Climate change policy footprint amid threat of global warming

Harry Alexander , Jakarta Tue, 06/17/2008 10:05 AM Opinion

Global warming has arrived, in more ways than one. There is now scientific consensus that global warming is taking place and that the burning of fossil fuels has contributed to it. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) makes two things clear: first, global warming is a fact. And second, a delay in reducing greenhouse gas emissions will increase the risk of global disasters -- from droughts, floods and storms, to declines in agricultural productivity and food security as well as rising sea levels.
Indonesia ratified the convention on the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) in November 1950, and has been actively involved in the organization. In 1988, the WMO and the United Nations Environment Program established the IPCC. Indonesia has also committed itself to participating in all UN General Assembly meetings, in particular the UN Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This article will examine the Indonesian government's efforts to regulate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
The first IPCC report was published in 1990. The key findings were as follows: "Emissions resulting from human activities are substantially increasing the atmospheric concentration of the greenhouse gases: carbon dioxide, methane, chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and nitrous oxide. These increases will enhance the greenhouse effect, resulting on average in an additional warming of the Earth's surface."
Despite this report, the Indonesian government's response in addressing the problem has been lackadaisical. In 1990, a conservation law was passed. Unfortunately, it was enacted not as a legal basis for climate change policies, but merely to respond to Article 12 of Law No. 4/1982 on the environment. The 1993 People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) decree on state policy guidelines (GBHN) is also similarly oblivious to the IPCC's recommendations.
Likewise, when the government ratified the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 1994, it failed to implement regulations that would reduce GHG emissions.
In 1995, the IPCC released a second report, reaffirming "the balance of evidence suggests a discernible human influence on global climate change". This report served as the basis for negotiations in the Kyoto Protocol.
The protocol has been adopted by most governments around the world, and 1996 was a pivotal year for environmental and natural resource laws and policies in Indonesia: an environmental law and a marine law were enacted that year.
But even as these laws were passed, the government failed to recognize climate change as a key environmental problem. As the world's longest and largest archipelagic state, Indonesia is at high risk from the adverse effects of climate change, including rising sea levels in low coastal areas, which pose immense threats to the country's marine ecosystems, biodiversity and fishing industry.
And to make matters worse, a government regulation on forestry was passed in 1999, which, given its centralistic and exploitative character, will significantly aid in devastating the country's forests -- forests that can offset the effects of climate change by acting as a massive carbon sink.
However, there has been some progress. In the same year, conservation efforts were boosted by the passing of four regulations, which became the legal basis for environmental conservation and pollution control. They enabled government agencies to allocate existing national parks as carbon sinks.
The IPCC's third report, issued in 2001, states, "There is new and stronger evidence that most of the warming observed over the last 50 years is attributable to human activities".
The report also highlighted the major role of fossil fuels in contributing to GHGs. Indonesian forest fires, which release billions of tons of GHGs, are also a significant contributor to global warming. In 2001, former president Abdurrahman Wahid signed into law a regulation on forest fire prevention. Unfortunately, this law lacks any authority, and is brazenly flouted at every opportunity.
In 2007, the IPCC published its fourth report, saying, "There is a greater than 90 percent certainty that human activities, led by burning fossil fuel, account for most of the global warming in the previous 50 years. Most of the observed increase in the globally averaged temperature since the mid-20th century is very likely due to the observed increase in anthropogenic greenhouse gas concentration".
The UNFCCC conference was held in Bali that same year. Realizing the importance of this conference, the Yudhoyono administration actively campaigned against global warming during 2007. They explored the challenges of mitigating and adapting to climate change, particularly through the Reducing Emission from Deforestation and Degradation in Developing Countries (REDD) project. The Ministry of Forestry, in cooperation with the Indonesian Forest Climate Alliance (IFCA), even launched a REDD pilot project.
Recent studies in national climate change policy and environmental policy generally demonstrate the government's failure to address global warming. The government should continue developing the aims, incentives, strategic policies and measures to track progress of GHG reduction.
An effective policy response to climate change must combine mitigation -- actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions -- and adaptation -- actions to manage the impacts of climate change. The adaptation planning and policies must also recognize the link between the environment, the economy and society, and must integrate, accommodate and reconcile social, economic and environmental priorities. Effective adaptation will involve incorporating climate concerns into a broad range of planning and development activities across multiple sectors and institutions.
Indonesia must also take into account the impact of climate change on national development. Economic development goals and climate change policy goals must not be seen as opposite ends of a spectrum. They must be seen as paths toward the same goal. Economic development is necessary to alleviate poverty, improve access to energy, increase economic growth and aid our adaptation efforts.
Finally, the government has to integrate climate change policy into development plans for inclusive and sustainable development. In this context, we need to rethink spending money on subsidizing fossil fuels, a practice that may be inconsistent with GHG reductions.

The writer is a policy director at the Wildlife Conservation Society. He can be reached at h.alexander@wcsip.org

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2008/06/17/climate-change-policy-footprint-amid-threat-global-warming.html

Efisiensi Energi dan Perdagangan Internasional

Penulis: Harry Alexander, Peneliti di Divisi Energy Policy INDENI

Pimpinan delegasi pengusaha AS-ASEAN, Mathew P Daley dan Presiden Ford Indonesia, Richard Baker, berusaha melobi Wakil Presiden Jusuf Kalla dan Menko Perekonomian Boediono untuk merubah kebijakan perpajakan Indonesia (10/10/2006). Mereka berusaha menyakinkan Pemerintah Indonesia untuk merubah metode perhitungan Pajak Penjualan Barang Mewah (PPnBM) untuk indsutri otomotif. Tim delegasi ini berargumentasi bahwa PPnBM di sektor otomotif seharusnya berdasarkan nilai (harga) dari kendaraannya, bukan dari tipe body atau engine displacement.

Argumentasi delegasi ini terlihat sederhana dan menyakinkan, tetapi sesungguhnya membawa kepentingan persaingan perdagangan internasional dan memberi dampak lingkungan hidup dan ketahanan energi Indonesia. Perusahaan-perusahaan otomotif raksasa Amerika Serikat seperti Ford dan General Motor, mulai tersingkir di kampung halaman mereka sendiri oleh perusahaan otomotif Jepang. Perusahaan otomotif Jepang seperti Toyota dan Honda saat ini menduduki posisi penjualan teratas di Amerika Serikat (US EPA, 2006). Hal ini disebabkan oleh keberhasilan industri otomotif Jepang menciptakan teknologi efisiensi energi dan rendah emisi dalam produk otomotif.

Pembelajaran Hemat Energi

Negara maju seperti Amerika Serikat seharusnya memberikan pembelajaran penghematan energi kepada negara-negara berkembang. Perilaku raksasa industri AS ini sangat bertolak belakang dengan kebijakan negara-negara Industri yang tergabung dalam OECD lainnya. Mereka dikenal sangat serius dalam mengelola kebijakan penghematan energi. Negara industri maju yang sebagian besar merupakan negara-negara miskin sumber daya alam dan energi ini sangat berkepentingan untuk mengamankan ketahanan energi dalam rangka menjaga kestabilitasan ekonomi dan industri mereka. Jepang adalah salah satu negara yang sangat serius melakukan efisiensi di sektor energi. Melalui peraturan perundang-undangannya, Jepang berhasil mewajibakan teknologi dan industrinya memenuhi standar efisiensi energi, bahkan mulai diberlakukan larangan bagi alat-alat yang tidak bisa mencapai standar tersebut (Yuliarto, 2006). Salah satu teknologi yang dijadikan prioritas utama adalah sektor otomotif.

Potret Energi Indonesia

Lalu bagaimana dengan strategi konservasi energi di Indonesia? Sebuah pertanyaan yang sangat sulit untuk dijawab. Indonesia tidak memiliki landasan kebijakan strategi konservasi energi yang kuat. Hal ini ditandai dengan ketiadaan Undang-Undang Energi. Saat ini kita hanya memiliki beberapa peraturan yang mengatur konservasi energi seperti Peraturan Presiden No. 5 Tahun 2006 Tentang Kebijakan Energi Nasional. Kalau ditinjau dari teori perundang-undangan dan keberlakuan hukum (gelding van het recht), maka peraturan energi yang ada saat ini memiliki banyak kelemahan dan ketidakjelasan dalam hirarki peraturan perundang-undangan. Keberadaan Undang-Undang Energi adalah keniscayaan bagi pengembangan kebijakan, pengelolaan, konservasi dan kelembagaan energi yang kokoh. Selain itu, Indonesia memasuki krisis cadangan energi akibat tingginya pertumbuhan konsumsi Bahan Bakar Minyak (BBM) dalam negeri dan berkurangnya potensi cadangan BBM. Apalagi kondisi ini diperparah dengan ketergantungan konsumsi energi nasional yang sangat tinggi terhadap BBM dalam negeri maupun impor.

Cadangan BBM dalam negeri sendiri yang diprediksi kurang dari 18 tahun akan habis dari bumi nusantara. Sektor transportasi mengkonsumsi lebih dari 50% BBM nasional dimana 60% merupakan mobil pribadi dan angkutan barang (Bappenas, 2006). Sebagai pemakai terbesar BBM, sektor transpotasi berpotensi besar menjadi sumber strategi penghematan energi. Strategi konservasi energi di sektor ini bisa dilakukan dengan berbagai macam cara mulai dari pengembangan angkutan massal, pengurangan jumlah kendaraan pribadi sampai penerapan pajak karbon. Pemerintah harus berani memaksa industri otomotif asing dan merangsang industri dalam negeri untuk mengembangkan kendaraan hemat energi dan rendah polusi seperti mobil gas, listrik dan hybdrid. Berangkat dari sini, tidak ada alasan bagi pemerintah mengganti metode penghitungan PPnBM atas mobil yang selama ini berdasarkan kapasitas silinder mesin kendaraan bermotor.

Peraturan Pemerintah (PP) No. 41 Tahun 2005 Tentang PPnBM mengatur pajak kendaraan bermotor sedan dengan kapasitas mesin 1.500 cc ke bawah yang dikenai PPnBM 30%, sementara sedan kapasitas mesin di atasnya sampai 2.500 cc dipisah dengan PPnBM sebesar 40%. Saat ini pemerintah terkesan ragu untuk mengambil opsi-opsi kebijakan atas PP ini. Seharusnya pemerintah mempertahankan dan bahkan kalau perlu pemerintah memberikan kemudahan perpajakan dan keringan bunga perbankan bagi industri otomotif yang mengembangkan energi alternatif dan efisiensi energi.

Lingkungan Hidup

Pilihan-pilihan kebijakan di atas akan berdampak langsung pada perlindungan lingkungan dan ketahanan energi. Dalam konteks ini, perlindungan lingkungan sangat dipengaruhi sejauh mana industri otomotif mampu melakukan penghematan energi dan minimalisasi zat buang. Pemerintah dapat menetapkan standar minimum produk industri otomotif dan memasukkan unsur disinsentif dan biaya lingkungan bagi produk industri otomotif yang tidak memenuhinya standar efisiensi penggunaan bahan bakar. Di tingkat konsumen, selain mempertahankan PPnBM Mobil yang ada, perlu di kaji kemungkinan penerapan pajak karbon. Beberapa ekonom optimis bahwa pajak karbon dapat berhasil secara signifikan menurunkan konsumsi BBM. Pajak karbon ini bertujuan meningkatkan ketahanan energi melalui produk otomotif yang ramah lingkungan.

Pajak ini bermanfaat dalam rangka pengurangan polusi udara akibat karbon dioksida, karbon monoksida dan nitrogen oksida. Sebagai Negara peratifikasi Konvensi Perubahan Iklim (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) dan Kyoto Protocol, Indonesia harus menunjukan komitmen kerjasama global dalam rangka menekan pemanas global. Bahkan Kantor Kementerian Negara Lingkungan Hidup (KLH) harus mengambil peran penting dalam memberikan penyadartahuan dan penjangkauan publik. Contoh langkah sederhana, KLH bisa menerbitkan publikasi ataupun website tentang Green Vehicle Guide yang berisikan informasi detail terkait dengan emisi kendaraan bermotor, nilai pencemaran udara, efisiensi bahan bakar dan nilai gas buang sehingga masyarakat mengetahui pada saat akan membeli kendaraan bermotor. Akhirnya dukungan masyarakat-lah yang menjadi penentu keberhasilan pencapaian ketahanan energi dan perlindungan lingkungan.

Indonesia's concession areas exceed the country's total area

Jakarta Post, September 28, 2002

By Muninggar Sri Saraswati and Musthofid

Inconsistent and overlapping legislation on forest exploitation has resulted in the total area of forest and mining concessions, of around 200 million hectares, exceeding Indonesia's total land area of 191 million hectares, according to a non-governmental organization (NGO). "Indonesia's total land area is only 191 million hectares, with another 330 million hectares of maritime zone," said the Mining Advocacy Network (Jatam). The forest and mining concession areas also exceed Indonesia's total remaining forest area of 104 million hectares, Jatam said in a recent report.

Mining projects on 84 million hectares of land have taken the largest portion of the country's land, followed by forest concessions (HPH) on some 54 million hectares of land. "It reflects an overlap in authority and lack of coordination between institutions due to inconsistent legislation on forest management," said Harry Alexander of the Natural Resources Law Institute (IHSA). As a result, the country's forests are managed by several institutions, including the forestry ministry and the energy and mineral resources ministry, as well as regional administrations. Each institution has the authority to issue concession rights and exploit the country's forests, as stipulated in their respective laws.

Environmental observer Longgena Ginting and forest expert Togu Manurung, meanwhile, blamed the plethora of mining operations on loose control by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources. "Projects permits are generously handed out to two or three companies for the same area," Longgena of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (WALHI) said, adding that it was easy for companies to obtain a mining permit. Meanwhile, Togu blamed the forestry ministry for the uncontrolled exploitation of Indonesia's forests. "The forestry ministry appears to have failed to draw a clear line between conservation areas and those allocated for commercial exploitation," Togu said.

To make things worse, Harry said, both forest and mining concessions were allowed to operate on either the protected or conserved forests. That policy explains why the total area allocated for forests concessions is way above the actual, total forested area. "Consequently, it should not come as a surprise if a mining or logging operation occurs in a protected forest," he said. Harry warned that Indonesia's forests would vanish if each institution continued to issue and enforce its own regulations without taking into account the impact on ecology. Although the forestry ministry claims there are some 104 million hectares of forest remaining, Indonesia is believed to have only 60 million hectares at present, after losing more than 75 percent of its forests to exploitation in the past few decades. Some 43 million hectares of the forest, or an area more than half the size of Borneo, has been damaged in the past five years.

The condition of the country's forests, once known as the second-largest source of biodiversity in the world after Brazil, started to decline after the New Order regime exploited the forests and mines as its two major money machines. Currently the government has also adopted an unfriendly approach to forest exploitation. It is, for example, asking for approval from the House of Representatives for 22 mining companies to resume operations within protected forests. Last July, State Minister for the Acceleration of Development in Eastern Indonesia Manuel Kaisiepo openly rejected Forestry Law No. 41/1999, which replaced Forestry Basic Law No. 11/1967. Kaisiepo rejected Article 38(4), which bans open-cast mining on protected forests, as he fears it would jeopardize some 39 mining operations in protected areas in Eastern Indonesia. While the House has yet to give its consent to the 22 companies, the proposal has drawn protests from environmentalists who warn that mining operations in protected forests would not only endanger the ecosystem but also jeopardize the lives of the indigenous people.

Lewis and Clark (Northwestern) Law School (www.lclark.edu)

Harry Alexander (www.indeni.org)