Heed ecolabeling rules, manufacturers told

Heed ecolabeling rules, manufacturers told

JAKARTA (JP): Both the current and the former environment
minister are warning industrialists that if they do not heed the
trend of the global market and begin producing environmentally
friendly goods, they will loose out in the arena of international
competition.

"Whether we like it or not, that is the wind of change," Emil
Salim told participants at a seminar on ecolabeling and the
global environment yesterday.

Emil said running a business now needs more than just
efficient production strategies but also a willingness and
ability to protect the environment and the rights of their
workers.

He said that global consumers do not just consume products,
but are now concerned about the impact the producers are making
on the lives of their workers and the environment.

Before buying a product, they now ask: Does its manufacture
harm the environment? Are the company's workers treated with
respect? Are they free to unionize? How much are they earning?

These concerns for the environment and human rights, Emil
said, exist among consumers in the world's biggest market -- the
developed countries.

The business community should pay attention to the trend so as
not to be taken by surprise by outside pressure such as the
recent U.S. threat to revoke the nation's inclusion in the GSP
(generalized system of preferences), he said.

"Catch the wind of change and act," he said. "Don't react only
to pressure."

The importance of environmental issues can also be seen by the
current discussions on the need for environmental standards
similar to that of ISO 9000, a series of guidelines and standards
on quality introduced by the International Standardization
Organization.

The ISO 9000 covers a product's quality without concern for
the impact of its production, leaving room for talk of
introducing an ISO 18000, which will address the issue of
resource management.

On the ecolabeling of tropical forest products, Emil said
currently the Forestry Stewardship Council has embraced three
general principles: sustainable forestry management, social
benefits for indigenous people, and decreasing the impact on
water, soil and biodiversity.

But the criteria to measure the adherence to the principles
has not yet been formulated, which is where a working group led
by Emil comes into play.

He said his group is now gathering suggestions from all
parties on what the criteria should be.

Later an independent ecolabeling body will be formed -- Emil
has been suggested as chair -- which will assess the quality of
the environmental and ecomanagement systems of industrial and
forestry companies.

He said producers are pressing for the establishment of an
ecolabeling system soon because they want to make sure they have
access to the European market after ecolabeling becomes a
requirement there.

State Minister of Environment Sarwono Kusumaatmadja said in
his opening speech that if Indonesian business keeps relying on
cheap labor and resource abundance, and neglecting environmental
management, consumers -- increasingly environmentally-sensitive
-- will turn to other producers.

Sarwono said this year's monthly exports of non-oil goods are
so far equal to or less than last year's levels. Though this
could solely be the effect of the increasing numbers of
competitors, in the future, consumers' preferences will become a
decisive factor.

The minister says since the country's exports depend on its
resources, resource management should be a high priority.

On this point he admitted that Indonesian officials still have
different opinions. Some still rely on the comparative advantage
of low wages, which no longer holds since countries such as China
and Vietnam have lower wages.

Sarwono regretfully recalled appeals from another government
agency to slacken environmental rules to boost exports. "It
should be the other way around." (smb)