Indonesia should serve as a warning to those who consider biofuels to be a clean and sustainable option. In our country, a fifth of emissions come from palm oil, which has led us to reach record deforestation rates that continue to rise.
For a long time, biofuels have been wrongly presented as a solution to the problem of transport pollution, especially road transport. Now, the threat is also extending to maritime transport.
In April of this year, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) approved a historic agreement: the Net-Zero Framework, designed to reduce the climate impact of maritime transport, whose emissions exceed those of most countries, combined. When governments meet again in London, in 10 days, for the next IMO negotiations, they must not forget what has happened to my land and my people.
Multilateralism and Climate Action
The IMO agreement sends a clear signal: multilateralism can still drive climate action and the era of fossil fuels is coming to an end. But the work is not yet finished. The IMO still has to decide which energy sources will take center stage as alternatives to fossil fuels.
In other words, countries will have to choose between steering maritime transport towards truly renewable energies or betting on false and futureless solutions, such as biofuels and fossil gas (LNG).
The problem with biofuels, especially those derived from crops like palm oil, soy, cassava, sugar palm, and sugarcane, is that they threaten to undermine the objectives of the Net-Zero Framework.
These fuels are responsible for deforestation and indirect emissions from land use change (ILUC), which makes their impact over the full life cycle comparable, or even superior, to that of fossil fuels.
Ignoring this fact in the Framework would mean opening the door to an environmental disaster.
The International Maritime Organization’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) will hold its second extraordinary session of 2025, from October 14 to 17, in London.
Biofuels and Deforestation
Deforestation associated with the demand for biofuel feedstocks occurs when forests and peatlands are converted into plantations. This practice releases enormous emissions through fires and soil degradation.
ILUC occurs when land previously used for food production is used for biofuels, which forces the opening of new agricultural areas and increases the total emissions of these fuels.
A recent study estimated that, by 2030, using cheap feedstocks like palm and soy to replace fuels in maritime transport would require an area equivalent to the size of Germany.
In Indonesia, plantations for biofuel feedstocks have caused the loss of 190,000 hectares of forest, an area larger than Greater London. These plantations have been driven by the Government’s energy policies and the ambition to achieve food self-sufficiency.
This expansion of food and energy projects has devastated tropical forests, destroyed biodiversity, displaced indigenous peoples, and depleted water resources.
With oil palm plantations already covering more than 10% of Indonesian territory, my country is being pushed beyond its ecological limits and climate stability.
Greenwashing
Forest Watch Indonesia has documented how Indonesia’s energy transition is marked by “greenwashing”.
So-called “energy plantations” have already caused deforestation to produce biomass and wood pellets exported to countries like Japan and South Korea. This is a clear example of climate colonialism that must be ended.
If international shipping adopts these same fuels, the risk is reproducing this environmental disaster on a global scale.
There are those who argue that first-generation biofuels can be produced “sustainably”. However, the lack of transparency and international coordination mechanisms makes it almost impossible to guarantee that these biofuels do not come from deforestation or have other serious impacts.
When governments meet again in London – between the 14th and 17th of this month – to discuss shipping’s energy sources, the priority must be clear: protect forests and ensure that ILUC emissions and their effects on land are properly accounted for in the new Framework.
The IMO has the social and moral responsibility to prevent shipping from contributing to deforestation and pollution, especially in regions vulnerable to climate change like Southeast Asia and Africa.
International shipping will only be able to demonstrate true climate leadership if it takes this responsibility seriously.
The ships of the future must run on clean energy, not on burned trees.
The author is a member of Forest Watch Indonesia
Cover image: Vince C on Pixabay
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Anggi Putra Prayogaclimatedeforestation Malaysiamaritime decarbonizationshipping emissionsForest Watch Indonesiaimointernational maritime organization
