indonesia’s palm oil
TRANSCRIPT
KRISTIN COAD
Indonesia’s Palm Oil
Background
In crisis because of deforestation due to palm oil plantations
Habitat loss Indonesia is the 3rd largest
CO2 emission country
Brought job opportunities
Palm oil should be brought to a minimum
A1- Deforestation
Palm oil is the largest cause of deforestation in Indonesia
Millions of hectares of forest is already cut down
Palm oil from guarded land
Causing widespread damage
CA1- Production/ cheaper fuel
Interest in palm oil as a renewable, green alternative
Spreading to Europe and the United States
Palm will be produce biodiesel for domestic markets
Lowest price in over 15 months
A2- Global warming and habitat loss
2,643 fire hotspots in Sumatra
Millions of tons of CO2 being released
Destroying habitats for Sumatran tiger and orangutan
Orangutan population has dwindled 50% in recent years
CA2- Brought opportunities
Villagers without palm land fall below the poverty line
The more land owned, the more money is made
Small holders trying to support their families through palm oil
A3- Short term benefit
It is up to the country to regulate production
Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO)
Criticism by Greenpeace
Laws are being enforced
Solutions
Plantations are becoming hazardous to the environment
Palm oil plantations should stay at a minimum to reduce CO2 emissions and deforestation
Solutions
Stick to enforced laws about only planting on degraded land
Buy less palm oil products
Reduce demand
Works Cited
Cochrane, Joe. "Miracle or Menace?" Development Asia. 1 June 2008. Web. 24 May 2010. <http://development.asia/issue01/feature-01.asp>.
Knudson, Tom. "Dark Side of a Hot Biofuel." Rainforest Portal. 08 Jan. 2008. Web. 04 May 2010.
Law, Bill. "BBC News - Can Palm Oil Help Indonesia's Poor?" BBC NEWS | News Front Page. 1 Mar. 2010. Web. 12 May 2010.
McDermott, Matthew. "Malaysia and Indonesia To Expand Domestic Palm Oil Biodiesel as Commodity Price Drops." TreeHugger. 8 May 2008. Web. 23 May 2010. <http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/08/malaysia-indonesia-increase-palm-oil-biodiesel-production.php>.
McDonald, Frank. "Indonesia’s Failure to Protect Rainforest Criticized." Record number: 9FY3654512167. EBSCOhost. 16 June 2009. Web. 6 May 2010.
Miniscalco, Emma. "Is Harvesting Palm Oil Destroying the Rainforests?: Scientific American." Science News, Articles and Information | Scientific American. 11 Dec. 2008. Web. 9 May 2010
Murray, James. "Indonesia Lifts Ban on Palm Oil Plantations - 19 Feb 2009 - BusinessGreen.com.“ BusinessGreen.com News. 19 Feb. 2009. Web. 10 May 2010.