PRESS RELEASE
Number: SP. 116/HUMAS/PPIP/HMS.3/04/2022

 
The Ministry of Environment and Forestry (MoEF), through the Director General of Sustainable Forest Management (SFM), as well as one of the technical persons in charge of Indonesia’s FoLU Net Sink 2030, has ordered several parties to discontinue the process of validating carbon projects in Sumatra and Kalimantan. This process may not go ahead if it is not in accordance with Indonesian laws and regulations.
 
The Director General of Sustainable Forest Management conveyed this in connection with a carbon validation report posted on the VERRA website which is not aligned with Indonesian laws and regulations.
 
"We wrote to the four Ecosystem Restoration concession holders in the RER (Riau Ecosystem Restoration) Carbon Project on March 14, 2022 to order the validation process be discontinued," said Director General of SFM Agus Justianto in Jakarta (11/04/2022).
 
Agus added that the RER Carbon Project validation report unilaterally claimed that the carbon project documents were in accordance with the applicable laws and regulations, without conducting a consultation and verification process with the Ministry of Environment and Forestry.
 
"We have carried out an evaluation and our position is that the substance of the RER carbon project report is still not in accordance with the applicable laws and regulations," he explained.
 
As such, Agus continued, the RER Carbon Project has been ordered to discontinue the validation process for the project.
 
"Furthermore, we ask that the RER Carbon Project adhere to the implementation of the Economic Value of Carbon, in line with Presidential Regulation No. 98 of 2021 and the relevant regulations on forestry underlying it," he asserted.
 
The Director General explained that all carbon projects are currently being evaluated by the MoEF. Some have fulfilled their obligations and are in compliance, while others are still in the process of achieving compliance. By law, all carbon projects, including the RER Carbon Project, must be in line with and not conflict with Presidential Regulation No. 98 of 2021 and its underlying regulations related to forestry and climate change, among others.
 
The Ministry of Environment and Forestry also continues to observe the work of all relevant parties and consistently provide guidance to all business entities, community organizations and people involved in carbon management, so that they are not only able to use natural resources as sustainably as possible, but also do so in the appropriate legal manner. If violations still transpire despite the guidance provided, strict sanctions can and will be imposed.
 
This is wholly consistent with the Minister of Environment and Forestry's order to her ministerial officials to thoroughly and consistently evaluate every step when it comes to carbon-related activities in society.
 
“If Indonesia misses its NDC target due to double counting, it will cause both us and the wider world enormous difficulties. It would mean that efforts to maintain the earth's temperature are being manipulated. Under Indonesian law, taking something from the country’s forests by violating the rules is illegal. If we play around with this and take it lightly, it could lead to disaster. This is the main message of the Minister of Environment and Forestry, Mrs. Siti Nurbaya," said the Director General.
 
"In light of this, legal compliance in terms of carbon implementing procedures and governance by all parties, both domestic and international, is an absolute obligation for all of us. The Government continues to open up sufficient space for all parties, including communities, forest community groups and business people, to continue executing their business plans by utilizing the economic value of carbon in a sustainable manner that lies within the rules of the Government of the Republic of Indonesia. This is another message from the Minister that we at the MoEF need to keep emphasizing," said the Director General in conclusion. ***
 
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Jakarta, MoEF, 11 April 2022