A dozen scientists are raising concerns about a pair of environmental and trade policy think tanks that they claim are twisting facts about tropical deforestation in order to promote an agenda of oil palm development in places like Indonesia and Malaysia.

Scientists and environmentalists have long decried the role of palm oil plantations in the widespread destruction of native rainforests in Southeast Asia, a trend that has made Indonesia a primary battleground in campaigns against tropical deforestation. The letter argues that the World Growth Institute, based in Arlington, Virginia, and ITS Global, based in Melbourne, receive funding from – and effectively represent – various multinational companies that do business in logging, wood pulp and palm oil. Signatories include William Laurance at James Cook University in Cairns, Queensland, and Thomas Lovejoy at the Heinz Center in Washington.

Both think tanks are headed by Alan Oxley, a former Australian diplomat who served as ambassador to and chairman of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, which preceded and was eventually incorporated into the World Trade Organization. Oxley has sought to counter environmental campaigns against palm oil – used in biodiesel and other products – while promoting palm plantations as a legitimate development tool that provides jobs and income for the poor. A recent profile of Oxley and his views appeared in the Malaysia Star.

In their letter, the scientists accuse Oxley’s think tanks of downplaying deforestation trends and the link to palm oil plantations while confounding statistics about carbon uptake in plantations and native forests. Moreover, the scientists argue that recent increases in deforestation are due in large part to industrial-scale development by the very same companies that are directly or indirectly supporting the think tanks. “As such, WGI and ITS should be treated as lobbying or advocacy groups, not as independent think tanks, and their arguments weighed accordingly,” the letter states.

The letter comes at an interesting time. Following on the recent successes in Brazil, the environmental community has increasingly set its sights on Asia. Norway has taken the model it pioneered in the Amazon to Indonesia by putting $1 billion on the table if the country moves forward with a plan to put a two-year moratorium on permits to cut native rainforest (Reuters). But tensions have also increased, with industry officials criticizing environmentalists and the Indonesian government apparently blocking a Greenpeace boat as it tried to enter the country’s waters.

UPDATE (October 28, 2010): World Growth has posted a statement responding to the scientists’ letter.