Cali, Colombia — As the Conference of Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP16) kicked off in Cali, Colombia, Southeast Asian civil society groups urged party governments to recognize the threats that continued fossil fuel expansion, specifically liquefied natural gas (LNG) and oil and gas exploration, pose to biodiversity.
Southeast Asia and neighboring nations are home to the Coral Triangle—a region known for hosting some of the greatest concentrations of marine biodiversity in the world. Critical biodiversity hotspots in the region, however, are facing pressures from threats of expanded fossil fuel activities, including the Verde Island Passage in the Philippines and the Mekong Delta in Vietnam.
“The current trajectory of LNG expansion and other fossil fuel operations in the Coral Triangle is alarming. Contrary to claims that LNG is a clean energy alternative, it is a fossil fuel whose whole life cycle – from extraction to transport and burning for power – contributes to environmental and climate degradation. Increased shipping activities also risk gravely disrupting marine biodiversity and coastal communities,” said Gerry Arances, Executive Director of the Center for Energy, Ecology, and Development (CEED) from the Philippines.
“Addressing the issue of increasing fossil fuel activities in the Coral Triangle and other global biodiversity hotspots is in line with the COP16 agenda for biodiversity protection and restoration, which is crucial for effective climate action,” added Arances, who also co-convenes the Southeast Asia Working Group on Just Energy Transition.
The Coral Triangle, which includes parts of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and Timor Leste, is critically threatened by ongoing fossil fuel projects in the region – by end of 2023, Southeast Asia was developing 139 GW of new gas power – over a fourth of all planned gas capacity in Asia. These activities endanger marine life and the livelihoods of millions who rely on healthy oceans for fishing and tourism.
In recent years, countries such as Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Philippines have invested over $30 billion in LNG as a supposed cleaner alternative to traditional fossil fuels. Currently, 19 LNG terminals and floating storage units operate within the Coral Triangle, with Indonesia and Malaysia hosting the majority.
“The breathtaking seascapes and marine life in the Coral Triangle are in peril,” said Muhammad Reza, National Coordinator of The People’s Coalition for the Right to Water (KRuHA) from Indonesia. “The urgent expansion of fossil fuels threatens not only climate stability and the integrity of vital ecosystems but also the well-being of indigenous and local communities.”
KRuHA is a coalition of Indonesian organizations and movements that work to ensure water rights.
Meanwhile, an independent climate watchdog based in Malaysia finds it disturbing that the country is prioritizing the expansion of fossil gas development despite significant environmental risks.
“Instead of focusing all efforts on renewable energy, Malaysia has committed to expanding fossil gas developments in the biodiverse waters off the coasts of Borneo,” said Adam Farhan, Director of RimbaWatch from Malaysia. He noted that Malaysia’s state-owned oil company has signed a contract for exploration in an area overlapping with Tun Mustapha Marine Park, which is home to critical reefs, mangroves, and endangered marine species. This move contradicts established climate science and threatens biodiversity and livelihoods in the Coral Triangle, added Farhan.
Countries in Southeast Asia that are part of the Coral Triangle are calling for a stronger emphasis on reducing fossil fuel expansion and oil and gas exploration, a commitment to renewable energy, active community involvement, and increased international collaboration. They aim to influence the COP agenda to prioritize biodiversity protection and restoration.
“In Southeast Asia, vital biodiversity areas face serious threats from oil and gas expansion. Unless we drastically reduce emissions, we risk the catastrophic bleaching of all the world’s reefs by the end of the century,” said Reza.
Contact: Anj Dacanay, adacanay@ceedphilippines.com