The fate of Indonesia’s forest moratorium

The fate of Indonesia’s forest moratorium: Will the existing regulatory framework help?

Daniel Murdiyarso (CIFOR) and Sonya Dewi (ICRAF)

Lawmakers: “discontinue Moratorium”

• Depriving local livelihoods

• Job opportunities declined

• OP applicants 300, approved 70-80

• To freeze reforestation budget The Jakarta Globe November 24, 2012 Forest Ministry Pushes to Continue Deforestation Moratorium, House Pushes Back Indonesian lawmakers threatened on Friday to freeze the budget for reforestation projects if President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono continues the nation’s deforestation moratorium until 2014……………………………

Outline • Introduction

– Problems with definitions – Ever decreasing protected areas – Regaining C-rich forests

• Thinking out-of-the-box – From primary to secondary forests – From peatland to wetlands – From area to C-density – From REDD to NAMAs

• Existing regulatory framework help? – Swapping and revoking – Scrutinize conflicting regulations – Engaging lawmakers

• Recommendations

• With some controversies

• Ill-defined: primary vs natural

• Includes some red carpets

• Excludes (natural) secondary

forests

A two-year moratorium

• Most of the forest land

categories are already

protected by law

• The area to be addressed is

much less but highly

problematic in terms of

governance

Indicative Moratorium Map (PIPIB)

Deep to very deep (7.2 Mha = 19 GtC)

Shallow to deep (5.8 Mha = 11 GtC)

Shallow to moderate (8.0 Mha = 3 GtC)

1990 2002

Global 400 Mha (528 Pg)

Tropics 40 Mha (191 Pg)

SE Asia 35-40 Mha 25-30 Mha

Indonesia 21 Mha

(33 Pg)

17 Mha (?)

Peatlands distribution in Indonesia

THINKING beyond the canopy 1991

The MRV challenges

• Measuring GHG fluxes from drained peat swamp

and fire emissions

• Quantifying C-stocks change from forests

conversions

• LUCC (100,000 ha/y in 2000-2005)

If extended: secondary forests Fo

rest

Primary

Natural

Secondary

Plantation

Soil Mineral

Peat/organic

Legally defined and identifiable

Legally NOT defined but identifiable Secondary

forests 47 Mha

• Indonesia has ca. 3 million ha or 23%

world’s mangrove area

• Deforestation rate 50,000-80,000 ha/yr

• There are more mangroves in Indonesia

than any continents

If extended: mangroves to be included

Not recommended for a picnic

Mangroves Area and distribution Papua, Kalimantan, and Sumatera islands harbor 85.8 % of Indonesian mangroves with primary mangrove (91.6 %), secondary mangrove (77.8 %)

Islands Primary Secondary Total

(ha) % (ha) % (ha) %

Papua 1,166,406 45.6 78,682 3.1 1,245,088 48.6

Kalimantan 57,532 2.2 442,119 17.3 499,651 19.5

Sumatera 138,431 5.4 314,826 12.3 453,257 17.7

Maluku 66,759 2.6 90,685 3.5 157,444 6.1

Sulawesi 32,929 1.3 112,166 4.4 145,094 5.7

Jawa 8,865 0.3 23,339 0.9 32,205 1.3

Nusa Tenggara 16,196 0.6 11,753 0.5 27,950 1.1

Indonesia 1,487,118 58.1 1,073,571 41.9 2,560,688 100.0

source: MoF-GoI, 2009

Mangrove

Ecosystem C-pools of ecotypes and islands

Properties unit riverine (18) estuarine (8)

Note X ± sd

Total C Pool Ecosystem (Mg C.ha

-1) 1025.2 ±68.6 b 1172.7 ±66.2 a *

Properties unit Sumatera (6) Kalimantan (7) Papua (13)

Note X ± sd

Total C Pool Ecosystem (Mg C.ha

-1) 1230.0 ±67.1 a 944.7 ±37.6 b 1104.6 ±24.7 c **

Change Change Change

2000 (ha) 2009 (ha) ha.yr-1

2000 (ha) 2009 (ha) ha.yr-1

2000 (ha) 2009 (ha) ha.yr-1

Papua 1,186,161 1,166,406 2,195 72,751 78,682 (659) 1,258,912 1,245,088 1,536

Kalimantan 74,767 57,532 1,915 581,420 442,119 15,478 656,186 499,650 17,393

Sumatera 176,042 138,431 4,179 294,462 314,826 (2,263) 470,505 453,257 1,916

Maluku 66,970 66,759 23 90,495 90,685 (21) 157,464 157,444 2

Sulawesi 40,167 32,929 804 113,243 112,166 120 153,410 145,094 924

Jawa 17,583 8,865 969 15,534 23,339 (867) 33,117 32,205 101

Nusa Tenggara 16,227 16,196 3 11,758 11,753 0 27,985 27,950 4

Indonesia 1,577,917 1,487,118 10,089 1,179,662 1,073,571 11,788 2,757,579 2,560,688 21,877

source: MoF-GoI, 2009

IslandsPrimary mangroves Secondary mangroves All Mangroves

Mangrove Forest Cover Changes

Ecosystem C-pools

Large belowground pools

Eco

syste

m C

sto

rag

e (

Mg

ha

-1)

Soils below 30 cm depth

Soils 0-30 cm depth + roots

Aboveground live + dead

Boreal Temperate Tropical upland

Tropicalpeat swamp

Mangrove0

200

400

600

800

1,000

1,200

1,400

1,600

(Donato et al., 2011)

If extended: include NAMAs

Controlling water level in Acacia plantation, Riau Province

• Intensifying plantation • On degraded mineral soils • Avoid peatlands • Re-assess land banking • Use moratorium clauses • Revenue from palm oil:

$16 B/yr

If extended: include NAMAs

Brand new initiatives: Accelerating economic development

Indonesia is divided into six corridors Corridor means connectivity (i.e. infrastructure)

Papua Economic Corridor Theme

• Center for food production, fisheries, energy and mining

Economic Center

• Sofifi, Ambon

• Sorong

• Manokwari, Timika

• Jayapura, Merauke

Main Economic Activity

• Food estate, MIFEE

• Oil and gas

• Copper, Nickel

• Fisheries

Moratorium and OP industry

Before (2007-2010) After (2011)

Company involved 169 124

Province involved 12 22

Expansion (ha) 2,490,404 1,371,216

Plant processing capacity (ton FB/hr)

9,115 4,466

Source: Ministry of Agriculture and ANTARA News Agency (22 Nov 2012)

Lawmakers: “discontinue Moratorium”

• Depriving local livelihoods

• Job opportunities declined

• OP applicants 300, approved 70-80

• To freeze reforestation budget The Jakarta Globe November 24, 2012 Forest Ministry Pushes to Continue Deforestation Moratorium, House Pushes Back Indonesian lawmakers threatened on Friday to freeze the budget for reforestation projects if President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono continues the nation’s deforestation moratorium until 2014……………………………

• On “Procedures to change the function of forest lands”

• Potentials for swapping

• Re-align with the Law on spatial panning

• On “Utilization of forest lands”

• Is revoking unimplemented permits or unsustainable implementation possible?

Scrutinizing existing regulations

Recommendations • Although the Moratorium was

not specifically and uniquely meant to reduce emissions it can further serve as enabling conditions

• If it is going to be extended, it should be targeted for C-rich forests, including secondary forests, mangrove ecosystems

• Engaging lawmakers is crucial to synergize the existing regulations towards regaining C-rich forest ecosystems