How india’s use of palm oil is having a devastating impact on indonesia’s rainforests, tigers and the global climate Greenpeace is a global organisation that uses non-violent direct action to tackle the most crucial threats to our planet’s biodiversity and environment. Greenpeace is a non-profit organisation, present in 40 countries across Europe, The Americas, Asia and the Pacific. It speaks for 2.8 million supporters worldwide, and inspires many millions more to take action every day. To maintain its independence, Greenpeace does not accept donations from governments or corporations but relies on contributions from individual supporters and foundation grants. Greenpeace has been campaigning against environmental degradation since 1971 when a small boat of volunteers and journalists sailed into Amchitka, an area north of Alaska, where the US Government was conducting underground nuclear tests.This tradition of ‘bearing witness’ in a non-violent manner continues today, and ships are an important part of all its campaign work. Greenpeace India Society Head Office - Bengaluru Regional Office - New Delhi #60, Wellington Street A-23, Second Floor, Green Park Richmond Town Near Aurobindo Place Market Bengaluru 560 025, India New Delhi 110 016, India T: +91 80 42821010 T: + 91 11 66665000, 66665106 F: +91 80 41154862 F: +91 11 6666501 Toll Free No.: 1800 425 0374 E: [email protected] www.greenpeace.org/india www.greenpeace.org/india Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning organization that acts to change attitudes and behavior, to protect and conserve the environment and to promote peace. Section 01 Introduction 04 Section 02 Climate & Biodiversity: What’s at stake? 10 Greenpeace is committed to stopping climate change. Section 03 Palm Oil: A key driver of deforestation 18 We campaign to protect the world’s remaining ancient forests and the plants, animals and peoples that depend upon them. Section 04 The Market Place 42 Section 05 Indian action needed to tackle climate change 64 We investigate, expose and confront the trade in products causing forest destruction and climate change. Section 06 Endnotes 66 We challenge governments and industry to end their role in forest destruction and Section 07 Bibliography 81 climate change. We support the rights of forest peoples. Published by Greenpeace India, June 2012 Greenpeace India 60, Wellington Street Richmond Town, Bengaluru 560 025 Contact Nandikesh Sivalingam, Forest Campaigner +91 96864 50785, [email protected] Cover Image Forest Fire Fighting in Riau.© Greenpeace / FB Anggoro Image Peatlands (wetlands) in the Kampar peninsula, Sumatra.© Greenpeace / John Novis Design Shagun Mitra Printed on 100% recycled paper 01 Palm oil plantation in Kuala Cenaku, Indragiri Hulu district, Riau © Greenpeace / Oka Budhi “As the worlds largest user of palm oil, India has an opportunity and a responsibility to ensure that its purchases of products such as palm oil are coming from responsible sources and aren’t linked to rainforest and peatland destruction, and the resulting climate- changing emissions.” 02 03 Left: Aerial view of oil palm plantation and rainforest, Bukit Subur Estate area, outside Long Noran village, East Kalimantan. © Greenpeace / Phil Unwind Top: Forest Crime Banner Action - Amazon © Greenpeace / Daniel Beltrá India is now the world’s largest market for palm oil, estimated to This report shows that Duta Palma, one of forest destruction for palm oil and other use 7.2 million tonnes in 2011-12, approximately 19% of the global Indonesia’s biggest palm oil companies and commodities begins with the largest total and more than either China (16%) or the EU (14%).1 India’s member of the Roundtable on Sustainable buyers, Indian firms are well placed palm oil imports have grown at an astonishing rate, more than Palm Oil (RSPO) is still destroying to use their market power to pressure doubling since 2006/07 - reaching 6.5 million tonnes in 2009/10.2 rainforests and peatlands. Between palm oil suppliers into more consistent Palm oil is also the cheapest edible oil on sale in India.3 May and November 2011, Greenpeace and stronger action to prevent rainforests analysed satellite data from 1/5/2007 and and peatlands from being cleared. This Most of India’s palm oil - 5.8 million tonnes in 2010 - is imported 20/7/201011 and also carried out on the will help prevent ever more dangerous from Indonesia,4 where the palm oil industry is a significant ground field investigations, which identified climate change, which is already having contributor to climate change because of the huge amounts of recent forest and peatland destruction a significant impact on India and the rest greenhouse gases (GHG) released when forest is cleared and caused by Duta Palma. This producer is a of the world. peatland drained to establish oil palm plantations. Indonesia supplier to the Indian market place, both accounts for more than 17% of the world’s deforestation-related directly and through other Indonesian GHG emissions.5 According to some estimates, Indonesia ranks as suppliers (See page 32). the world’s third largest GHG emitter, behind the United States and China.6 Indonesia’s National Climate Change Council has identified The RSPO was formed in 2004 with the palm oil sector as one of the key drivers of natural forest loss the objective of promoting the growth and peatland degradation.7 and use of sustainable oil palm products through establishing environmental and Climate change is a major threat to agriculture and standards social standards for production. Whilst of living in India: subsistence farmers across Asia are already membership has increased and RSPO experiencing falling crop yields caused by floods, droughts, erratic certified palm oil has started to enter the rainfall and other climate change impacts.8 As a major developing market, serious problems remain. RSPO market and the world’s largest user of palm oil, India has an standards do not yet prohibit development opportunity and a responsibility to ensure that its purchases of on peatlands or other forest areas storing products such as palm oil are coming from responsible sources large amounts of carbon, whilst its existing and aren’t linked to rainforest and peatland destruction, and the standards have been regularly flaunted by resulting climate-changing emissions. Duta Palma and a number of other RSPO producers. This report shows how major Indian industry players such as Ruchi Soya, Adani-Wilmar, ITC, Britannia, Godrej and Parle, along As a result of major international with some of the biggest global corporations operating in India, campaigns by Greenpeace, some global including YUM! Group’s Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC), PepsiCo, firms, including Nestlé12 have started to Louis Dreyfus and Cargill, as well as the Indian Government, must go beyond the standards set by the RSPO do a lot more to ensure that they are not buying palm oil linked to and put in place procurement policies to rainforest destruction. ensure that they do not buy palm oil from deforestation and peatland destruction. In Indonesia, despite recent positive steps by one producer - Sinar Mas’ palm oil arm Golden Agri Resources (GAR)9 - no sector So far, no Indian companies have wide moves to reduce the climate change impact of palm oil are made commitments to ensure that their yet underway. The rapid expansion of the sector into carbon-rich palm oil purchases have no deforestation forests and peatlands continues to destroy forests and peatlands.10 footprint. As global action to deal with 04 05 Burned area for oil palm plantation in Riau. Forests have been burned to clear land for oil palm plantations in the Palma Satu Concession belonging to Duta Palm Group. © Greenpeace / John Novis They must: • Operate in compliance with local laws and national regulations in all their plantations and operations; • Protect high carbon stock2 forests and peatlands from conversion; • Respect and recognise the rights of indigenous people and local communities via Ensuring Implementation of Free Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) of indigenous people and other traditional forest users, as STOP THE DESTRUCTION START THE SOLUTION well as the participation of local communities in all decisions on development and • Urge producers in your • Introduce a time- activities; supply chain to adopt a bound zero-deforestation policy that commits to Zero policy. This includes a • Establish supply chain traceability and Deforestation.1 set of requirements that segregation systems, including third party suppliers must meet verification and monitoring, to ensure only • Stop trading with suppliers throughout their supply forest products (palm oil, paper etc.) from who continue to engage chain for all commodities management units that have met the above in unacceptable practices, with impacts on forests, criteria enter the supply chain; starting with Duta Palma. like palm oil and paper. • Invest in business practices that avoid Do not accept palm oil from deforestation, such as improving yields third party suppliers who on existing plantations through ecological refuse to rule out supply practices and ensuring greater market from this company access for smallholders. 1Provisionally defined as forest vegetation greater than 35tnC/ha: In: Lewis et al 2012: Defining and identifying high carbon stock areas for possible conservation: a working proposal (in press). A collaborative report by The Forest Trust, GAR, PT Smart and Greenpeace 2GAR committed to ensure a no deforestation footprint in its palm oil operations. This is achieved by not developing oil palm plantations on areas that have High Conservation Values (HCV), areas of peat regardless of depth, and to not develop areas with High Carbon Stock (HCS). This is in addition to ensuring legality of all operations, implementing the principles of Free, Prior and Informed Consent, and obtaining certification by the Roundtable of Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) for all its operations by 2015. These commitments were outlined in GAR Forest Conservation Policy (FCP).