To: 1 st November RE : Updates on Meeting Stakeholder Aspiration on PT Mekar Bumi Andalas

Transcription

1 To: 1 st November 2013 Mr Ravin Krishnan The Complaint Co-ordinator RSPO Secretariat Sdn Bhd Unit A-37-1, Level 37, Tower A, Menara UOA Bangsar, No. 5 Jln Bangsar Utama 1, Kuala Lumpur Malaysia RE : Updates on Meeting Stakeholder Aspiration on PT Mekar Bumi Andalas On 6 th February 2013, A group of NGOs namely Friends of Borneo, SAVE Wildlife Conservation Fund, Jakarta Animal Aid Network and several others filed a complaint to the RSPO Grieveance Panel alleging that the above company, a subsidiary of Wilmar International, had violated the RSPO Principles and Criteria in building a Crude Palm Oil processing unit in Kelurahan Kariangau, Kota Madya Balikpapan, East Kalimantan In their complaint, PT Mekar Bumi Andalas (MBA) has been alleged to: i. have failed to provide adequate information to other stakeholders on environmental, social and legal issues relevant to the RSPO Criteria; ii. have not complied with all applicable local, national and ratified international laws and regulations; iii. have not mitigated the environmental impact of the development iv. have breached parts of the RSPO Code of Conduct. To address the above concerns, Wilmar CSR Department conducted an internal audit on the operations and found that at the point when the complaint was raised, PT MBA has complied with all the applicable law and regulations of Indonesia. The list of legal documents that PT MBA has is as follows:

2 Table 1 : Lists of Legal Documents Document No. Permits 1 Decree of Balikpapan Mayor, No: /53/Perkot/X/2006, Date 30 October Environmental Impact Assessment for PT Mekar Bumi Andalas 3 Izin Mendirikan Bangunan ( Permit for Building Construction) 4 Izin Usaha Perdagangan ( Business Permit) 5 Approval to Operate Bulking Terminal. Remarks Location Permit for PT Mekar Bumi Andalas with area: 50 Ha Approved ANDAL No. 049/KOMDAL/X/2007. Dated 26 October Kota Balikpapan Issued by Permit and District Investment Department No /BPID/IMB/BB/KR Dated 1 December Issued by Decree from Head of Capital Investment co-ordination No.60/1/IU/PMA/Perdagangan/2010. Dated 2 March Decree from Minister of Communication no. KP337/2009 dated 17 July RTRWP ( ) Perda No. 12/2012 Kota Balikpapan tentang Rencana Tata Ruang Wilayah Kota Balikpapan Tahun In December 2010, PT MBA merged with PT Wilmar Nabati Indonesia (WINA). In view of PT MBA s plan to expand beyond its current land-holding of 50 ha, PT MBA took the initiative to conduct a High Conservation Value (HCV) assessment which is above and beyond legal and RSPO requirement because of the following reasons: i. The site where PT MBA operates in RT Teluk Waru, Kelurahan Kariangau, Sub-District of West Balikpapan Barat,amadya Balikpapan is a biodiversity hotspot and may harbour high conservation values that may be impacted by its industrial activities. ii. There are several stakeholders who have shown concerns on the possible negative impact of PT MBA on the environment in the surrounding area 2

3 which might affect their livelihood. We believe the public consultations and stakeholder focus-group discussion during the HCV assessment will give opportunity for local communities to be engaged. iii. We believe the HCV assessment will add value to the mitigation and management plan to address the potential impact to the area. iv. The outcome of the HCV assessment will be incorporated into the EIA report for the project in order to legalise and secure the protection of the identified HCV areas. Within 14 days of receiving the complaint, a five-man team headed by Bapak Dwi Muhtamaan, an RSPO-approved Lead HCV Assessor from ReMark Asia made a visit to the project site between February to conduct a rapid assessment survey in line with the methodology stipulated in the 2008 HCV Toolkit of Indonesia. The study was done over an indicative area covering about 209 ha. When the Location Permit was issued, the final area was 149 ha. On 4-5 April, the findings from the assessment were presented to 17 people who attended a two-day public consultation in Balikpapan. The results of the HCV assessment can be summarised in the following points. From the land-use change analysis, in 1998, about 96% of the area currently occupied by PT MBA was mangrove. By 2006, 86% of that mangrove had disappeared due to human activities such as farming, aquaculture and extraction of mangrove timber for charcoal. PT MBA only started operations in From the land-use change analysis in 2007, PT MBA did reclaim about 3.4 ha of mangrove to put up its facilities. In addition to this, we also have cleared part of the coastline buffer zone which is within 100 m from the shoreline The land use in the area when PTMBA took over at the end of 2006 is as follows: Table 2 : Land Cover Analysis in PT MBA in 2006 Cover Ha % Secondary Mangrove % Swamp % Shrubs % Fish Ponds % Total % 3

4 The HCV study identified a small area of HCV (22.7 ha) or 15% of the Izin lokasi. Their distribution is as follows: Table 3: The Different Types of HCVs in PT MBA HCV Identified Size of Area Remark 1.1 Areas that Contain or Provide Biodiversity Support Function to Protection or 9.2 ha. Part of riparian of Sg. Berenga Conservation Areas Reserve. 1.3 Areas that Contain Habitat for Viable Populations of Endangered, Restricted Range or Protected Species 1.4 Areas that Contain Habitat of Temporary Use by Species or Congregations of Species 2.3Areas that Contain Representative Populations of Most Naturally Occurring Species The area of interest shares a boundary with the riparian zone of Sg Berenga and also adjacent to the Buffer zone of Sg. Wain Forest ha There are 14 species of birds and nine species of mammals protected under Indonesian law found in the surrounding areas. Of these, two Endangered under IUCN, namely Probocis and Grey Gibbon; the other two important species are Freshwater Dolphin and Dugong 22.7 A number of migratory bird species (Lesser Adjutant) that uses the nearby mangrove habitat during certain time of the year, In the sea around the jetty you have freshwater Dolphin. Same as 1.4 Presence of Crested hawk Eagle a top predator, A lot of these HCV identified areas overlap with each other. Hence the total HCV areas identified on the land is 22.7 ha. HCV Management Area The HCV management area to safeguard the values of the 22.7 ha identified can be divided into 4 main areas. 4

5 Table 4 : HCV Management Areas in PT MBA (PT WINA) No Area Sections Coverage 1 Balikapapan Bay a.mangrove ecosystem along 67.8 ha the coast b.management of the Wildlife Refugia area c.mangrove Offset d.jetty Area 2 River Riparian/Mangrove Ecosystem 3 Buffer zone of Sg Wain Conservation Area. a.mangrove Ecosystem in Brenga River b.mangrove Ecosystem in Sungai Tengah A strip of forest within the Boundaries of PT WINA that share a common boundary with the Buffer zone of Sg Wain Protected area. 4 Wildlife Refugia A steep hill which has a fairly good vegetation cover. Nesting place for some birds 37.2 ha 16 ha 2.7 ha While activities can still be conducted within these HCV Management Area, we have to ensure that the values we are protecting are not compromised. One of the key elements we need to manage is the erosion and sedimentation from the industrial area, that they will not degrade the mangrove ecosystem. Other forms of waste that also warrant similar attention would be schedule and domestic waste. Mangrove Offset Based on the land cover analysis using Quickbird high resolution satellite images taken in 2006, and comparing them with those taken in 2013, it can be inferred that about 3.4 ha of mangrove was reclaimed as part of the industrial area and another 2.4 ha along the coast line. To replace the mangrove ecosystem that was affected, the HCV Consultant recommended that PT MBA rehabilitate or reclaim the degraded mangrove areas that were once used by local community for fish farming. These 5

6 activities were carried out by local communities before PT MBA came into the area in The consultant - through their field assessment - believes that the reclamation of 5.8 ha will act as a corridor to connect the mangrove ecosystem between Brenga River and Sungai Tengah River systems. At the upper part of the Brenga River harbour a wild population of Proboscis Monkey, Gibbons and some species of protected birds some of which are endangered. The rehabilitation work here will help to enhance and expedite the establishment of the regenerating mangrove in these areas and connect Brenga River to Sungai Tengah. We plan to get the local communities to be involved in the rehabilitation of these set aside areas mangrove and drive the message across that we are sensitive to the environment that support their livelihood. We will also seek technical inputs from relevant parties in setting this up. Incorporation of the HCV Management Plan into the AMDAL The management of PT MBA have submitted to the AMDAL Consultant the identified HCVs and the corresponding management plan to be incorporated into the revised AMDAL that will cover the 150 ha. In doing so, we hope to get some form of recognition by the local government on these identified set aside area. Based on the approved RTRWP for Kota Balikpapan , the area where PT MBA is operating is allocated for heavy industry. Currently the progress of revising the AMDAL to cover a much larger area is in progress and should be completed soon. Meanwhile the current AMDAL approved in 2007 that cover the 50 ha is still valid. Conclusion Based on the existing law and regulations, PT MBA (PT WINA) is operating legally in the area in line with the approved land use spatial planning of Kota Balikpapan and is in compliance with the applicable law and regulations. We firmly believe that the HCV assessment conducted by Remarkasia has followed the due process of identifying the land use change before PT MBA (PT WINA) came and comparing it against existing condition, conducted the Public Consultations and Focus Group Discussions to sufficiently engage with the communities who might be impacted by the operations and NGOs who shows concern. We also felt that the Mangrove off set is the most pragmatic solution to address the reclaimed mangrove ecosystem and part of the coastline because we believe that it will expedite and intensify the establishment of the regenerating mangrove areas 6

7 which also serves as Habitat for a host of protected species in that area and connect two mangrove ecosystem, Brenga river and Sg Tengah. We uphold the Code of Conduct by committing towards an open and transparent engagement with interested parties, and actively seek resolution of conflict I append herewith the Final HCV Report for PT MBA (PT WINA) for your perusal. Warmest regards Simon Siburat General Manager Group Sustainability cc. RSPO Secretary General RSPO Technical Director Group Head CSR- Wilmar International Limited. 7