ICOPE 2010 or how to reconcile oil palm and the environment
12/02/2010 - Press release
The second International Conference on Oil Palm and Environment, ICOPE, organized by SMARTRI (Sinar Mas Agribusiness Resources and Technology Research Institute), WWF-Indonesia and CIRAD, is to be held from 23 to 25 February 2010 in Bali (Indonesia). The topic for this year is: “Measurement and mitigation of environmental impact of palm oil production”.
The first ICOPE international conference was held in November 2007, and enabled scientists, stakeholders in the supply chain, institutions and NGO to address the issue of the environmental impact of palm oil production. More than 400 people from 16 countries attended, to share their experience as regards possible solutions and present the results of research conducted on the topic.
In many countries, notably in Malaysia and Indonesia, the area planted with oil palm is continuing to grow, in response to demand from a booming market. "Demand for oil from developing countries is showing strong growth, particularly that for palm oil, of which they consume more than 80% of the volume produced worldwide ", Eric Gohet, a CIRAD researcher, explains. The equation is simple: "a hectare planted with oil palm produces the same yield as 10 hectares of soybean ", he adds. Oil palm, Elaeis guineensis , supplies more than 30% of the total volume of vegetable oil produced worldwide.
However, the palm oil supply chain has to satisfy demand while taking account of the environmental and social problems posed by that growth. Producers need to be looking to work sustainably, which means changing farming practices and reviewing the spatial organization of the territories concerned. Research is supporting them in this.
A global issue…
CIRAD has been working for more than 50 years with partners in developing countries, centring its research on sustainable cropping and operating practices. The challenge is huge: to reconcile productivity with respect for the environment and local communities. CIRAD's Performance of Tree Crop-Based Systems Internal Research Unit is looking particularly closely at the knowledge and tools required to allow farmers to optimize their cropping systems from an agronomic, economic and environmental point of view.
The
Indigo® assessment method has been used, in particular to develop indicators for use in diagnosing the agricultural practices adopted in plantations, for instance with a view to managing fertility based on the potential risks of air, soil and water pollution. Researchers are also addressing the question of where to set up plantations. They look at the ecology of a given landscape in order to take account of the issues linked to biodiversity and hydrology (buffer zones around watercourses, green corridors for wildlife, etc). The unit's aim is to determine, based on scientific data, the practices that serve to reconcile respect for the environment with productivity.
Within the research unit, two theses are under way, on the impact of oil palm on the environment. CIRAD has also recruited new researchers in France and Indonesia.
… for a vitally important debate
ICOPE 2010 is continuing the existing dialogue. Producers, buyers, government representatives, scientists and NGOs will be at the international conference, which will be split into five sessions:
- Oil palm and climate change (with the participation of Gérard Matheron, CIRAD Director General)
- Oil palm and biodiversity
- Measurement of environmental impact of oil palm plantations
- Smallholders and the environment
- Ecological intensification of oil palm plantations (with the participation of Robert Habib, Director of CIRAD's PERSYST Department).
- Category: Coming up