Indonesia's Deforestation Plan Would Create "Death Zone"
Indonesia's focus on biofuels made from sugarcane and cassava is causing rainforest to be destroyed due to a lack of arable land. The country now plans to clear three million hectares in the eastern region of Papua.
According to an unpublished report reviewed by the AP, such clearing would release a total of 315 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalents.
The deforestation would also lead to erosion, damage areas with biodiversity and threaten species and people who depend on the forest.
- It would create a death zone in one of the world's most vibrant areas, Glenn Horowitz, of the organization Mighty Earth, told the AP.
Since the 1950s, Indonesia has cleared more than 74 million hectares of rainforest, which is twice the size of Germany, according to Global Forest Watch.
Deforestation Risks Displacement of Indigenous Peoples
In Indonesia, plans are underway to clear an area of rainforest the size of Belgium to produce rice, food crops and sugarcane-based bioethanol. This puts the indigenous people who depend on the land in the Papua region for survival at risk of being displaced, reports the AP.
Environmental organizations that monitor the area say the project will affect generations to come.
Vincen Kwapil, who lives in Papua, says that the local population has already been prevented from making a living from hunting and fishing, which they depend on.
“We know that the Papuan forests are one of the largest lungs of the earth, yet they are being destroyed,” he tells the AP.
Indonesia's focus on biofuels made from sugarcane and cassava is causing rainforest to be destroyed due to a lack of arable land. The country now plans to clear three million hectares in the eastern region of Papua.
According to an unpublished report reviewed by the AP, such clearing would release a total of 315 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalents.
The deforestation would also lead to erosion, damage areas with biodiversity and threaten species and people who depend on the forest.
- It would create a death zone in one of the world's most vibrant areas, Glenn Horowitz, of the organization Mighty Earth, told the AP.
Since the 1950s, Indonesia has cleared more than 74 million hectares of rainforest, which is twice the size of Germany, according to Global Forest Watch.
Deforestation Risks Displacement of Indigenous Peoples
In Indonesia, plans are underway to clear an area of rainforest the size of Belgium to produce rice, food crops and sugarcane-based bioethanol. This puts the indigenous people who depend on the land in the Papua region for survival at risk of being displaced, reports the AP.
Environmental organizations that monitor the area say the project will affect generations to come.
Vincen Kwapil, who lives in Papua, says that the local population has already been prevented from making a living from hunting and fishing, which they depend on.
“We know that the Papuan forests are one of the largest lungs of the earth, yet they are being destroyed,” he tells the AP.
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