Local community involvement is vital in efforts to raise water levels to help restore Indonesia’s tropical peatlands, a new study has found.
Local community involvement is vital in efforts to raise water levels to help restore Indonesia’s tropical peatlands, a new study has found.
Unspoilt peatlands act as a carbon sink and play an important role in reducing global carbon emissions. They are also a crucial habitat for many birds and animals, including endangered species such as orang-utans and tigers.
Draining peatland for farming destroys habitats and causes the peat to emit the carbon it once stored. The dry land also becomes prone to fire – leading to increased carbon emissions and a threat to the lives of many species including humans.
Converted to cropland
The study, led by researchers at the University of York, interviewed people involved in work to conserve and restore Indonesia’s 15 million hectares of peatland – more than half of which has been drained and converted to cropland.
Read more at University of York
Image: Indonesia's peatlands are a crucial habitat for many birds and animals, including endangered species such as orang-utans and tigers. (Credit: Caroline Ward, University of York.)
