[Jakarta, 23 May 2019] The Minister of Environment and Forestry of the Republic of Indonesia should revoke Ministry Regulation No. P.10/2019 on the Determination, Designation, and Management of Peat Dome Peaks Based on Peat Hydrological Units, as its substance contradicts the spirit of peatland protection and restoration and threatens Indonesia’s ability to meet its climate commitments.

Regulation P.10/2019, which was intended merely as a technical guideline for identifying peat dome peaks in order to delineate protected peat ecosystem zones, instead introduces new provisions that broadly weaken peatland safeguards.

Loopholes for Exploiting Protected Peat Ecosystems

First, the regulation narrows the scope of peat ecosystems that should no longer be exploited for oil palm plantations and industrial timber plantations (HTI). It allows palm oil and HTI companies to continue operating within peat areas classified as protected until their licenses expire, as long as these areas are located outside the peak of the peat dome.

Even more troubling, the regulation permits exploitation of peat dome peaks themselves for palm oil and HTI activities if a single Peat Hydrological Unit (KHG) contains more than one peat peak.

“Granting leniency to palm oil and HTI concession holders to continue operating in protected peat ecosystems—without any evaluation or audit of existing peatland permits—directly contradicts the purpose of peat restoration, which is to recover peatlands’ ecological functions,” said Muhammad Teguh Surya, Executive Director of Yayasan Madani Berkelanjutan.
“Past mistakes in permitting within protected peatlands should be corrected, not allowed to persist until concessions expire. This is dangerous, because concession licenses last for decades, while peat ecosystems can be destroyed in a very short time.”

Peat Degradation and Climate Risks Are Already Severe

Government data in The State of Indonesia’s Forests and Forestry 2018 shows that 23.96 million hectares of peat ecosystems—99.2 percent—are already in a degraded condition.

A 2015 study by Bappenas also found that peat fires contributed 23 percent of Indonesia’s total emissions in 2010, releasing 0.8 to 1.1 GtCO₂e, roughly twice the emissions of the energy sector in the same year.

Regulation P.10 therefore risks further exacerbating peatland destruction.

Madani’s initial findings from January–March 2019 indicate that in Riau alone, 319 hotspots (high-confidence fire alerts) have already emerged within palm oil and HTI concession areas that are designated as priority restoration zones under the Peatland Restoration Agency (BRG).

At the same time, the BRG’s mandate is set to end in 2020, leaving only one remaining year to complete its national peat restoration task.

“To avoid undermining peatland ecological recovery and the government’s climate commitments, this regulation must be revoked immediately and returned to its proper scope—as a purely technical rule for determining peat dome peaks, without introducing provisions that legitimize exploitation,” Teguh stressed.
“Moreover, the President must begin considering the future of BRG, because peat restoration is a long-term effort that cannot be completed within only five years,” he concluded.

Media Contacts

• Muhammad Teguh Surya
  Executive Director, Yayasan Madani Berkelanjutan
  +62 819-1519-1979 | teguh@madaniberkelanjutan.id

• Anggalia Putri
  Knowledge Management Manager, Yayasan Madani Berkelanjutan
  +62 856-211-8997 | anggi@madaniberkelanjutan.id

• Luluk Uliyah
  Senior Strategic Communication Officer, Yayasan Madani Berkelanjutan
  +62 815-1986-8887 | luluk@madaniberkelanjutan.id