The deforestation in Indonesia has begun in the twentieth century due to agricultural expansion and mechanization. The uncontrolled and illegal land conversions have affected forest functions, food security, and soil health. The objective of this study is to evaluate differences in soil properties among major land-use practices and determine agroforestry’s potential for soil rehabilitation. The study design consisted of palm oil plantation (POP), traditional agriculture (TA), agroforestry homegarden (AHG), and natural forest (NF) management treatments in completely randomized block design with three replications. Soil samples were collected from three villages Kuala Pembuang, Muara Dua, and Telaga Pulang within the Rimba Raya Biodiversity Reserve located in Seruyan District, Central Kalimantan Province, Indonesia, in June 2017. Soils from 0–15 cm and 15–30 cm were analyzed for cellulase, PMEase, urease, C, and N. The results showed that enzyme activities and percentages of C and N were significantly different (α 0.05) among management practices within the soil depths. The highest enzyme activities were found in NF, AHG, and TA treatments. The lowest C level was found at 0–15 cm soil depth (1.32%) of POP. The highest nitrogen level was found at NF (1.23%) for 15–30 cm soil depth followed by TA site at 0–15 cm (1.15%). The lowest soil N level was found at POP among treatments and depths (0.43% and 0.21%). The outcomes of this study will help formulate land management recommendations for landowners, palm oil management, government agencies, and communities around the study areas to maintain soil quality for long-term sustainability of the peat forest ecosystems. Homegarden systems can be recommended as the most appropriate alternative land management in Seruyan District, Central Kalimantan. Future research could investigate microbial community structure and characteristics to understand specific soil functions by treatments.
Tag: oil palms
Land Cover and Land Use Change Decreases Net Ecosystem Production in Tropical Peatlands of West Kalimantan, Indonesia
Deforested and converted tropical peat swamp forests are susceptible to fires and are a major source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. However, information on the influence of land-use change (LUC) on the carbon dynamics in these disturbed peat forests is limited. This study aimed to quantify soil respiration (heterotrophic and autotrophic), net primary production (NPP), and net ecosystem production (NEP) in peat swamp forests, partially logged forests, early seral grasslands (deforested peat), and smallholder-oil palm estates (converted peat). Peat swamp forests (PSF) showed similar soil respiration with logged forests (LPSF) and oil palm (OP) estates (37.7 Mg CO2 ha−1 yr−1, 40.7 Mg CO2 ha−1 yr−1, and 38.7 Mg CO2 ha−1 yr−1, respectively), but higher than early seral (ES) grassland sites (30.7 Mg CO2 ha−1 yr−1). NPP of intact peat forests (13.2 Mg C ha−1 yr−1) was significantly greater than LPSF (11.1 Mg C ha−1 yr−1), ES (10.8 Mg C ha−1 yr−1), and OP (3.7 Mg C ha−1 yr−1). Peat swamp forests and seral grasslands were net carbon sinks (10.8 Mg CO2 ha−1 yr−1 and 9.1 CO2 ha−1 yr−1, respectively). In contrast, logged forests and oil palm estates were net carbon sources; they had negative mean Net Ecosystem Production (NEP) values (−0.1 Mg CO2 ha−1 yr−1 and −25.1 Mg CO2 ha−1 yr−1, respectively). The shift from carbon sinks to sources associated with land-use change was principally due to a decreased Net Primary Production (NPP) rather than increased soil respiration. Conservation of the remaining peat swamp forests and rehabilitation of deforested peatlands are crucial in GHG emission reduction programs
Even small forest patches increase bee visits to flowers in an oil palm plantation landscape
Pollination sustains biodiversity and food security, but pollinators are threatened by habitat degradation, fragmentation, and loss. We assessed how remaining forest influenced bee visits to flowers in an oil palm-dominated landscape in Borneo. We observed bee visits to six plant species: four crops (Capsicum frutescens L. “chili”; Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum & Nakai “watermelon”; Solanum lycopersicum L. “tomato”; and Solanum melongena L. “eggplant”); one native plant Melastoma malabathricum L. “melastome”; and the exotic Turnera subulata Smith “turnera”. We made one local grid-based and one landscape-scale transect-based study spanning 208 and 2130 m from forest, respectively. We recorded 1249 bee visits to 4831 flowers in 1046 ten-min observation periods. Visit frequency varied among plant species, ranging from 0 observed visits to S. lycopersicum to a mean of 0.62 visits per flower per 10 min to C. lanatus. Bee visitation frequency declined with distance from forest in both studies, with expected visitation frequency decreasing by 55% and 66% at the maximum distance from forest in each study. We also tested whether the distance to the nearest oil palm patch, with a maximum distance of 144 m, influenced visitation, but found no such associations. Expected visitation frequency was 70%–77% lower for plants close to a 200 ha forest fragment compared with those near large continuous forests (>400 ha). Our results suggest that, although found throughout the oil palm-dominated landscape, bees depend on remaining forests. Larger forests support more bees, though even a 50 ha fragment has a positive contribution.
The politics of the green economy in provincial Indonesia: Insights from coal and oil palm sector reforms in East Kalimantan
Key messages
- East Kalimantan province (Kaltim) has adopted and developed a long-term phased ‘green’ economic reform strategy that includes goals to limit coal production and increase agricultural productivity, particularly in the oil palm sector.
- One notable achievement of East Kalimantan’s green economic reform is the issuance of various regulations supporting low-carbon development that indicate a “politics of possibility” and an appetite for change from key actors across the political spectrum. The challenge ahead is how to mobilize key actors to implement these regulations as quickly as possible.
- We find that the enactment of regulations on post-mining landscape reclamation and rehabilitation was associated with well-organized public mobilizations, but coal remains central to East Kalimantan’s economy. For oil palm, the government is simultaneously promoting further oil palm development along with high conservation value forest protection – now a policy prescription with widespread support from members of the house of representatives and development partners.
- However, the East Kalimantan Provincial Government also seeks to maintain economic growth – meaning the province is unlikely to completely phase out coal mining and/or halt oil palm expansion in the near term.
- Clear and consistent policy directions from the national government, in combination with significant new global market signals, are required for more substantial provincial green economy reforms to proceed.
The Sustainability of Independent Palm Oil Smallholders in Multi-Tier Supply Chains in East Kalimantan Indonesia
The smallholder oil palm farmers (SHFs) manage almost half of the Indonesian oil palm area, often associated with unsustainable oil palm sources. There has been limited research conducted to assess SHFs status in Indonesia. This study analyzed sustainability of existing Multi-tier Supply Chain Management through Rapfish diagnostic application with Multi-Dimensional Scaling (MDS) in oil palm mills, suppliers, and SHFs. This study found triadic typologies of MSCs in the Kutai Kartanegara District and six sustainability dimensions including economic, social, ecology, political, and institution to improve the regional strategy for sustainable palm oil plantations in the East Kalimantan Province. The closed triadic relationship in Gunung Sari and Pulau Pinang Villages has better performances on four sustainability dimensions compare to other villages. The oil palm mills could connect directly with SHFs and reduce asymmetric information and rent-seeking behavior through the traceable land ID system and enabling the Public-Private Partnership program.
Scaling up oil palm agroforestry in the Brazilian Amazon: Tailoring production systems and business models to the context of family farmers in Tomé Açu (Pará State)
Globally, oil palm is mainly produced in monocrop plantations, which can be highly productive but have been historically associated with negative environmental and mixed livelihood impacts. Oil palm agroforestry (AFS) can provide an agroecological pathway for palm oil production.
Progress and persistent challenges of inclusive business models in cocoa and oil palm sectors in Ghana and Peru
Inclusive business models (IBM) connect smallholders and other low-income people with buyers, processors and traders in agricultural and forest product value chains. Value chain actors engage with each other through diverse institutional arrangements, including international (e.g. UN Global Compact, zero deforestation) and industry standards (e.g. Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil, Cocoa and Forests Initiative), certifications (e.g. fair trade, organic), and contract farming.
Forest loss in Indonesian New Guinea (2001–2019): Trends, drivers and outlook
The rich forests of Indonesian New Guinea are understudied and threatened. We used satellite data to examine annual forest loss, road development and plantation expansion from 2001 to 2019, then developed a model to predict future deforestation. No previous studies have attempted such a detailed assessment of past and future deforestation. In 2019, 34.29 million hectares (Mha), or 83% of Indonesian New Guinea, supported old-growth forest. Over nineteen years, 2% (0.75 Mha) were cleared: 45% (0.34 Mha) converted to industrial plantations, roads, mine tailings, or other uses near cities; 55% (0.41 Mha) cleared by transient processes including selective natural timber extraction, inland water bodies-related processes, fires, and shifting agriculture. Industrial plantations expanded by 0.23 Mha, with the majority (0.21 Mha; 28% of forest loss) replacing forests and reaching 0.28 Mha in 2019 (97% oil palm; 3% pulpwood). The Trans-Papua Highway, a ~4000 km national investment project, increased by 1554 km. Positive correlations between highway and plantations expansion indicate these are linked processes. Plantations and roads expanded rapidly after 2011, peaked in 2015/16, and declined thereafter. Indonesian government allocated 2.62 Mha of land for the development of industrial plantations (90% oil palm 10% pulpwood) of which 74% (1.95 Mha) remained forest in 2019. A spatial model predicts that an additional 4.5 Mha of forest could be cleared by 2036 if Indonesian New Guinea follows similar relationships to Indonesian Borneo. We highlight the opportunities for policy reform and the importance of working with indigenous communities, local leaders, and provincial government to protect the biological and cultural richness still embodied in this remarkable region.
Powerful actors and their networks in land use contestation for oil palm and industrial tree plantations in Riau
Indonesia has experienced one of the world’s fastest plantation expansions. Plantation growth is indeed an economic solution to meet the market’s needs, but the accompanying environmental damage and social conflict are at odds with sustainability goals. Various actors with interests in land compete with the power they have. The most powerful actors have controlled land use based on their decisions. Accordingly, this paper presents empirical evidence to understand the important role of powerful actors in land-use contestation in oil palm and industrial plantation forests. It focused on analyzing power actors and social networks to help policymakers understand these powerful actors and take steps toward good governance. We conducted a focus group discussion (FGD), field interviews, and observations as well as implemented the actor-centered power (ACP) approach and social networks analysis (SNA). The combination of these two methods aims to improve the ACP approach by explaining how actors form coalitions with one another so that the strongest and most prominent beneficiary actors can be identified. We found that actors at the site level are powerful actors, whereas those with the highest authority in the hierarchy do not have power in land-use control. Village officials are powerful actors, as they are the central figures in the network and mostly use dominant information to weaken other actors. Village officials with strategic positions in the network have the most connections and play a bridging role between actors from different subgroups in the network. Powerful actors who can control the use of natural resources must be involved in determining strategies to improve natural resource governance and implement such a process at the site level.
Understanding the Driving Forces and Actors of Land Change Due to Forestry and Agricultural Practices in Sumatra and Kalimantan: A Systematic Review
Indonesia has experienced one of the world’s greatest dynamic land changes due to forestry and agricultural practices. Understanding the drivers behind these land changes remains challenging, partly because landscape research is spread across many domains and disciplines. We provide a systematic review of 91 studies that identify the causes and land change actors across Sumatra and Kalimantan. Our review shows that oil palm expansion is the most prominent (65 studies) among multiple direct causes of land change. We determined that property rights are the most prominent issue (31 studies) among the multiple underlying causes of land change. Distinct combinations of mainly economic, institutional, political, and social underlying drivers determine land change, rather than single key drivers. Our review also shows that central and district governments as decision-making actors are prominent (69 studies) among multiple land change actors. Our systematic review indicates knowledge gaps that can be filled by clarifying the identification and role of actors in land change.