InfoSAWIT, JAKARTA – The narrative that “palm oil harms the environment” has resurfaced in public discourse, particularly following a series of flash floods in West Sumatra, North Sumatra, and Aceh in late 2025.

To address this issue, Media Perkebunan organized the 1st International Environment Forum (IEF) 2026 on Earth Day (April 22), aiming to examine the topic through scientific and data-driven perspectives.

The forum, supported by the Plantation Fund Management Agency (BPDP), involved students, academics, practitioners, and industry players from both domestic and international backgrounds.

Indonesia’s oil palm plantation area reached 16.83 million hectares in 2025–2026, contributing approximately Rp440 trillion in foreign exchange in 2024 and supporting around 16 million jobs.

IEF 2026 Chairman Hendra J. Purba emphasized the importance of scientific dialogue. “This forum is expected to serve as a platform to clarify that the narrative ‘palm oil harms the environment’ is not entirely accurate and must be assessed based on field data,” he said.

Experts also highlighted palm oil’s high productivity compared to other vegetable oils, requiring less land to produce equivalent output.

Additionally, palm oil plays a key role in energy transition through biodiesel programs such as B50.

Academics stressed that extreme rainfall, rather than land use alone, was the main factor behind recent floods.

“Rainfall reached 411 mm within 1–2 days, an extreme event that may occur once every 400–500 years,” explained Prof. Sudarsono Soedomo.

The forum concluded that environmental discussions must be grounded in scientific evidence rather than emotional narratives. (T2)