JAKARTA, Chairman of the Indonesian Palm Oil Entrepreneurs Association (Gapki) Eddy Martono said the practice of using land application of palm oil mill liquid waste (LCPKS) for organic fertilization by considering the dosage, frequency and parameters of the characteristics of the palm oil plantation location has positive benefits.
"By utilizing LCPKS for organic fertilization, in addition to providing natural organic nutrients, it will have an impact on reducing fertilizer imports from abroad. This saves foreign exchange. In addition, it is a source of renewable energy produced from LCPKS," said Eddy in Jakarta, Monday.
Utilization of LCPKS with optimal dosage and frequency, soil type, weather factors, redox and other parameters according to the characteristics of the palm oil plantation location is very beneficial. At a certain level of Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD), namely 3,000 to 5,000 mg/liter with eH> - 150 mVolt, the content of palm oil mill liquid waste (LCPKS) contains the most optimal nutrient input and does not cause methane gas emissions (CH4).
Land application (LA) is one of the techniques for managing liquid waste from palm oil mills by channeling liquid waste through a ditch system to the plantation. Meanwhile, BOD is the amount of oxygen needed by microorganisms to decompose organic matter in wastewater.
Reducing fertilizer imports, he said, will increase the efficiency and competitiveness of the palm oil industry, because it will provide jobs and business opportunities for people along the national supply chain in the palm oil industry.
Based on the Final Report on the Preparation of the Roadmap for Reducing GHG Emissions and Utilization of LCPKS in Plantations and the Palm Oil Industry (Pusaka Kalam, 2024), in terms of operational costs, LA is more profitable than Non-LA, operational profits reaching IDR 2,928,236/hectare to IDR 5,478,738/hectare.
"With the benefits above, the utilization of LCPKS resources ultimately increases Indonesia's national income and supports President Prabowo Subianto's 8 percent economic growth target," he said.
To achieve this, he said, collaboration between related ministries/agencies is needed to utilize the abundant LCPKS resources.
This is because the use of synthetic fertilizers results in a higher carbon footprint, from the synthetic fertilizer production process to application in the field.
On the other hand, reducing the use of synthetic fertilizers also has an impact on significantly reducing operational costs so that it will have an impact on the performance index and the price of fresh fruit bunches (FFB) of farmers which are better, because this causes operational costs to decrease.
His party is also ready to contribute to the preparation of a roadmap for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the palm oil industry, including providing proposals for academic paper studies to update existing regulations.
