WWF
„Deforestation, Forest Degradation, Biodiversity Loss and CO² Emissions in Riau, Sumatra”
A joint research project of WWF US, WWF Indonesia, University Hokkaido and RSS GmbH
Riau Province in central Sumatra, is covered by vast peatlands estimated to hold Indonesia’s largest store of carbon. Riau’s remaining forests are home to the endangered Sumatran tiger and elephant. Found nowhere else on Earth, their populations have been declining rapidly across the island of Sumatra.
This report documents pulp wood- and palm oil-driven deforestation and degradation of natural forests and shows how that has caused the decomposition and burning of carbon-rich soil in Riau’s vast and deep peatlands. This has resulted in globally significant CO² emissions and the much-reported trans-boundary haze across the Strait of Malacca. It also has accelerated the extinction of Sumatran elephants and tigers, which have been disappearing even faster than their forests in Riau, largely due to an increase in human-wildlife conflict as animals are driven from the disappearing forest.
The study analyzes deforestation and forest degradation over the last quarter century, between 1982 and 2007. It identifies drivers of deforestation by mapping the land covers that replaced the natural forests. The term “forest” in this report always refers to natural forests and not any industrial and agricultural plantations or other land covers which replace them.
Forest cover in Riau declined by 65 percent over the past 25 years. Deforestation was largely driven by industrial plantation companies despite the fact that large areas of cleared forest remain unused. Riau has almost 900,000 hectares of “waste” lands where plantations could potentially be developed without cutting more natural forest. The study estimates historical and future CO² emissions related to deforestation, degradation of forests, degradation of peat soils and burning (the deliberate use of fire in land clearing and “runaway” fires).
Deforestation on peat and non peat soils in Riau’s mainland 1982-2007
Severly burnt Peat Swamp Forest
Slightly disturbed Peat Swamp Forest (logged over once)
CO² emissions caused by deforestation, forest degradation peat decomposition and peat fires were estimated based on remote sensing analysis. Average annual CO² emissions in Riau between 1990 and 2007 were 0.22 Gt, equaling 79% of Indonesia’s total annual emissions from the energy sector in 2004. This estimate may severely over- or underestimate the actual emissions due to the lack of available data on many processes regarding detailed data on carbon stocks and carbon emissions (stock decrease). However, considering all possible errors and uncertainties we believe the results indicate at least the order of magnitude of the emissions correctly.
During the 2007 UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of Parties in Bali (COP 13), the parties confirmed the urgent need to take further action to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation and adopted a work program. That program will focus on assessing changes of forest cover and associated greenhouse gas emissions, demonstrating reductions of emissions from deforestation and estimating the emission reductions from deforestation. Financial schemes for trading carbon of “avoided deforestation” will be developed and international compensation funds will be established. This could provide a good future for Indonesia’s forest industry, provided solid policies are issued to encourage the commercialization of environmental services, such as avoiding deforestation, water and soil protection and biodiversity conservation. If the profits from marketing environmental services or carbon credits are comparable to those of marketing the timber, more forest would likely be protected by concession holders. This might be the case with Riau’s carbon-rich peatland forests and soil underneath. The potential value of trading the protected carbon stocks of these forests may be comparable or even better to other, conventional uses of natural forests.
Key Findings
- Most of Riau’s forests were cleared since 1982 to make way for new industrial plantations, with approximately 30 percent cleared for the palm oil plantations and around 20 percent for pulpwood plantations.
- Since 1982, as the forest were cleared, there was a clear correlation in Riau with declining Sumatran elephant populations, which suffered up to an 84 percent decline in numbers – down to as few as 210 individuals in 2007.
- Since 1982, Sumatran tiger population estimates are down 70 percent, to perhaps just 192 individuals. Unless the last remaining patches of tiger habitat are connected by wildlife corridors, Riau will no longer have a viable tiger population, the study predicts.
- Between 1990 and 2007, estimated total emissions in Riau reached 3.66 gigatons (Gt) CO², including emissions from deforestation, forest degradation and decomposition and burning of peat -- contributing to Indonesia’s ranking as one of the world’s biggest emitters of carbon. The total emissions from 17 years exceed the annual total CO² emissions of the European Union for 2005
- The average annual CO² emissions from deforestation, forest degradation, peat decomposition and peat fires in Riau between 1990 and 2007 was 0.22 Gt, equal to 58% of Australia’s total CO² annual emissions, 39% that of the United Kingdom, higher than that of the Netherlands (122%) and 79% of Indonesia’s total annual emissions from the energy sector in 2004.
- Between 1990 and 2007, Riau alone produced more CO² per year than the fourth-largest industrial nation, Germany, saved to achieve its Kyoto target.
- The study’s estimates may over- or underestimate actual carbon emissions due to the fact that for many processes, detailed data on carbon stocks and carbon emissions (stock decrease) are not available. Considering the historical situation the study solely relied on Landsat satellite imagery, since no other data on land cover are available. Factoring in all possible errors and uncertainties, the study’s authors believe that the results indicate at least the order of magnitude of the emissions correctly.
The full report “Deforestation, Forest Degradation, Biodiversity Loss, and CO² Emissions in Riau, Sumatra, Indonesia,” can be downloaded at http://assets.panda.org/downloads/riau_co2_report__wwf_id_27feb08_en_lr_.pdf
High-resolution versions of these reports are also available.