Resources Sustainability

Mobile App simplifies peatland restoration monitoring efforts in Indonesia

An inexpensive, community-based monitoring system is enhancing land management strategies in the Indonesian province of Riau as the government rolls out techniques aimed at strengthening the ability of local people to reduce their vulnerability to fire. Under leadership of the Community-based Peatland Restoration Monitoring System (CO-PROMISE) led by scientists from the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), the University of Riau and the local government, residents are using the 3R restoration strategy: re-wet; re-vegetate and re-vitalize livelihoods. The technique involves measuring groundwater and moisture levels in peatlands and keeping records of tree re-vegetation and livelihood revitalization efforts by tracking and sharing data about pineapple and coconut harvests.

Source: CIFOR

Indonesia’s thirst for biodiesel may undercut global palm oil supply (4 Feb)

The Indonesian Palm Oil Association, or Gapki, said on Monday that Indonesia is likely to use up to 8.3 million tons of palm oil to meet domestic demand for biodiesel this year, raising concerns there won’t be enough palm oil left to export. The government began mandatory use of B30 – diesel fuel made up of 30 percent biofuel from palm oil – last month and is already preparing to use the upgraded version, B40, next year. “Domestic demand for palm oil in 2020 is estimated to reach 8.3 million tons to be processed into biodiesel, which may reduce heavily the amount of palm oil available for export,” Gapki’s executive director, Mukti Sardjono, said in a statement on Monday.

Source: Jakarta Globe

Pakistan pledges to buy more Malaysian palm oil to compensate for India’s withdrawal (4 Feb)

Pakistan will buy more palm oil from Malaysia, Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Tuesday (Feb 4), to try and compensate after top buyer India put curbs on Malaysian imports last month amid a diplomatic row. India imposed general restrictions on refined palm oil imports, and informally asked traders specifically to stop buying from Malaysia, the world’s biggest producer of the edible oil. Sources said the move was in retaliation after Malaysia criticised India’s new religion-based citizenship law and its policy on Kashmir.

Source: Channel News Asia

Will India’s curb on Malaysian palm oil hurt Indonesian forests? (5 Feb)

India’s palm oil dispute with Malaysia could undo progress made on sustainable palm oil and put forests in Indonesia and elsewhere at greater risk if it drags on, experts said. Last month, India—Malaysia’s largest palm oil market for the last five years—began restricting imports of refined palm oil, a significant proportion of which is from Malaysia. Refined palm oil will now require an import licence from the Indian government, a measure seen by the industry as tantamount to a ban. Crude palm oil can, however, still be freely imported. The restriction could drive greater demand for cheaper crude palm oil from Indonesia, bringing with it several risks, experts told Eco-Business.

Source: Eco-Business

Indonesia’s Jokowi warns of economic calamity from forest fires (6 Feb)

Indonesian President Joko Widodo ordered officials to step up efforts to prevent a repeat of the forest fires that engulfed parts of key palm oil and timber producing regions last year and cost the nation $5.2 billion in economic losses. Jokowi, as Widodo is commonly known, told officials of various agencies to work together for a permanent solution to the wildfires, a perennial problem in Indonesia that last year burned over 1.5 million hectares of land. The risk of wildfires remains high this year amid forecasts for the dry season to start earlier than usual in some parts of country. Wildfires in central and western parts of the archipelago triggered a haze that blanketed parts of Southeast Asia in the second half of last year, prompting school closures and disruptions to sea and air travel. The blazes, which released a more emissions than fires in the Amazon, may have cost Indonesia $5.2 billion in economic losses, according to the World Bank.

Sources: Bloomberg, Straits times

Green Finance

Church of England devises index for eco-friendly investing (30 Jan-5 Feb)

The Church of England is investing £600 million ($780 million) in FTSE TPI Climate Transition Index, a new stock market index packed with companies that are aligned with the goals of the Paris climate agreement. Launched on the London Stock Exchange, the index was designed by the Church of England Pensions Board, exchange operator FTSE Russell and climate investor group Transition Pathway Initiative. It is open only to institutional investors. The investment vehicle rewards companies that are tackling climate change, while excluding or diminishing the weighting of environmental laggards. To make the cut, the excluded oil companies must set targets for all of their emissions that align with the Paris agreement.

Sources: CNN, The Business Times

MAS to issue consultation paper on environmental risk management guidelines in Q1 (4 Feb)

Singapore Education Minister and Board Member of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) Ong Ye Kung announced that the MAS will be issuing a consultation paper on environmental risk management guidelines for various financial institutions in the first quarter of this year. Mr Ong was responding to a parliamentary question from Nee Soon GRC MP Louis Ng, who wanted to know if the Government plans to include climate risk, particularly climate change-related risk, in the MAS annual industry-wide stress test. Doing so would be in line with what the Bank of England is doing and what the International Monetary Fund (IMF) recommends for central banks. Mr Ong responded that the MAS has already started to stress test for climate change-related risks, although the methodologies for stress testing climate change-related risk are still at a nascent stage. MAS is also working towards incorporating a broader range of climate change-related risks in thematic scenarios as part of its future industry-wide stress test.

Sources: Channel NewsAsia, Bloomberg Environment

Global green bond issuance seen at $300-$375 billion this year-research (5 Feb)

Global green bond issuance is expected to be between $300-$375 billion this year, after a record year last year, according to research from two companies that track the growing market. Green bonds are a category of fixed-income securities that raise capital for projects with environmental benefits, such as renewable energy or low-carbon transport. Nordic corporate bank SEB expects green bond issuance to reach $375 billion this year and cumulatively, the market should pass $1 trillion in size. Moody’s Investor Service expects green bond issuance to reach $300 billion in 2020, while social and sustainability bond issuance will reach $25 billion and $75 billion respectively.

Sources: Reuters, TODAYOnline

OCBC, UOB provide US$44m green loan to Myanmar conglomerate (5 Feb)

The Yangon branches of OCBC Bank and United Overseas Bank (UOB) have extended a US$44 million green loan to Myanmar’s Shwe Taung Group. OCBC provided close to US$30 million of the loan, while the balance came from UOB. The Myanmar conglomerate’s subsidiary, City Square Commercial Company, will use the green loan to refinance an earlier loan taken out for its Junction City Shopping Centre. Officially opened in 2017, the mall is part of the Junction City mixed-use development in Yangon’s downtown, which also includes an office tower, a Pan Pacific hotel, and serviced residences. The banks extended the green loan after Junction City attained the Green Mark certification by Singapore’s Building and Construction Authority in January this year.

Sources: The Business Times, finews.asia

Social Sustainability

As EU decision on tariffs looms, Cambodia garment industry gets nervous (3 Feb)

Less than two weeks remain until the EU decides whether it will revoke Cambodia’s trade privileges, granted under the Everything but Arms scheme for least-developed nations, due to the country’s “systematic” violations of human and labour rights. This has resulted in tensions arising between Cambodian garment factories and the international brands they supply as concerns grow that the country will soon lose its tariff-free access to Europe.

Last month, Adidas, Levi Strauss, Ralph Lauren and New Balance and several other companies and associations sent an open letter urging Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Sen to undertake reforms “immediately”, including to make the country’s trade union law more permissive and to drop all outstanding charges against union leaders, amongst other recommendations. The letter provoked a sharp response from the Garment Manufacturers Association of Cambodia, which argued that the progress which it has made has been ignored. Europe is a crucial market for the country’s $9.5 billion apparel and footwear export sector, and experts warn that other countries competing to supply low-cost apparel will be keen to snatch market share from Cambodia. Experts have also warned that Cambodia’s trajectory could lead to sanctions and this would create challenges for anyone who’s thinking of a five- or 10-year long investment plan in the Cambodian market.

Source: Nikkei Asian Review

ACAMS pledges support for anti-slavery & trafficking initiative (6 Feb)

ACAMS has pledged to mobilise financial sector stakeholders against modern slavery and human trafficking. An official pledge will be launched, encouraging its 77,000 members worldwide to commit to taking action in line with the Liechtenstein Initiative for Finance Against Slavery and Trafficking (FAST) blueprint for mobilising finance against modern slavery and human trafficking.

The pledge is part of a strategic partnership with FAST, a project-based at the United Nations University Centre for Policy Research. Launched in September 2019 at the United Nations General Assembly, FAST is a public-private partnership that currently includes the governments of Liechtenstein, Australia and the Netherlands, as well as Liechtenstein private sector and charitable groups. Since the launch, FAST has been working with partners to support dissemination and implementation of its Blueprint for mobilising finance against modern slavery and human trafficking.

Source: Regulation Asia