Swedish petrol giant ditches deforestation bio-diesel
Swedish petrol giant OKQ8 has ditched plans to use palm oil in their new biodiesel Eco20. We are opposed to palm oil production, which destroys native rainforest, often by burning, to make way for massive palm plantations.
OKQ8 was the first oil company in Europe to plan to launch palm oil biodiesel.
One of our campaigners, Frode, has been at our Forest Defenders Camp for the last two weeks precisely to highlight why unsustainable palm oil is bad news for forests and the climate: "OKQ8 has acknowledged that the increased demand of palm oil could lead to rainforest destruction. For the last two weeks I have witnessed and documented rainforest being cut down, drained and burnt for the sake of oil palm plantations. There is quite simply no such thing as sustainable palm oil and OKQ8's statement is therefore very important."
This is good news and big boost to our activists who are right now acting to stop the destruction of the Indonesian forests. Unfortunately palm oil is still used in a large number of food products and the impact of its growing use on Indonesia forests is largely unknown.
Palm oil is being promoted as a climate friendly fuel alternative and even subsidised by some governments. However the emissions from burning the forest and draining peatlands mean that palm oil is actually a climate destroying fuel - Burning of the forest and peat (mainly for palm oil plantations) makes Indonesia the world’s third largest climate polluter.
Comments
Thats great news! :)
Posted by: Simon | October 31, 2007 8:25 PM
Swedish petrol giant OKQ8 is one major player in supplying petroleum like other oil major. they are the main supplyer of GHG and global climate warming. with record profits, they had fail to clean up the shit created from oil usage. Palm oil is not as bad as you think, sustainable palm oil is actually being carried out by plantation company. please read our RSPO report and be guided accordingly. Forde is very ignorant as far as palm oil is concern. oh my God.
Posted by: igor khoo | November 1, 2007 7:55 AM
This is great news.
Igor - We've got a team of people on the ground in the Indonesian rainforest who beg to disagree.
Posted by: Andrew | November 5, 2007 4:24 PM