Summary

Deforestation is a crucial issue around the world, however, this issue in Indonesia is of particular concern. The deforestation in Indonesia has far-reaching consequences globally and for the region. Palm oil extraction through the removal of forests, as well as paper processing through logging, has severe, harmful repercussions for the unique biodiversity in the Indonesia region as well as its climate stability.

Source: https://www.sei.org/features/zero-palm-oil-deforestation/




Indonesia, renowned for its greenery, incredibly diverse ecosystems, and animals like the Sumatran Tiger, Orangutans,  Sun Bears and Clouded Leopards, is currently confronting a crisis that is destroying the lives of not just the people but even more than the animals aforementioned. As early as the 1900, forests covered 84% of the country’s landmass, however, over the course of couple of decades, Forests are increasingly being razed through illegal logging which is destroying these crucial habitats for these animals, and if not stopped, could potentially cause irreversible consequences on the entire global biodiversity.

There are numerous reasons to exactly why this might be happening. Sources for Palm oil in particular are ripe in Indonesia, with popular products like Nutella, make-up products like Lipstick, products like Detergent and even Instant Noodles contains palm oil, so it is no surprise the demand for it is almost endless!

It is not just corporations that are involved, but unfortunately the Indonesian government as well. Indonesia, in the 1970s, leveraged its greenery to create highly successful wood processing industries that helped boost its economy to the point, according to the ABC, to become the 11th largest paper producer. But as with any type of leverage, there is risk involved, and that is increasingly coming into fruition as private corporations take advantage of Indonesia’s rich forests and deviate from the country’s conservation laws  by conducting illegal logging. It is disadvantageous the fact that these laws are not enforced as strict as they provide a financial incentive for the Indonesian government.  This deviation is so severe, that it is to the point that a concerning 81% of its corporations efforts into converting forests for palm oil extraction is illegal.

Indonesia and its politicians must rally more efforts into the proper enforcement of these laws to make the corporations abide by these laws, and evaluate decisions against the people ruining the forests and foliage, and the lives that come with them across the country for wealth with the help of environmental NGOs and policy decisions. Only with these efforts can we help save the lives of the beautiful animals that are endangered as well as help them prosper and help stabilize the climate from harmful emissions of CO2 gasses.




Currently, these solutions by the Indonesian government are working, reducing the impact of deforestation will be a lenghty process so it is important to understand that it cannot happen overnight. According to Yale Enviroment360, Indonesia has pledged to absorb more carbon gases than they release by 2030. This is a massive initiative. And this plan will be accomplished by curbing illegal logging and re-planting. Already, forest loss has reduced dramatically “between the years 2015-2017 and 2020-2022, with Indonesia seeing a 64 percent decline “. These initiatives and results are optimistic, but it is incredibly crucial for consistency for these efforts to hold.




Source for Graph: https://e360.yale.edu/digest/indonesia-malaysia-deforestation#:~:text=Indonesia%20is%20aiming%20for%20its,land%20for%20palm%20oil%20plantations.

Additional Sources utilized: https://web.archive.org/web/20160116043142/http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/content/2002/timber_mafia/resources/resources_indonesia.htm#