*[Enwl-eng] [press-release] Greenpeace welcomes forest conservationpilot from Indonesian palm oil producer

[ENWLine]

Greenpeace welcomes forest conservation pilot from Indonesian palm oil
producer

Jakarta, 13 March 2013 - Greenpeace Indonesia today welcomed the launch of a
forest conservation pilot project by Indonesia’s largest palm oil producer,
Golden Agri-Resources (GAR), to protect High Carbon Stock (HCS) forests and
called on other palm oil producers to take similar action.

“Greenpeace commends GAR for putting its Forest Conservation Policy
commitment into action. GAR’s initiative is crucial for finally breaking the
link between palm oil and deforestation,” said Bustar Maitar, Head of
Greenpeace South East Asia’s Indonesia Forest Campaign.

After developing a methodology for defining HCS forests with Greenpeace and
global forestry non-profit group The Forest Trust (TFT), GAR will roll out
its Forest Conservation Policy to work with local communities and government
to conserve forested areas in all concessions that it is currently
developing, beginning with PT Kartika Prima Cipta (KPC) in West Kalimantan.
This is a global GAR policy, which will also be implemented in the company's
investment in Liberia (GVL) and, providing it is successfully implemented,
would set a strong example for future oil palm development in Africa.

”The future of Indonesia’s rainforests hangs in the balance. In less than
three months time the moratorium on new concessions in forested areas will
expire. The government of Indonesia should see today’s announcement as a
strong signal that government, industry and civil society together can turn
the tide and protect Indonesia’s forests for the sake of the people and
biodiversity that depend on them and for the global climate,” said Bustar.

GAR committed to an ambitious Forest Conservation Policy to prevent
deforestation from taking place in its palm oil operations in February 2011
following Greenpeace’s campaign and consumer pressure against deforestation
and peatland clearance for palm oil in Indonesia. This policy entails a
commitment to not develop areas identified as High Conservation Values (HCV)
and peat regardless of depth, and not to develop areas with High Carbon
Stock (HCS). Identifying HCS forests required an innovative and robust
methodology that has been developed by GAR in collaboration with TFT and
Greenpeace and was first presented in June 2012.

Greenpeace calls on other palm oil producers to follow GAR’s initiative
rather than hide behind weak legislation and certification systems, such as
the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). If the palm oil industry is
to erase the bad reputation it has acquired among consumers and financial
institutions, it needs to be clear which plantation companies are truly
committed to protecting Indonesia’s remaining forests, and those which will
continue their destructive practices.

“Consumer product companies that buy palm oil need to support industry
leaders that are willing to take bold measures to protect forests and
peatland and not simply depend on certification systems that have been
struggling unsuccessfully for years to design and implement measures needed
to do the same thing,” said Bustar.

Media Contact:

Bustar Maitar, Head of Greenpeace South East Asia’s Indonesia Forest
Campaign, tel: +62 81344666135

Martin Baker, Communications Coordinator - Indonesia Forests, Greenpeace
Global Forest Network, tel: +62 81315829513

Notes:
(1) GAR announcement: http://www.goldenagri.com.sg/sustainable_overview.php
(2) High Carbon Stock Briefing:
http://www.greenpeace.org/international/Global/international/briefings/forests/2013/HCS-Briefing-2013.pdf
(3) Greenpeace Scorecard on Palm Oil Producers:
http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/publications/Campaign-reports/Forests-Reports/Palm-Oil-Scorecard/
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-

From: <tristan.t...@greenpeace.org>
Sent: Wednesday, March 13, 2013 7:01 AM
Subject: [press-release] Greenpeace welcomes forest conservation pilot from
Indonesian palm oil producer


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