Industrialists to clean up their acts<\/p>\n
By Sugianto Tandra<\/p>\n
BANDA ACEH, Aceh (JP): State Minister of Environment Sarwono
\nKusumaatmadja told industrialists here over the weekend they had
\nno reason to be complacent about developed countries' failure to
\ninclude environmental issues in international trade agreements.<\/p>\n
\"They (the industrialists) shouldn't think that trade can be
\nentirely separated from environmental issues. Efforts to link
\ntrade with non-trade issues such as environmental protection can
\nalso take place outside the World Trade Organization's
\nmechanism,\" Sarwono said, recounting his meeting with Aceh
\nbusinesspeople.<\/p>\n
Foreign countries could still use the green consumer movement
\nto force \"environmentally unfriendly industrialists\" to heed the
\nglobal issue of environmentalism, Sarwono said.<\/p>\n
\"This movement can, for instance, boycott the products of the
\nindustrialists,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Sarwono said the consumer movement could force Indonesia to
\nprove that its management of tropical forests was environmentally
\nsustainable and responsible.<\/p>\n
\"As long as we have image problems in that area, we're going
\nto have difficulties marketing our timber products,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Sarwono visited Aceh on Friday and Saturday to launch a
\ncampaign to plant 1 million mangroves there. During his trip, he
\ntold The Jakarta Post that the government was hoping to empower
\nthe Environmental Impact Management Agency, long thought to be
\nfeeble and ineffective, with a new environment law.<\/p>\n
He was confident the law would give the agency enough
\nauthority and clout to catch environmentally-destructive
\ncompanies.<\/p>\n
\"Once the bill is passed into law, the agency will have the
\nauthority to take legal action against polluters, \" he said.<\/p>\n
Sarwono said the bill had been scrutinized by the state
\nsecretariat, but was yet to be approved by the President before
\nbeing submitted to the House of Representatives for deliberation.<\/p>\n
He admitted his office was often criticized because the agency
\n-- with a mandate to help the President formulate policies to
\npromote the environment, not catch polluters -- was considered
\nweak.<\/p>\n
\"I can only say those people were barking at the wrong tree,\"
\nhe said, adding that the agency had gone beyond its authority to
\nhelp the courts snare polluters.<\/p>\n
\"What we're going to do is refine our non-legal instruments,
\nwhile the country should be working to improve the performance of
\nits courts,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He cited the Proper program, which investigates, names and
\npublicizes worst polluters, as an example of the agency's non-
\nlegal instruments.<\/p>\n
The agency, established by presidential decree in 1990, opened
\nin 1991. It is accountable to the President. The agency's tasks
\ninclude monitoring polluters, which has helped save the
\nenvironment. The agency also promotes public environmental
\nawareness.<\/p>\n
Environmental organizations have often criticized the agency
\nfor being too weak to stand up to big polluting companies. When
\nthe government responded by preparing a bill to amend the 1982
\nenvironment law, they said the document was unprogressive and
\nunlikely to bring change because it barely addressed fundamental
\nproblems.<\/p>\n
The agency's Proper program is often criticized because it can
\nname polluters but not prosecute them.<\/p>\n
When asked if the country needed an environmental court to
\nkeep up with increasingly complicated environmental issues,
\nSarwono said: \"There's no guarantee that such a court would help
\nbecause the key to good environmental management is knowledge,
\nsomething which everybody can master.<\/p>\n
\"Without knowledge and commitment, it's useless talking about
\nestablishing an environmental court,\" he said.<\/p>\n
If the existing courts had knowledge and commitment they
\nshould be able to deal effectively with environmental problems,
\nhe said.<\/p>\n
\"Our legal system is good enough, provided that knowledge and
\ncommitment to uphold the regulations are ensured,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The minister denied allegations that the agency had refused
\npublic access to Proper program data: \"In fact, we're planning to
\nmake the data public through the Internet.\"<\/p>\n
He also dismissed environmental organizations' accusations
\nthat the government was dealing halfheartedly with environmental
\nissues. But he admitted that not all government officials were as
\ncommitted to environmental protection.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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