Palm oil plantations: redefining deforestation as reforestation in Indonesia

Across Indonesia, palm oil plantations and production have led to massive deforestation of the nation’s tropical rainforests. Even though federal law prohibits creating plantations in natural forests, over 25% of the rainforests have been cleared out to fuel the massive demand for palm oil. Indonesia is the largest producer of the commodity, yet while its farmers thrive from the sales of palm oil, the production of the export causes biodiversity loss and eutrophication from agricultural run-off.

Even more frightening, Yanto Santosa, professor of forestry at the Bogor Institute of Agriculture, recently pushed his proposal to allow palm oil companies to plant in forest areas, classifying oil palms as a “forest crop.” Essentially, native plants and trees will be cleared to make way for oil palms — ironically making deforestation efforts classified as reforestation — despite decades of land clearing.

Proponents of the proposal argue that palm oil trees have climate benefits such as sequestering carbon and creating tree cover as well as that palm oil is better than its alternative oils of soy, sunflower, and rapeseed. However, the carbon that oil palms store pales in comparison to native forests' ability to do so. In the last two decades, these plantations store 50% to 90% less carbon than the natural forest. Proponents cite the sustainability of palm oil, yet use the flawed logic that because the annual yield of oil palm is far greater than its alternatives, it must be more environmentally-friendly and use less land. But, productivity can not be used as a proxy for sustainability. Just because Indonesia gets a better yield with palm oil than with sunflowers, does not make the former automatically sustainable.

The carbon footprint of palm oil for every hectare of land converted to plantations is super bad compared to the footprint of other oils. Further, studies from the European Union, United States Environmental Protection Agency, and International Council on Clean Transportation have all found that biofuel using palm oil has higher emissions than other oils as well as fossil fuels.

Palm oil has led to the habitat loss of endangered species like the Sumatran rhino and orangutan. Multiple non-governmental organizations, too, have documented widespread labor abuses in five oil palm plantations in Indonesia, despite the plantations being certified by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil.

On the flipside, 8.4 million Indonesians are employed by the palm oil industry, from farmers to goods suppliers. With expansion, the industry is projected to expand by 3% over the next 10 years. These farmers’ livelihoods are directly tied to the success of the palm oil industry, and often are the only breadwinners of their families.

Classification in government can be seen throughout history. The War Powers Resolution of 1973 was passed with the aim of limiting presidential power of involving the U.S. into any “hostilities” (which is never explicitly defined); however, the vague classification of hostilities allowed multiple presidents to circumvent the resolution. The act doesn't even apply to drones as the language of the document does not address unmanned weapons — despite the mass amounts of violence airstrikes cause.

When they laid down the framework of the War Powers Resolution, the lawmakers exhibited astonishing foresight in regards to abuses of military might, but they could not have envisioned drones playing a part in international conflicts. Because unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are employed from places thousands of miles away from where they are actually used to attack, the President does not need to obtain congressional approval for the use of UAVs in military operations as they technically do not result in hostilities where they are employed.

Another example is the classification of marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug, among the ranks of heroin and ecstasy. As a Schedule 1 drug, marijuana has more restrictions put on its use — disproportionately affecting people of color. In the mid-1900s, even possessing small amounts of weed could land people years in prison. However, Black people are four times more likely to be arrested for marijuana than white people, even though both groups consume marijuana at about the same rate. Marijuana is not a Schedule 1 drug any more than a hedgehog is an apex predator.

The road to environmental preservation and sustainable agroforestry is a long winding path for Indonesia, but there’s a dire need for more oversight and transparency regarding its palm oil practices.

Questions

• Should the economic benefits of employment/exports outweigh the environmental damage caused by palm oil plantations?
• How will this reclassification proposal affect Indonesian forests?
• How can Indonesia combat the environmental harms and labor abuses of palm oil plantations?

Sources

• [Mongabay] Proposal could redefine palm oil-driven deforestation as reforestation in Indonesia
• [The Guardian] Fifth of Indonesia's palm oil sites lie in forest estate, says Greenpeace
• [EcoWatch] Palm Oil Plantations Could Be Defined as Reforestation Efforts in Indonesia Under 'Dangerous' Proposal
• [EU] The land use change impact of biofuels consumed in the EU
• [EPA] Lifecycle Greenhouse Gas Results
• [Ecosia] Why is palm oil bad for the environment?
• [China Dialogue] Palm oil's high yield masks environmental impact
• [Mongabay] Report finds litany of labor abuses on RSPO-certified oil palm plantations
• [Vox] The federal drug scheduling system, explained