Responsible Development of New Oil Palm Plantings – RSPO’s Approach* The Planter , Kuala Lumpur , 92 (1080):000-0000 (2016) Plantings – RSPO’s Approach* SANATH KUMARAN AND SALAHUDIN YAACOB Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO Secretariat), Unit A-37-1, Menara UOA Bangsar , No.5 Jalan Bangsar Utama 1, 59000 Kuala Lumpur The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) was established in 2004 to promote the production and use of sustainable palm oil for people, planet and prosperity. The RSPO is a non-profit multi-stakeholder initiative which has a vision to “transform the markets to make sustainable palm oil the norm” and has a mammoth task ahead to materialise this vision. This paper provides information on the RSPO New Planting Procedure and compares it with feasibility studies carried out by growers and investors. The RSPO New Planting Procedure (NPP) is a process that is required prior to actual land development by RSPO members. The main aim of the NPP is to have a knowable and transparent a priori knowledge as to the compliance of the new planting criteria. The member prepares the plan, verifies it through a third to the compliance of the new planting criteria. The member prepares the plan, verifies it through a third party assessor and the results of the independent verification is posted on the RSPO website for 30 days for public comments. The NPP is not a standard but acts as a process to ensure that the member and RSPO would know at an early stage, if there were any non-compliance of the RSPO standard. The RSPO NPP was proposed on 20 November 2008, formalised in May 2009 and came into effect for all new oil palm plantings from 1 January 2010. Prior to 2008, knowledge of the compliance to the RSPO new plantings criteria was ‘post-priori’. As such, the NPP is seen as a powerful risk-management tool for RSPO members. RSPO would be aware of any misinterpretation of the standard that had occurred at an early stage. Keywords: New planting procedure, oil palm, RSPO, high conservation value, FPIC. Palm oil is one of the most closely scrutinised and heavily debated commodities of the twenty Attempting to accommodate both perspectives and exercise a degree of caution, many first century. On one hand, civil society reports routinely expose alleged environmental and human rights violations caused by the palm oil industry, which is identified as a significant driver of tropical deforestation. On the other hand, the commodity is considered the economic backbone of both Malaysia and Indonesia (which together produce over 80 per cent of the world’s supply and is hailed by proponents as the highest yielding multi-purpose vegetable oil and a ‘sustainable’ and ‘renewable’ material for poverty alleviation. underscore the need to improve understanding of the measurable impacts of the industry and particularly with the increased demand for palm oil, the need for responsible development of new plantings. The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) was established in 2004 to promote the production and use of sustainable palm oil for people, planet and prosperity. The RSPO is a non-profit multi-stakeholder initiative which has a vision to “transform the markets to make sustainable palm oil the norm” and has a 1 * Edited version of paper presented at: Soil and Plantation Management Seminar: Unlocking Knowledge to Maximise Productivity, 16 February 2016 organised by the ISP Selangor/Wilayah Persekutuan Branch and the Malaysian Ghent Graduates at Perdana Ballroom, Palm Garden Hotel, IOI Resort, Putrajaya, Malaysia.