Posted on 24 November
2011
Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia – The 9th annual
Meeting of the Roundtable for Sustainable
Palm Oil (RSPO) concluded today with a vote
at the General Assembly (GA) where most
RSPO members present supported a new
vision for the organization – to transform
the palm industry into one where sustainability
becomes an everyday practice for all.
To date RSPO members
have produced over 5.2 milion tonnes of
palm oil certified to strict standards that
help ensure that forests, species and communities
are not harmed by palm oil production.
“The entire value chain needs to be part
of the solution and not the problem,” said
Adam Harrison, Senior Policy Officer for
WWF UK and WWF’s representative on the Roundtable
on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) Executive
Board. “The RSPO has moved from just certifying
growers to transforming the whole industry,
which says to me that the organization is
growing up and is starting to deliver on
the ambition it set for itself. Nevertheless,
in order for the RSPO to deliver on this
transformation, companies along the entire
value chain need to be more transparent
and take control of the oil palm they are
producing, trading, using and selling."
More transparency, better traceability
According to WWF, one
of the major hurdles facing the future of
CSPO is the industry’s overall lack transparency
and limited efforts to implement proper
traceability. The WWF’s Palm Oil Buyers’
Scorecard 2011, which was released in Kota
Kinabalu on Tuesday, identified both of
these as major challenges, saying that the
lack of collective will to solve these problems
is risks becoming a major disincentive to
further certification.
WWF says that buyers of CSPO need to take
control of their supply chains and declare
how much certified sustainable palm oil
they are using. This would provide growers
with the reassurance they need to say in
business, and show consumers that they are
serious about their commitments and acting
responsibly.
Transforming the market also requires strong
support from traders, who wield considerable
influence. Traders must ensure the traceability
of the palm oil they are buying and supplying
to their customers, which could act as a
major catalyst for future market growth
and offer the assurances currently lacking
along the supply chain.
Meanwhile, growers would
benefit from increased transparency and
better traceability by gaining a stronger
sense confidence, more control over their
management units, and an overall increase
of returns on their commitment to providing
certified sustainable palm oil.
Palm oil industry shows resolve in addressing
climate change
Another key recommendation that emerged
at the 3-day meet was that the RSPO’s Principals
& Criteria should include a 0 net carbon
emission clause, setting a new benchmark
for companies that aim to produce palm oil
in a responsible manner. ?
"Reducing greenhouse
gases is a huge challenge facing the industry
in the region, and it is a very welcome
sign that the RSPO has reached consensus
on how to tackle GHGs and made a recommendation
to change the organization’s standards to
accommodate this critical issue," said
Irwan Gunawan, WWF Indonesia’s Corporate
Engagement Manager.
***
Update: The RSPO has announced that due
to insufficient quorum, eligible members
that could not attend the General Assembly
are expected to cast their ballots via email:
On November 24th 2011,
the 8th General Assembly for the RSPO Members
was held at Sutera Harbour, Kota Kinabalu.
Due to the insufficient quorum (50% of the
total Ordinary Membership required: 549
in total), the 224 attending members voted
that the following procedure be adopted:
1. I. A balloting/voting process by the
attending members of all the resolutions
proposed
2. II. Thereafter, an email will be circulated
to all eligible members who could not attend
the General assembly, to cast their ballot
on the individual resolutions.
3. III. All votes received via email will
be reconciled with those that were cast
during the GA8 and all members will be informed
on the final results which will also be
published on the website.
No specific timeline was given for the results
of the final vote.
+ More
Scandinavia takes a
big step to end discards
Posted on 23 November
2011
Fisheries ministers from Norway, Sweden
and Denmark today signed a joint declaration
to prohibit discarding of fish in the Skagerrak
from 2013. Discarding of fish is a huge
problem in fisheries worldwide and is caused
by fish being caught that are over quota,
unmarketable or cannot be landed.
“Discarding of fish
is a terrible waste of marine resources.
Together with overfishing, this represents
a massive threat for the world's fish stocks.
Banning discards can be an effective way
to end this waste, when accompanied with
measures to stop the fish that would be
discarded being caught in the first place,”
says Louize Hill, head of Marine & Fisheries
Policy at WWF European Policy Office.
Norway already has a discard ban accompanied
by regulations that aim to reduce bycatch.
At present in the EU, however, fishermen
are required to discard fish that cannot
be legally landed because they are below
a certain minimum size, or are over quota,
and there are few incentives for fishermen
to adopt selective fishing practices that
would mean these fish would not be caught
in the first place.
“The Common Fisheries Policy has not halted
overfishing in the past decades, and so
is under reform to try and address this.
Tackling discards is high on the agenda
of the Commission,” continues Louize Hill.
“But, a ban alone is not enough, we need
accountability for catches as well as selective
fishing gear and practices to be in place
at the same time”.
