Tackling the Haze: What is the Role of

Business?

Brad SandersFire, Safety & Aviation Department

A Presentation to

CSR Asia25 July 2007

• Contributing Causes of Haze– Weather

– Reason for people to ignite fires

– Examples

• Business’ Responsibility– International standard

– Fire protection

– “No Burn” implementation

– Fire prevention & livelihood options

– Fire response system

– 2006 results

– Long-term solution

Overview

Land-clearing with fire in Indonesia is an age-old practice that has now become a major trans-national problem

The Haze

Monthly Rainfall & Fires/Month(Average All Estates)

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Month

Ra

infa

ll (

mm

)

0

5

10

15

20

25

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35

40

2007 Rainfall

Hisotoric AvgRainfall

Historic Avg #fires/month

Source: APRIL Riaufiber Estates 2002 – 2007

In Riau, there are two dry seasons per year when land-clearing with fire occurs

Ave

rag

e F

ires

/Mo

nth

2nd Dry Period1st Dry Period

HAZE

Health Hazards, Economic Losses, Political Tension

Poverty, unclear land tenure, agrarian society, fire is traditional tool, no fear of prosecution

Ineffective Fire Detection and Response Systems

Increased Incidence of Forest and Land Fires

Normal Dry Season (1 – 2 times a year) and/or Severe Extended Dry Season (El Nino)

Illegal Land Use• Speculators / grabbers

• Illegal plantation developers• Illegal settlers• Illegal logging

Small Farmers • Shifting cultivation

• Oil Palm

SME Plantation Companies• Cannot afford mechanical

land-clearing;• No other means to dispose

of wood

Why Does Haze Happen in Indonesia?

• Small farmers using land-clearing fires adjacent to remote perimeter boundaries remain the greatest fire threat to Riaufiber plantations.

• Palm oil company builds windrows but continues to use or allow fire to burn slash before planting palm oil.

• Small – Medium palm oil enterprise builds “windrows” but unable to dispose of wood waste.

• Fire is used or allowed to burn the slash before planting palm oil.

• Temporary laborers working for local elite use fire to claim land for palm oil development.

• The illegal sale & claiming of land leads to slash & burn land-clearing fires to illegally establish palm oil plantations.

Fire & Haze: APRIL’s Position

• No-burn policy since 1994- Only use mechanical methods to clear & prepare land

• Invests in programs, systems, equipment, people:- Provision of livelihood options - Fire prevention education & awareness- Active monitoring & early detection within our plantations- Rapid response to fire incidents within our plantations

UN-FAO Fire Management Actions Alliance• 16 May 2007 - 4th International Wildland Fire Management Conference, Seville, Spain

• Thirty world-wide Institutions voluntarily joined the Alliance

• Improve fire management and reduce fire damage through implementation and promotion of Voluntary Guidelines – Principles & Strategic Actions (www.fao.org/forestry/site/35853/en).

• Defines needed actions to improve fire management by strengthening policies, regulations, plans, procedures & implementation

APRIL is the first & onlyfiber plantation company in Indonesia to commit & implement the Fire Management Guidelines

Fire Protection Responsibilities

1. Fiber Plantations (335,000 ha)2. In-field Wood Supply3. Conservation Areas4. Air Quality

• Organic matter is source of soil nutrients, minimizes soil erosion; protects water quality

• Wood is our raw material

• Carbon in fiber reduces pulp quality

• Fire is a threat to assets and operations

• Eliminate smoke/haze to protect air quality

Why we don’t burn?

4.12 Fuel Management

No Burn Policy Implementation

4.12 Fuel Management

Mechanical Land Clearing Cost: US$ 150 – 300 / haDuration: 1-3 days / ha

• “Mosaic” concept provides biodiversity• Wildlife travel corridors• Effective to control spread of large fires

Natural Forest Greenbelts Serve as Fuel BreaksNatural Forest Greenbelts Serve as Fuel Breaks

4.12 Fuel Management

• Integrated Farming System Benefits 3,655 trainees in 96 villages; helps

villagers move from shifting cultivation to sustainable agriculture

• Community Fiber Farms 27,000 ha planted using “No Burn”

technique

• Small & Medium Enterprise Program

• Vocational training, scholarships, social infrastructure support

Providing Livelihood Options

4.3 Fire Awareness & Education

• Public signboards

• Contract Requirements

• Awareness briefings with workers

• Educational materials

Fire Prevention & Awareness

4.3 Fire Awareness & Education

Rapid Response Capability

4.9 Initial Attack / Action

Pro-active Fiber Estate Management Support • All Estate Management

recognize the importance of Emergency Response

• A temporary re-prioritization of all operational work assignments to quickly and effectively resolve the incident.

• This includes the use of Estate Personnel, contractor equipment, & sustained logistic support…

4.9 Initial Attack / Action

• 194 fires • 541 ha burned• Average size fire is 2.8 ha

• 90% of fires are fully extinguished within 3 days from initial attack

• 94% of fires extinguished at less than 10 ha

• 66% of fires extinguished at less than 1 ha

2006 Results

4.15 Monitoring & Assessment

• Multi-stakeholder involvement - concerted, committed action Government

– Consistent enforcement of existing laws– Develop alternative land preparation methods (no fire)– Legislation & market opportunity to utilize waste wood– Investment in effective fire response systems

Businesses

– Sustainable management of forest resources

NGOs, Media, Communities– Grassroots education & awareness

• Create economically viable options for the use of wood from legal land-clearing– Develop new market opportunities for use of wood that is

otherwise burned

Long-term Solution

4.4 Fire Prevention