Pundari: Cater for owners in plans

 IN a major shift in the environmental management regime of the country, Environment and Conservation Minister John Pundari has urged developers of abstractive industries to involve landowners in their biodiversity offset programmes. 

Speaking during discussions with PNG LNG developer ExxonMobil at the Caution Bay LNG plant site outside Port Moresby yesterday, Pundari said: “Under the programme, development projects which have a significant environmental impact would be requested to compensate for these impacts through funding conservation initiatives to compensate for their carbon footprint.

“The developers have to compensate for their carbon footprint on biodiversity precinct areas to make up for the ration of biodiversity lost to any resource development in the country, especially those that are permanently impacted.

“It is very important to involve landowners’ participation in your biodiversity offset programme so they can benefit now and in the future as well.

“It will also create income-earning opportunities for the landowners of conservation or protected areas such as involving them in eco-tourism businesses and so forth.

“We want people to have ownership of their environment and conservation and protected areas because there must be some form of recognition for people to give up their biodiversity for conservation purposes.”

Pundari said this was the cause of the failure of so many protected areas and wild-life management areas because there was no means of sustainability and at the same time landowners did not derive direct benefits from the activities.

The minister applauded ExxonMobil for its outstanding performance for handling and managing the sensitive biodiversity during the construction phase as it had to traverse three different eco-regions and for promoting environmental sustainability culture at its project sites and LNG facilities.

“Many times NGOs have been involved in the management of conservation programmes with no benefits reaching the rural communities or the communities which have to give up their biodiversity for conservation purposes,” Pundari said.

Three conservation areas under the Conservation Department identified by ExxonMobil for its biodiversity offset programme are the Mt Bosavi ranges representing the high-altitude alpine mountains, Lake Kutubu conservation area and the Kikori Basin wild-life management area representing the lowland eco-region impacted by the PNG LNG project construction phase.