Indonesia has made "considerable progress" in halting deforestation, but the country still faces serious challenges if it hopes to meet its climate change goals, the vice president of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry said yesterday.

Rachmat Gobel, chairman of the Gobel Group, a major Indonesian electronics maker and partner with Panasonic Corp., cautioned that the country's two-year moratorium on deforestation needs stronger enforcement. He also warned that the nation's blueprint for financing economic development emphasizes expansion over environmental concerns and sustainable land-use activities.

"Time is running out. The climate is changing. So must we," Gobel said. Speaking at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, he said Indonesia is at once a major emitter -- the world's third largest after the United States and China -- yet also deeply threatened by rising sea levels, flooding and landslides.

"I do not exaggerate when I say that Indonesia is a frontline state in the war against the terror of climate change," he said.

But Indonesian journalists also speaking yesterday at CSIS said climate change is low on citizens' agenda, and that the lack of interest is reflected in the scant attention that rising global temperatures receive in the local media.

'Not a sexy issue'

"Frankly speaking, the issues of climate change are not as popular as the political or economic issues," said Wahyu Muryadi, editor of the Indonesian newsweekly magazine Tempo. "It's not a sexy issue, not a hot topic."

Rikard Bagun, chief editor of the Morning Daily Kompas in Jakarta, agreed. "Indonesia is a big contributor to climate change, but on the other hand we suffer a lot, especially people in the coastal areas." But, he said, "For the poor people, climate change is not a priority, because they have many more immediate problems."

The discussion comes as U.S. EPA officials travel to Indonesia to discuss allowing the country's palm oil industry access to the United States' energy sector. Earlier this year, palm oil failed to meet greenhouse gas savings standards for entry into the U.S. renewable fuels program.

Meanwhile, according to a recent study by researchers at Stanford and Yale universities, emissions from the palm oil industry alone could release 558 million metric tons of carbon dioxide -- more than the national emissions of Canada -- by 2020.

Gobel hailed new sustainable practices in Indonesia's palm oil production, which he said can contribute to mitigating climate change. But, he acknowledged, "enforcement remains a problem." He noted that the agriculture ministry intends to have all palm oil companies in Indonesia certified by the end of the year to ensure compliance with national regulations.

But Gobel declined to comment on the EPA visit, and the visiting journalists said within Indonesia the palm oil debate is viewed from more of a trade lens than an environmental one.

Indonesia has pledged to reduce emissions by 26 percent by 2020 from business-as-usual levels, a major commitment from a still-developing country.