COLOMBO: UK is defying EU institutions to push for a hike in nominally “sustainable” Indonesian palm oil imports which have nonetheless been linked to deforestation, leaked documents show.
The European parliament is currently trying to force a ban on EU biofuels using palm oil, which have driven deforestation and contributed to the loss of 150,000 orangutans in Indonesia since 2002.
A binding “due diligence” regulation for high-risk forest products would be the “most effective” way of curbing this forest destruction, according to a draft EU study due to be released later this month.
UK officials have previously describedIndonesia’s sustainable palm oil standard as having “a credibility issue” due to its lack of transparency or adherence to best environmental practices.
“It is not a sustainability standard,” Andy Roby, an advisor to the Jakarta embassy’s climate change unit, said last year. “It is actually just the law and that is fine, but don’t try and sell it as a sustainability standard.”
The report, which the Guardian has seen, considers various approaches but concludes that “legislative action may deliver the most on effectiveness”, albeit at a higher cost.
The due diligence regulation it suggests would involve mandatory disclosure of information on deforestation-proofing of financial investments, and lower import duties for approved commodities.
itious chapter” on sustainable trade, covering “primarily the production of palm oil”, arguing that global demand for sustainable palm would allow a doubling of the current supply.
