palm oil news from mongabay.com

Controversial palm oil project halted in Cameroon

2013-05-24T05:59:00Z

An American company has halted work on a controversial palm oil project in Cameroon due to opposition from local communities and environmentalists, reports Reuters.

Gabon convicts environmentalist of defamation in palm oil case

2013-05-15T20:25:00Z

An environmental activist in Gabon is facing jail time and a $10,000 fine over his campaign against a Singaporean agroindustrial giant's plan to develop tens of thousands of hectares in oil palm, timber, and rubber plantations in the Central African nation.

Palm oil company violated RSPO standards, evicted from sustainability body

2013-05-13T02:20:00Z

The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) has evicted Indonesian palm oil giant Dutapalma Nusantara for violating key principles for sustainability.

Indonesian palm oil giant cutting deforestation from supply chain

2013-05-13T01:30:00Z

Indonesian palm oil giant Golden Agri-Resources (GAR) is continuing to reduce deforestation under its 2011 forest conservation policy despite ongoing forest destruction by other palm oil producers in the sector, finds a new assessment by Greenomics, an Indonesian activist group. However the report finds GAR's operations are not completely deforestation-free.

Court rules for palm oil company in controversial deforestation case

2013-05-05T13:58:00Z

Court orders Aceh governor to reverse decision to cancel palm oil concession in protected peatlands. An Indonesian court has ruled in favor of plantation company PT Kallista Alam in a lawsuit brought against the governor of Indonesia’s Aceh province for revoking the company’s license to develop palm oil plantations in a protected peat swamp forest.

What if companies actually had to compensate society for environmental destruction?

2013-04-29T15:39:00Z

The environment is a public good. We all share and depend on clean water, a stable atmosphere, and abundant biodiversity for survival, not to mention health and societal well-being. But under our current global economy, industries can often destroy and pollute the environment—degrading public health and communities—without paying adequate compensation to the public good. Economists call this process "externalizing costs," i.e. the cost of environmental degradation in many cases is borne by society, instead of the companies that cause it. A new report from TEEB (The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity), conducted by Trucost, highlights the scale of the problem: unpriced natural capital (i.e. that which is not taken into account by the global market) was worth $7.3 trillion in 2009, equal to 13 percent of that year's global economic output.

Probe confirms Singapore-based palm oil company engaged in land-grabbing in Borneo

2013-04-26T18:55:00Z

An independent investigation has shown that First Resources Ltd, a palm oil plantation company and member of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), failed to obtain proper consent from local communities before clearing rainforests for plantations in Indonesian Borneo, an Indonesian indigenous rights group reported last week.

Environmentalists unhappy with new palm oil standard

2013-04-25T18:48:00Z

Environmentalists are unhappy with Thursday's approval of new criteria for the world's leading palm oil certification standard. After members of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) in a special assembly approved the body's new 'principles and criteria' (P&Cs) for palm oil certification, several groups voiced concern that the rules won't protect against conversion of carbon-dense rainforests and peatlands for oil palm plantations.

Indonesian palm oil giant clearing peat forest despite its RSPO membership, alleges Greenpeace

2013-04-25T04:04:00Z

A major Indonesian palm oil producer continues to clear rainforests in Sumatra despite being a prominent member of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), casting doubts on the body's effectiveness in limiting deforestation, alleges a new report from Greenpeace.

RSPO failing to meet sustainability objectives for palm oil production, says WWF

2013-04-23T17:57:00Z

An initiative that aims to improve the social and environmental performance of palm oil production is faltering in its mission by failing to establish strong performance standards on greenhouse gas emissions and pesticide use, argues a new statement issued by WWF, the initiative's biggest green supporter.

Indonesian palm oil industry would support land swaps to protect forest, while expanding production

2013-04-19T05:07:00Z

Indonesian palm oil companies would support land swaps as a means to reduce carbon emissions from deforestation while simultaneously expanding production, representatives from the country's largest association of palm oil producers told mongabay.com in an interview last month.

Conservation policies that boost farm yields may ultimately undermine forest protection, argues study

2013-04-17T05:11:00Z

Rising agricultural profitability due to higher prices, improved crop productivity, and forest conservation itself could make it increasingly difficult for conservation programs tied to payments for ecosystem services to succeed, warns a study published this week in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Mining company working with Indonesian govt to strip forest of protected status

2013-04-16T23:39:00Z

A Toronto-listed mining company says it is working closely with the Indonesian government to strip the protected status of some 1.2 million hectares of forest on the island of Sumatra. In a statement issued Tuesday, East Asia Minerals Corporation (TSX:EAS) claimed it is actively involved in the process of devising a new spatial plan for Aceh province, Sumatra's western-most province. The proposed changes to the spatial plan, which governs land use in the province, would re-zone large areas of protected forest in Aceh for industrial activities.

Fighting deforestation—and corruption—in Indonesia

2013-04-11T16:46:00Z

The basic premise of the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD+) program seems simple: rich nations pay tropical countries for preserving their forests. Yet the program has made relatively limited progress on the ground since 2007, when the concept got tentative go-ahead during U.N. climate talks in Bali. The reasons for the stagnation are myriad, but despite the simplicity of the idea, implementing REDD+ is extraordinarily complex. Still the last few years have provided lessons for new pilot projects by testing what does and doesn't work. Today a number of countries have REDD+ projects, some of which are even generating carbon credits in voluntary markets. By supporting credibly certified projects, companies and individuals can claim to "offset" their emissions by keeping forests standing. However one of the countries expected to benefit most from REDD+ has been largely on the sidelines. Indonesia's REDD+ program has been held up by numerous factors, but perhaps the biggest challenge for REDD+ in Indonesia is corruption.

Indonesia to raise logging, mining fees in forest areas

2013-04-08T21:57:00Z

Indonesia's Ministry of Forestry will soon raise fees on forest exploitation activities including logging, mining, and oil and gas exploration as part of an effort to increase income from resource use.

Nordic energy giant launches 'no deforestation' policy

2013-04-07T23:16:00Z

Neste Oil, a Finnish energy giant, has announced a new 'no deforestation' policy for sourcing palm oil. The company, which is one of the world's largest buyers of palm oil, had faced criticism from environmentalists for purchasing palm oil potentially linked to rainforest and peatland destruction in southeast Asia.

Investigation clears APP of deforestation allegations in Borneo

2013-04-04T23:16:00Z

Two logging companies that supply Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) with timber have not violated the Indonesian forestry giant's new zero deforestation commitment, according to a field investigation by The Forest Trust, a conservation group. The investigation was a direct response to allegations raised in a report published last week by Relawan Pemantau Hutan Kalimantan (RPHK), a consortium of local NGOs in West Kalimantan, the western-most province in Indonesian Borneo. The RPHK report found evidence of active clearing within two concession areas linked to Asia Tani Persada (ATP) and Daya Tani Kalbar (DTK), companies that supply APP with timber for its pulp mills.

APP suppliers allegedly slashing forests and peatlands in Indonesia, despite new 'no deforestation' policy

2013-03-27T13:41:00Z

Less than two months after its implementation, two Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) suppliers in Indonesian Borneo have been accused of violating the company’s new sustainability policy, which includes a zero deforestation commitment throughout its entire supply chain.

Cargill to boost investment in Indonesian oil palm plantations

2013-03-26T21:24:00Z

Cargill plans to 'aggressively' expand its palm oil holdings in Sulawesi, Indonesian Borneo, and Sumatra, reports The Wall Street Journal.

Conservation scientists: Aceh's spatial plan a risk to forests, wildlife, and people

2013-03-22T15:44:00Z

A group of biologists and conservation scientists meeting in Sumatra warned that potential changes to Aceh's spatial plan could undermine some of the ecological services that underpin the Indonesian province's economy and well-being of its citizens. After its meeting from March 18-22 in Banda Aceh, the Asia chapter of the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation (ATBC) issued a declaration [PDF] highlighting the importance of the region's tropical forest ecosystem, which is potentially at risk due to proposed changes to its spatial plan.

Controversial chief minister of Sarawak asked to step down until corruption allegations resolved

2013-03-22T06:08:00Z

Following the release of video footage apparently linking Sarawak Chief Minister Taib Mahmud to kickbacks for forestry concessions, anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International is calling for the Malaysian leader to immediately resign from his post.

Ant communities more segregated in palm oil plantations than rainforest

2013-03-21T13:28:00Z

Ants are an important ecological group in both degraded and natural habitats. They interact with many other species and mediate a range of ecological processes. These interactions are often interpreted in the context of ant mosaics, where dominant species form strict territories, keeping other ants out. This segregation between ant species is well-documented in monoculture plantations. Now new research published in Ecography has shown that these changes are driven by the replacement of rainforests with monocultures and not the arrival of non-native species.

Tropical croplands expand by 48m ha in 10 years, raising environmental concerns

2013-03-19T15:54:00Z

Croplands in the tropics expanded by an average of 4.8 million hectares per year between 1999 and 2008, increasing pressure on forest areas and other ecosystems, reports a study published in the journal PLoS ONE. The research found that soybeans and maize (corn) expanded the most of any crops in terms of absolute area, followed by rice, sorghum, oil palm, beans, and sugar cane. The countries which added the largest area of new cropland were Nigeria, Indonesia, Ethiopia, Sudan and Brazil.

Indonesian palm oil giant launches conservation pilot project

2013-03-19T02:33:00Z

Golden Agri-Resources, one of the largest palm oil producers in Indonesia, is launching a pilot program designed to protect forests within its concession areas that have high carbon stock and those most important for conservation. Greenpeace Indonesia, which has long urged the company to adopt more sustainable practices, praised the effort, and called on other palm oil companies and the Indonesian government to follow suit.

Norway's wealth fund dumps 23 palm oil companies under new deforestation policy

2013-03-11T18:33:00Z

Norway's $700 billion pension fund continues to divest from companies linked to tropical deforestation, selling stakes in 23 palm oil producers last year, reports Rainforest Foundation Norway, an activist group that has led the campaign for divestment. The move by the Norwegian Government Pension Fund Global (GPFG) — the world's largest sovereign wealth fund — came after it revised its investment guidelines to include deforestation as a portfolio risk.

Despite deforestation worries, U.K. approves palm oil for power production

2013-03-07T23:38:00Z

British Parliament has approved new government subsidies for biofuel use in U.K. power stations. Controversially the new measure would potentially subsidize fuels produced from palm oil, a move environmentalists warn could exacerbate deforestation in Africa and Southeast Asia.

Dunkin' Donuts to adopt palm oil policy

2013-03-07T20:41:00Z

Doughnut and coffeehouse giant Dunkin' Donuts has agreed to source 100 percent of its palm oil under the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), though the company has yet to set a date for the move, reports the New York State Comptroller's office.

Palm oil company destroys 7,000 ha of Amazon rainforest in Peru

2013-03-04T22:33:00Z

A palm oil producer has leveled some 7,000 hectares of rainforest in the Peruvian Amazon, highlighting the risks of oil palm expansion in the world's largest tropical forest, reports El Comercio.

Malaysian NGOs boldly demand forest conservation action in Borneo

2013-02-28T23:41:00Z

In an unusually bold statement catalyzed by the deaths of 14 rare elephants, six Malaysian NGOs today called on the Sabah state government to pursue 'a more conservation focused agenda' in managing the state's forests. The demand comes shortly after the death of 14 endangered pygmy elephants — thought poisoned by an oil palm plantation developer — thrust Sabah's environmental problems into the international spotlight.

Guide for filing complaints on rule-breaking by palm oil companies published

2013-02-28T18:53:00Z

Over the past 25 years palm oil production has emerged as one of the biggest drivers of deforestation and peatlands degradation in Southeast Asia. And there are fears that expansion in West and Central Africa could soon make palm oil a major cause of forest conversion on that continent.

Indonesian palm oil company denies child labor claims, new allegations arise

2013-02-28T06:24:00Z

PT Sinar Sawit Andalan (PT SSA), a palm oil plantation company in Indonesia’s West Kalimantan province, has denied allegations that the company employs children. PT SSA was responding to a video released earlier this month that showed school-age children carrying polybags at the company’s work site in West Kalimantan’s Sintang district.

Activists warn of industrial palm oil expansion in Congo rainforest

2013-02-21T21:50:00Z

Industrial oil palm plantations are spreading from Malaysia and Indonesia to the Congo raising fears about deforestation and social conflict. A new report by The Rainforest Foundation UK (RFUK), dramatically entitled The Seeds of Destruction, announces that new palm oil plantations in the Congo rainforest will soon increase fivefold to half a million hectares, an area nearly the size of Delaware. But conservationists warn that by ignoring the lessons of palm oil in Southeast Asia, this trend could be disastrous for the region's forests, wildlife, and people.

Controversial palm oil project concession in Cameroon is 89 percent 'dense natural forest'

2013-02-21T17:54:00Z

Satellite mapping and aerial surveys have revealed that a controversial palm oil concession in Cameroon is almost entirely covered by "dense natural forest," according to a new report by Greenpeace. The activist group alleges that the concession, owned by Herakles Farms, is under 89 percent forest cover. The U.S.-based corporation intends to build a 70,000 hectare palm oil plantation in a region surrounded by four protected areas, including Korup National Park, but has faced stiff criticism from numerous environmental groups as well as conflict with locals.

Child labor caught on film at palm oil plantation in Indonesian Borneo

2013-02-09T17:30:00Z

School-age children were caught on camera working for a palm oil plantation company, PT Sinar Sawit Andalan (SSA), in Indonesia’s West Kalimantan province.

Investors beware: global land grabbing ends in 'financial damage' and human rights violations

2013-02-07T18:39:00Z

Investing in companies that flout local community rights in developing countries often leads to severe economic losses, according to a new report from the Rights and Resources Initiative (RRI). A rising trend in "land grabbing" from Africa to South America by corporations and even foreign governments results in social instability, which can lead to large-scale protests, violence, and even murder, delaying and sometimes derailing projects. Such instability poses massive risk to any investor, not to mention supporting corporate entities that are accused of ignoring human rights.

Palm oil company thugs attack Sulawesi villagers, injuring 8

2013-02-06T18:13:00Z

Local thugs, allegedly linked to an oil palm plantation company, attacked a group of villagers in Indonesia’s Gorontalo province on the island of Sulawesi last week, injuring eight people, including a woman and a small child.

The beginning of the end of deforestation in Indonesia?

2013-02-05T11:55:00Z

Asia Pulp & Paper, a forestry giant that has been widely criticized for its role in driving deforestation and contributing to social conflict in Indonesia, today announced a zero deforestation policy that could have a dramatic impact on efforts to slow the Southeast Asian nation's high rate of deforestation. The policy, which went into effect February 1, is ambitious enough that one of APP's most vocal critics and agitators, Greenpeace, will suspend its highly-damaging campaign against the paper giant. The campaign against APP has cost the paper giant tens of millions of dollars in lost business since 2009. The new policy targets several of the major criticisms against APP, including deforestation, degradation of high carbon peatlands, conservation of critical wildlife habitat, and social conflict with local communities.

Palm oil, paper, biofuels production on peatlands drive large GHG emissions

2013-01-31T22:44:00Z

Degradation of peat swamps for oil palm and timber plantations is a substantially larger source of greenhouse gas emissions than previously believed, finds a new study published in the journal Nature.

14 Bornean elephants found dead, likely poisoned

2013-01-31T16:02:00Z

Wildlife officials in the Malaysian state of Sabah have found the bodies of 14 Bornean elephants in Gunung Rara Forest Reserve, and suspect that more may be found dead. While tests are pending, they believe the elephants were likely poisoned due to damage in the animals' digestive tracts. Only around 2,000 Bornean elephants (Elephas maximus borneensis) are left on the island of Borneo with the vast bulk found in Sabah.

100 companies disclose their forest impact

2013-01-30T06:01:00Z

100 companies have reported on the impact of their operations on the world's forests.

New palm oil concession imperils orangutan population in Borneo

2013-01-28T21:38:00Z

Three conservation groups warn that a proposed palm oil plantation puts a significant Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus) population at risk in the Malaysian state of Sabah. The plantation, which would cover 400 hectares of private forest land, lies adjacent to Kulamba Wildlife Reserve, home to 480 orangutans.

Large blocks of Sumatra's endangered rainforest may be put up for mining, logging

2013-01-28T00:43:00Z

The Indonesian province of Aceh on the western tip of the island of Sumatra may be preparing to lift the protected status of key areas of lowland rainforest potentially ending its bid to earn carbon credits from forest conservation and putting several endangered species at increased risk, according to reports.

Palm oil sustainability initiative must rule out deforestation, says group

2013-01-18T21:50:00Z

The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) must implement standards that protect forests and account for greenhouse gas emissions to remain credible, said an environmental group ahead of a that will determine the body's 'Principles and Criteria' for the next five years.

The year in rainforests

2012-12-31T22:31:00Z

2012 was another year of mixed news for the world's tropical forests. This is a look at some of the most significant tropical rainforest-related news stories for 2012. There were many other important stories in 2012 and some were undoubtedly overlooked in this review. If you feel there's something we missed, please feel free to highlight it in the comments section. Also please note that this post focuses only on tropical forests.

Indonesian NGO voluntarily joins lawsuit as co-defendant in palm oil deforestation case

2012-12-14T19:50:00Z

An Indonesian environmental group has taken the unusual step of asking to be named as a co-defendant in a case brought against the Aceh government by a palm oil company over the governor's decision to cancel a controversial concession in a peat forest on the island of Sumatra.

Cutting through the rhetoric on palm oil production

2012-12-14T02:43:00Z

Palm oil is widely acknowledged as one of the most important drivers of deforestation and forest diminishment in Southeast Asia. Conversion of forests and peatlands for oil palm plantations is both a substantial source of greenhouse gas emissions and a major threat to biodiversity — one study called palm oil the 'single most immediate threat to the greatest number of species'.

Palm oil or lard?

2012-12-07T23:59:00Z

Animal fats and margarine consumption in the United States have been largely replaced by palm oil, a plant-based oil that has similar cooking properties, but may not be as environmentally-friendly as commonly believed, argues a researcher in this week's issue of Nature.

Indonesia lost 8.8m ha of forest in the 2000s, generating 7 billion tons of CO2

2012-12-02T23:58:00Z

Indonesia's greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation could have been reduced by hundreds of millions of tons had a moratorium on new concessions in high carbon forest areas and peatlands been implemented earlier, reported a researcher presenting at a forests conference on the sideline of climate talks in Doha.

Complaint filed with palm oil body over orangutan rescue case

2012-11-29T14:45:00Z

Conservationists have filed a complaint against an Indonesian palm oil company for allegedly clearing an area of forest that contained orangutans. Earlier this month, the Sumatran Orangutan Society (SOS) filed a complaint against PT Sisirau for allegedly breaching the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil's rules on sparing high conservation value forest. PT Sisirau is a member of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), a multistakeholder body that sets criteria for more environmentally responsible palm oil production.

E.U. OKs biofuels produced from certified palm oil

2012-11-28T17:42:00Z

The European Commission has approved palm oil-based biodiesel for the renewable fuels standard provided it is certified under the Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), a body that sets social and environmental criteria for palm oil production. The move, which could dramatically boost sales of palm oil in Europe, was sharply criticized by environmental activists, who said that without stronger safeguards, increased palm oil production could increase deforestation and greenhouse gas emissions.