm oil producer and supplier, Indonesia is still unable to control the price of crude palm oil (CPO), he pointed out.

Therefore, he affirmed that Indonesia must strive to control the global CPO prices, so that the amount of earnings from the commodity can be larger.

"As the worlds main CPO exporter, Indonesia must be able to control the global CPO prices in the same way as wheat exporters are able to control the prices of wheat sold to importers, including Indonesia," he said.

He called on all palm oil producers in Indonesia and Malaysia to work closely, particularly after they formed the Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries (CPOPC) to improve the living standard of palm oil growers.

Palm oil plays an important role in improving the living standard of nearly 20 million people cultivating four million hectares of palm oil plantations, he stated.

"I am sorry this does not mean that we do not care about the environment," he remarked.

Indonesia and Malaysia must cooperate in fulfilling the global demand for CPO and strive to control the global CPO prices, he emphasized.

He forecast that Indonesias CPO production this year may reach 30 million tons, of which 6.8 million tons will be used to support the domestic biodiesel program.

(Reported by Dyah Dwi Astuti/Uu.INE/KR-BSR/A014)

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Indonesian Small-Scale Miners in 'Historic' Pledge to Halt Mercury Use

Basten Gokkon Jakarta Globe 27 Nov 15;

Jakarta. A group representing Indonesia’s unregulated small-scale gold miners has pledged to phase out the use of mercury over the next three years.

Indonesian mining companies have since 2013 been required to halt the use of the heavy metal in industries such as gold mining, cosmetics production and power generation, under the Minamoto Convention on Mercury, which the government signed along with 93 other countries in Kumamoto, Japan.

While small-scale miners are unregulated, the government in 2014 announced a plan to phase out their use of mercury by 2018, making Indonesia the first country to do so.

Now the miners themselves have finally committed to the move, with the Indonesian Artisanal Miners Association (APRI) saying on Friday that its members would cease using mercury in their operations by 2018.

“We fully realize the dangerous potential of mercury on our environment and health now and in the future,” Gatot Sugiharto, the APRI chairman, said at an event in Jakarta on Friday to announce the commitment.

While mercury is no longer used in regulated, large-scale gold mining, small-scale miners who typically operate illegally in existing concessions or forests continue to use the metal to bind gold flakes. They then burn off the mercury from the resulting amalgam, releasing toxins into the air and ground that then make their way into the groundwater.

The United Nations Environment Program has identified small-scale gold mining as the single biggest source of mercury emissions globally. In Indonesia, this kind of mining accounts for 57.5 percent of mercury emissions, equivalent to 195 tons per year.

Friday’s declaration was made before officials from the Environment and Forestry Ministry, the Health Ministry, the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry, and the Finance Ministry, who welcomed and praised the APRI’s commitment.

“The declaration will be a historic moment for Indonesia’s efforts in environmental management,” said Tuti Hendrawati Mintarsih, the Environment Ministry’s director general for toxics material and waste management.

Mercury is typically imported into Indonesia through legal channels for use in light industrial and medical applications, but a thriving black market exists for the illegal gold trade.

Heru Pambudi, the Finance Ministry’s director general of customs and excise, said that this year alone his office had confiscated 14 containers of illegal mercury, worth an estimated Rp 47.8 billion ($3.47 million) and destined largely for the illegal gold mining industry.

“The customs and excise office is ready to work together with everyone from the downstream to the upstream sectors to monitor illegal sales of mercury,” he said.

To get small-scale miners to stop using mercury, the government is promising regulatory incentives such as clearly marked-out concessions, said Bambang Gatot Suriyono, the Energy Ministry’s director general for minerals and coal.

“The central government can help with establishing gold mining sites for small-scale miners, but we also urge the local authorities to provide them with operating permits and to conduct feasibility studies,” he said.

Tuti said her office would undertake studies to find eco-friendly and harmless alternatives for mercury that the miners could use.

Tari Tritarayati, a senior adviser to the health minister on regulatory affairs, warned that substituting mercury with other metals, such as cyanide, could be just as dangerous or worse.

“We need to be very careful in finding the best alternatives for mercury,” she said.

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