plantation
Latest palm oil deforester in Indonesia may also be operating illegally
JAKARTA — The largest case of deforestation for industrial palm oil in Indonesia is happening within a concession on a tiny island off the coast of southern Borneo, according to satellite analysis by technology consultancy TheTreeMap. The deforestation appears to be illegal, activists say, citing the irregularities surrounding the permits associated with the concession. Data from […]
As fires ravaged Indonesia in 2023, some positive trends emerged, data show
JAKARTA — 2023 saw the worst fire season in Indonesia since 2019, with an area the size of Qatar going up in flames, according to official government data. A total of 1.16 million hectares (2.87 million acres) of land and forest were burned last year, with an intense El Niño weather pattern a major factor. […]
Indonesia’s peatland restoration claims in question as fires flare up
JAKARTA — Swaths of tropical peatland that were supposed to have been restored and protected from burning are among the fire-hit areas in Indonesia’s ongoing dry season, raising questions about the government’s claims of success in peat restoration. The Ministry of Environment and Forestry said more than 300 companies had restored some 3.7 million hectares […]
Experts slam massive ‘discount’ in fines for Indonesian palm oil billionaire
JAKARTA — Experts have slammed a court ruling that significantly slashes the fines imposed on Indonesian palm oil billionaire Surya Darmadi, even as it increased his jail sentence, in the biggest corruption case in the country’s history. The Supreme Court, Indonesia’s highest court of appeals, ruled in a Sept. 14 decision to uphold Surya’s earlier conviction […]
As Indonesia retakes land from developers, conservation is an afterthought
JAKARTA — Environmental activists have cautiously welcomed the Indonesian government’s move to revoke hundreds of permits for logging, plantations and mines, calling it an opportunity to conserve vast swaths of forest. The affected concessions include Ministry of Environment and Forestry permits for 192 logging, plantation, mining and ecotourism operations, totaling 3.13 million hectares (7.73 million […]
Proposal could redefine palm oil-driven deforestation as reforestation in Indonesia
JAKARTA — Across large swaths of Indonesia, forests have been cleared to make way for oil palms, making the plantation industry one of the leading drivers of deforestation in the country. But this inconvenient truth may soon be masked by a sleight being peddled by the country’s leading forestry university to reclassify oil palms as […]
‘Land mafia’ makes its mark in a Sumatran village’s fight against oil palm firm
JAKARTA — In 2020, residents of Suka Mukti village in southern Sumatra paid 10 million rupiah each, about $700, to a government agency to obtain titles to their land — a process that is officially supposed to be free. This year, the same agency declared the certificates illegal because, it says, the land falls inside […]
Papua court ruling a win for local government, Indigenous groups against palm oil
JAKARTA — A court in Indonesia has rejected a bid by two palm oil companies to have their permits restored after they were scrapped by local authorities for a litany of violations. For the Indigenous peoples whose territory fell within the companies’ concessions, the ruling offers a rare chance to finally have their land rights […]
‘Forests will disappear again,’ activists warn as Indonesia ends plantation freeze
BALI, Indonesia — Palm oil industry watchdogs are warning of a possible surge in deforestation across Indonesia, after the government ended a three-year freeze on issuing permits for new plantations. The moratorium had been imposed in 2018, ostensibly to allow the industry to address the problems of deforestation, land conflicts and labor abuses long associated […]
Lack of resolution mechanisms allow palm oil conflicts to fester in Indonesia
JAKARTA — Indonesia has no effective mechanism for resolving its epidemic of land conflicts between rural communities and palm oil companies, according to a new study. Indonesia is the world’s top producer of palm oil, but the industry’s rapid expansion has fueled deforestation and allegations of land grabbing throughout the archipelago nation. The study, produced […]