Biodiversity Conservation in the REDD

Deforestation and forest degradation in the tropics is a major source of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The tropics also harbour more than half the world's threatened species, raising the possibility that reducing GHG emissions by curtailing tropical deforestation could provide substantial co-benefits for biodiversity conservation. Here we explore the potential for such co-benefits in Indonesia, a leading source of GHG emissions from land cover and land use change, and among the most species-rich countries in the world. We show that focal ecosystems for interventions to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in Indonesia do not coincide with areas supporting the most species-rich communities or highest concentration of threatened species. We argue that inherent trade-offs among ecosystems in emission reduction potential, opportunity cost of foregone development and biodiversity values will require a regulatory framework to balance emission reduction interventions with biodiversity co-benefit targets. We discuss how such a regulatory framework might function, and caution that pursuing emission reduction strategies without such a framework may undermine, not enhance, long-term prospects for biodiversity conservation in the tropics

Penggunaan Jerat dalam perburuan liar: Pengetahuan masyarakat di perbatasan Taman Nasional Bukit Barisan Selatan, Lampung

Penelitian tentang penggunaan jerat dalam perburuan liar dilakukan di Taman Nasional Bukit Barisan Selatan, Lampung, bekerja sama dengan WWF- Bukit Barisan Selatan dan Rhino Protection Unit (RPU) Kota Agung dengan metode contoh gugus sederhana dan pengamatan langsung. Sembilan jenis jerat dengan satwa sasaran burung dan mammalia besar, dikenal masyarakat di perbatasan taman nasional mencakup jerat koloh, lontar, pleret, sruntul, jepit, lubang, jaring, pulut, dan bronjong dan pengetahuan tertinggi di Pekon Way Nipah. Rendahnya pendapatan dan tingginya permintaan pasar menjadi alasan aktifitas pemasangan jerat yang tinggi. Aktifitas pemasangan jerat banyak dilakukan pada musim kemarau di areal perkebunan dan taman nasional. Lokasi pemasangan jerat berdasarkan frekuensi perjumpaan satwa dan satwa sasaran

Forest type diversity on carbon stocks: Cases of recent land cover conditions of tropical lowland, swamp, and peatland forests in West Kalimantan, Indonesia

Abstract. Astiani D, Mujiman, Rafiastanto A. 2017. Forest type diversity on carbon stocks: Cases of recent land cover conditions of tropical lowland, swamp, and peatland forests in West Kalimantan, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 18: 137-144.Tropical forests constitute for a large concentrated carbon pools, ultimately in tropical peatland forest since this forest type sink carbon both in the vegetation and its underlying peat. However, these forests recently experienced a lot of pressures from anthropogenic disturbances. A study was conducted to estimate carbon stocks of degraded tropical lowland, swamp, and peatland forests in Kayong Utara West Kalimantan. Above ground survey was conducted using stratified sampling based on the differences in spectra of Landsat 7 ETM+ according to the land cover gradation or vegetation formations. The study area was classified based on the canopy closures and forest/landcover types and grouped into low and high degraded lowland forest, low and high degraded peat forest, low and high degraded swamp forest, shrub land, and mixed agricultural land. Aboveground carbon stocks in each group was estimated by purposively assessing all carbon sources within 5-11 plots of 20 m x 100 m area. Belowground carbon was also measured on peatland. Results show that among the groups, the highest to the lowest order of aboveground carbon sink consecutively were low degraded swamp, low degraded lowland, low degraded peatland, high degraded swamp, high degraded peatland, high degraded lowland forests, mixed agricultural land, and shrub land (269.1 to 46.3 ton C/ha) plus other biomass sources recruited from belowground roots. It is demonstrated that forest degradation and land cover changes reduce amount of above ground carbon stocks and thus could result large amount of carbon loss from forests. Surprisingly, our results demonstrated that 0.5-5.2 m belowground carbon in peatland contribute to large amount of carbon Each meter depth of those fibrist to hemist peat sinked ~634 ton C/ha. It is estimated that the 22,600 ha area of overall forest types/ land covers sink ~2.5 million of aboveground and ~5,570 ha peatland area hold ~9.2 million of below ground carbon. This amount of carbon is potential sink of carbon yet could be a huge losses if peatland forest and land cover changes continued. Keywords: Aboveground carbon, belowground carbon stocks, degraded forest, land cover change, forest types

Understanding the impacts of land-use policies on a threatened species: is there a future for the Bornean orang-utan?

The geographic distribution of Bornean orang-utans and its overlap with existing land-use categories (protected areas, logging and plantation concessions) is a necessary foundation to prioritize conservation planning. Based on an extensive orang-utan survey dataset and a number of environmental variables, we modelled an orang-utan distribution map. The modelled orang-utan distribution map covers 155,106 km(2) (21% of Borneo's landmass) and reveals four distinct distribution areas. The most important environmental predictors are annual rainfall and land cover. The overlap of the orang-utan distribution with land-use categories reveals that only 22% of the distribution lies in protected areas, but that 29% lies in natural forest concessions. A further 19% and 6% occurs in largely undeveloped oil palm and tree plantation concessions, respectively. The remaining 24% of the orang-utan distribution range occurs outside of protected areas and outside of concessions. An estimated 49% of the orang-utan distribution will be lost if all forest outside of protected areas and logging concessions is lost. To avoid this potential decline plantation development in orang-utan habitats must be halted because it infringes on national laws of species protection. Further growth of the plantation sector should be achieved through increasing yields in existing plantations and expansion of new plantations into areas that have already been deforested. To reach this goal a large scale island-wide land-use masterplan is needed that clarifies which possible land uses and managements are allowed in the landscape and provides new standardized strategic conservation policies. Such a process should make much better use of non-market values of ecosystem services of forests such as water provision, flood control, carbon sequestration, and sources of livelihood for rural communities. Presently land use planning is more driven by vested interests and direct and immediate economic gains, rather than by approaches that take into consideration social equity and environmental sustainability

Global demand for natural resources eliminated more than 100,000 Bornean orangutans

Unsustainable exploitation of natural resources is increasingly affecting the highly biodiverse tropics. Although rapid developments in remote sensing technology have permitted more precise estimates of land-cover change over large spatial scales, our knowledge about the effects of these changes on wildlife is much more sparse. Here we use field survey data, predictive density distribution modeling, and remote sensing to investigate the impact of resource use and land-use changes on the density distribution of Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus). Our models indicate that between 1999 and 2015, half of the orangutan population was affected by logging, deforestation, or industrialized plantations. Although land clearance caused the most dramatic rates of decline, it accounted for only a small proportion of the total loss. A much larger number of orangutans were lost in selectively logged and primary forests, where rates of decline were less precipitous, but where far more orangutans are found. This suggests that further drivers, independent of land-use change, contribute to orangutan loss. This finding is consistent with studies reporting hunting as a major cause in orangutan decline. Our predictions of orangutan abundance loss across Borneo suggest that the population decreased by more than 100,000 individuals, corroborating recent estimates of decline. Practical solutions to prevent future orangutan decline can only be realized by addressing its complex causes in a holistic manner across political and societal sectors, such as in land-use planning, resource exploitation, infrastructure development, and education, and by increasing long-term sustainability

Overview maps of forest cover and orang-utan data points in combination with the orang-utan distribution and land use types.

<p>a) Remaining forest cover in 2010. The sample of 558 orang-utan points used to model habitat is shown. b) Concessions and protected areas in 2010, c) The modelled orang-utan spatial distribution. d) Orang-utan distribution and overlap with protected areas and concessions.</p

This figure shows the results of the jackknife procedure on the full Maxent model.

<p>This figure shows the results of the jackknife procedure on the full Maxent model.</p

Contextual layers used for the generation of the orang-utan distribution.

<p>Note: Layer correlations (Using ENMTools <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0049142#pone.0049142-Warren1" target="_blank">[84]</a>) were lower than 0.5 except for elevation with slope and rugosity. All three layers were maintained in the final analyses since they are of different importance for orang-utans.</p

Orang-utan distribution area in protected areas and concessions.

<p>Note: Areas in this Table are expressed in km². IOPP: industrial Oil Palm Plantation; ITP: Industrial Timber Plantation.</p><p>For Sabah data on oil palm plantations concessions were not available.</p

Contributions of contextual layers to orang-utan Maxent model.

<p>Note: validation model values are the mean, min-max values from a 10 fold validation model ran with the same data in Maxent.</p