Landscapes in transition: an analysis of sustainable policy initiatives and emerging corporate commitments in the palm oil industry

Padfield, Rory; Drew, Simon C.; Syayuti, Khadijah; Page, Susan; Evers, Stephanie; Campos‐Arceiz, Ahimsa; Nagulendran, Kangayatkarasu; Sayok, Alex; Hansen, Sune Balle; Schouten, Greetje; Maulidia, Martha; Papargyropoulou, Effie; Tham, Mun Hou

doi:10.1080/01426397.2016.1173660

Cited by 41 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…Further, there are some corporations that are taking a new position regarding the cultivation of peatlands which has the potential to have wide-reaching impacts on the status of remaining peatlands in South-East Asia and beyond (Padfield et al, 2016). One such example is Wilmar International, one of the world's largest traders of palm oil, who committed to 'no deforestation, no peatland andno exploitation' in December 2013 (Wilmar International, 2014).…”

Section: Additional Policies and Policy Initiativesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Included in this commitment was no further planting on peat soil regardless of depth, and it extends to all operations within the supply chain, including subsidiaries and third parties from whom Wilmar purchase (Varkkey, 2014). Currently, only a small number of the largest corporations have made similar policy commitments, and thus, the effect of this new corporate position on the wider management of peatlands is still unclear (Padfield et al, 2016).…”

Section: Additional Policies and Policy Initiativesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Keep wetlands wet: the myth of sustainable development of tropical peatlands – implications for policies and management

Evers

Yule

Padfield

et al. 2016

Global Change Biology

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122

121

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Pristine tropical peat swamp forests (PSFs) represent a unique wetland ecosystem of distinctive hydrology which support unique biodiversity and globally significant stores of soil carbon. Yet in Indonesia and Malaysia, home to 56% of the world's tropical peatland, they are subject to considerable developmental pressures, including widespread drainage to support agricultural needs. In this article, we review the ecology behind the functioning and ecosystem services provided by PSFs, with a particular focus on hydrological processes as well as the role of the forest itself in maintaining those services. Drawing on this, we review the suitability of current policy frameworks and consider the efficacy of their implementation. We suggest that policies in Malaysia and Indonesia are often based around the narrative of oil palm and other major monocrops as drivers of prosperity and development. However, we also argue that this narrative is also being supported by a priori claims concerning the possibility of sustainability of peat swamp exploitation via drainage-based agriculture through the adherence to best management practices. We discuss how this limits their efficacy, uptake and the political will towards enforcement. Further, we consider how both narratives (prosperity and sustainability) clearly exclude important considerations concerning the ecosystem value of tropical PSFs which are dependent on their unimpacted hydrology. Current research clearly shows that the actual debate should be focused not on how to develop drainage-based plantations sustainably, but on whether the sustainable conversion to drainage-based systems is possible at all.

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Section: Additional Policies and Policy Initiativesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Additional Policies and Policy Initiativesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Keep wetlands wet: the myth of sustainable development of tropical peatlands – implications for policies and management

Evers

Yule

Padfield

et al. 2016

Global Change Biology

Self Cite

122

121

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“…Environmental standards have increasingly governed the global food market and trade, especially due to the increased consumer demand for green products in the Global North (Neumayer & Perkins, 2004;Padfield et al, 2016). EMS standards engender exclusion to those countries that only have a few EMS-certified companies (Morris & Dunne, 2004;Salim, Padfield, Lee, et al, 2018), because companies and consumers in the Global North tend to source green materials or products, whereas companies in the Global South are less able to meet the environmental standard (Arimura, Darnall, & Katayama, 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluating the organizational intention to implement an Environmental Management System: evidence from the Indonesian food and beverage industry

et al. 2018

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The over‐exploitation of natural capital and unsustainable production practices has contributed to increased pollution, biodiversity loss, drought, and deforestation. The food and beverage (F&B) sector is one of the largest contributors to the Indonesian economy but it is also responsible for various environmental impacts. Implementing Environmental Management Systems (EMS) is one way to promote improved sustainable practices within organisations, particularly those within the F&B sector. This research investigates the drivers, barriers and incentives for implementing EMS and their causal relationships. Data were collected from 59 F&B companies in East Java, Indonesia. The results indicate that the implementation of EMS tends to be driven internally in an effort to enhance market competitiveness. There is a need for institutions to exert pressures to develop organizational capability to implement EMS. External barriers are significant impeding factors, while internal barriers do not have a direct link to EMS implementation. The moderating role of technical incentives underlines the need to improve infrastructure and policy to support EMS implementation. Theoretical and practical insights for governments and industries are also discussed.

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“…But a study of the 2006 peat fires established that 59% of the fire emissions from Sumatra and 73% of the emissions from Kalimantan actually originated outside timber and oil-palm concession boundaries [69], emphasizing that there are many actors in the line of fire, from large multi-national companies through to mediumsized enterprises and small-holder farmers. While the largest plantation companies, such as Wilmar, have made recent commitments to 'zero burn', 'no deforestation' and 'no planting on peatlands', small and medium-sized companies with smaller plantation estates have made less tangible and visible commitments to the 'sustainability' of their activities [70].…”

Section: Scaling Upmentioning

confidence: 99%

In the line of fire: the peatlands of Southeast Asia

Page

Hooijer

2016

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

227

202

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Peatlands are a significant component of the global carbon (C) cycle, yet despite their role as a long-term C sink throughout the Holocene, they are increasingly vulnerable to destabilization. Nowhere is this shift from sink to source happening more rapidly than in Southeast Asia, and nowhere else are the combined pressures of land-use change and fire on peatland ecosystem C dynamics more evident nor the consequences more apparent. This review focuses on the peatlands of this region, tracing the link between deforestation and drainage and accelerating C emissions arising from peat mineralization and fire. It focuses on the implications of the recent increase in fire occurrence for air quality, human health, ecosystem resilience and the global C cycle. The scale and controls on peat-driven C emissions are addressed, noting that although fires cause large, temporary peaks in C flux to the atmosphere, year-round emissions from peat mineralization are of a similar magnitude. The review concludes by advocating land management options to reduce future fire risk as part of wider peatland management strategies, while also proposing that this region's peat fire dynamic could become increasingly relevant to northern peatlands in a warming world.This article is part of the themed issue 'The interaction of fire and mankind'.

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Landscapes in transition: an analysis of sustainable policy initiatives and emerging corporate commitments in the palm oil industry

Cited by 41 publications

References 38 publications

Keep wetlands wet: the myth of sustainable development of tropical peatlands – implications for policies and management

Keep wetlands wet: the myth of sustainable development of tropical peatlands – implications for policies and management

Evaluating the organizational intention to implement an Environmental Management System: evidence from the Indonesian food and beverage industry

In the line of fire: the peatlands of Southeast Asia

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