Biofuel threat to Indonesian forest
Simon Pollock; 29/5/08
Indonesia Indonesia is home to 10 per cent of the world’s remaining tropical rainforests but environmentalists warn that it is rapidly squandering its natural bounty through deforestation. The increase in oil palm plantations - in part to meet booming global demand for biofuels - has been cited as a major reason for deforestation. Indonesia is expected to increase its production of palm oil by more than half over the next 10 years, largely in response to the biofuels boom, while palm oil prices have increased during recent years by about 50 per cent. Fitrian Ardiansyah, the climate and energy programme director for the World Wildlife Fund for Nature in Indonesia, told Al Jazeera that oil palm plantations in Indonesia are a source of growing concern.
See: http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/8CA7F216-140D-4BC4-AD81-D13A7030CA92.htm
Tags: Environment, Indonesia