This document discusses issues related to mangrove forests and peat swamp forests in Southeast Asia. It notes that mangrove forests are being lost due to logging, aquaculture/agriculture conversion, and infrastructure development. Peat swamp forests store large amounts of carbon and their degradation releases greenhouse gases. Drivers of degradation in Southeast Asia include deforestation, fires, and drainage for agriculture, plantations, and infrastructure. Rehabilitation and conservation of peatlands could prevent significant carbon emissions and climate change. The document advocates for policies and projects supporting green coastal development, silvo-fisheries, flyway conservation, and peatland restoration.

1. Issues and opportunities in coastal and peat
swamp forests in South-east Asia
By
Marcel Silvius
Brunei
22 March 2012

2. Mangrove forest
OK
Don’t forget the
ecosystem values:
•Carbon store
•Coastal protection
•Fisheries
•Biodiversity
•Amenity values:
Tourism

3. Many migratory species
• East Asian – Australasian Flyway (EAAF) extends
from Alaska, the Russian Far East and Siberia
through SE Asia to Australia and New Zealand
Migratory waders depend
• > 50 million waterbirds on healthy
coastal ecosystems
• Migration in north-south ‘flyways’

4. Mangrove loss
Drivers:
•Logging
•Conversion for aquaculture
and agriculture
•Conversion for
infrastructure (roads,
housing)

5. Peat swamp forest

6. Inside primary peat swamp forest
(Belait peat swamp forest, Brunei)

7. What is so special about peatlands?
Peat: organic matter accumulated over thousands of years
storing carbon in thick layers
A peat bog is rain
water fed
Peat swamp forest
River Mineral Soil River
Organic matter
+ 90% water
Peatlands cover 3% of the global land surface

8. Key role in the water cycle
• Globally 10% of all freshwater
• Source areas of many rivers
• Important for water storage and
supply
• Crucial for mitigation of droughts
and floods

9. Peatlands: Threatened carbon stores
• Globally peatlands store 550 Giga ton (Gt) C
• 30% of terrestrial carbon
– twice the carbon stored in forests
• drained and degrading: 15% (50 million ha)
• emissions: 2 Gt CO2 per annum (25% increase since 1990)
• 6% of global emissions
Peatlands store large amounts of carbon Peatland degradation leads to CO2 emissions
which contribute to global warming

10. Globally degrading peatlands
are hotspots of CO2 emissions
Russia
EU
USA 160 Mt
174 Mt
72 Mt
115 Mt
Central Asia
1 Gt
SE Asia

11. Drivers of peatland degradation in SE Asia
•Deforestation
– Legal & illegal logging
•Fires
•Drainage
– Agriculture
– Infrastructure
– Pulpwood & Palm oil
plantations

12. Loss of Carbon
Natural forest into
plantation:
above ground
Carbon release 153 – 359 t C ha-1
(once)
Logged forest to
plantation:
above ground
Carbon release 47 – 214 t C ha-1
(once)
Drainage of peat:
continuous Carbon
release: 7 - 40 t C ha-1
every year !!

13. Oil palm on peat
Crop Emission tCO2/TJ Fuel Emission tCO2/TJ
Palm oil 600 Fuel oil 73
Berbak National park, Jambi, Indonesia

14. Trade / economic consequences
• Opportunity loss
– EU
• Renewable Energy directive: No biofuel from
feed stock derived from drained peatlands
• Fuel Quality Directive: No biofuels from
peatlands
– USA
• EPA-420-F-11-046: December 2011: Palm oil
does not meet the minimum 20% lifecycle GHG
reduction threshold needed to qualify as
renewable fuel
• Extra costs for responsible producers to certify
and market sustainable palm oil

15. Long-term impacts of peatland degradation
• Climate change
• Loss of biodiversity
• Loss for other business
sectors
• Major soil subsidence
and flooding

16. Socio-economic impact of peatland fires on people
Peatland fires: • 30% of children under 5
have respiratory
• Millions ha peat forest burned
illnesses and stunted
• Major public health issues growth
• Millions of working & school days • Social & ethnic
lost tensions
• Billions of $ lost through impacts on • Vicious cycle of
transport and tourism sectors environmental
degradation & over-
exploitation

17. International tensions / political impacts
Smog and smoke
over SE-Asia
© NASA TOMS
22 Oktober 1997
Malaysia in September 2005

18. Towards solutions
Towards solutions

19. Green Coast Policy
• Shift coastal settlements inland
• Adjust coastal spatial planning
• Maintain a Green Belt
• Apply Sylvo-fisheries & place ponds behind mangroves

20. DRR
A model being promoted in Aceh
Sylvo-fishery: DRR + Livelihood + Mitigate CC

21. Silvo-fishery pond- Cikeong, West Java
Silvo-fishery pond- Pemalang, Central Java

22. East Asian Australasian Flyway
• International cooperation for the conservation and
sustainable management of coastal areas that are
key for migratory waterbirds
• Join the EAAF Partnership
• Nominate key areas for the network.

23. South-east Asian peatlands
rehabilitation and conservation
• Rehabilitation of half of SE Asia’s degraded peatlands
(6.5 million ha) can prevent 1 Gt of CO2/yr:
= 6 ppmv over 100 year
• Conservation of undeveloped peat swamps
(Moratorium) can prevent 1.5 Gt CO2/yr:
= 9 ppmv over 100 years
• Peatland emission reduction can prevent major
atmospheric carbon increase:
15 ppmv over 100 years,
or about 15% of what is needed to stop climate
change

24. Priorities for achieving reduction targets
1. Preventing further peatland
degradation:
• No more logging
• No more conversion
• Revoke existing concessions
- shift to degraded mineral soil
areas
• Exclude products of drained
peatlands from supply chains
2. Rehabilitation of degraded
peatlands

25. Peatland Ecosystem Restoration
• Rewetting & reforestation
• Fire prevention & control
• Local economic development
• Sustainable finance
Carbon markets
Private sector
• Policy embedding
Ecosystem Restoration
legislation
REDD+
Moratorium on Conversion and Drainage of Peatlands

26. Wetlands International’s
frameworks of cooperation
• UNFCCC
– Wetlands in LULUCF
– Peatlands in REDD+
• Private sector
– world wide portfolio of peatland and
mangrove projects targeting carbon markets
• German International Climate
Initiative
– 65,000 ha peatland restoration in Moscow
Oblast; German-Russian cooperation
• IPS
– Responsible Peatland Management
Strategy
– Development certification
• RSPO
– Peat Land Working Group
– GHG working group – Carbon neutral palm
oil production
• EU & USA
– No biofuel produced on peat

27. Community-based implementation
• Local stakeholders can benefit
– Employment
– Benefit sharing
– Micro-credits (Bio-rights www.wetlands.org/bio-rights) &
CSR
• Sustainable development in bufferzones
• Sharing of business in concession
– tourism, fisheries, NTFP, timber
• in return participation in environment management
– Build capacity of local NGOs and science institutes
– Healthy environment

28. Science base development
Peatland restoration is possible & MRV-able
Available at www.wetlands.org

29. Message
• Brunei’s peat and mangrove swamp forests are in
good shape.
• This offers opportunity for sound development and
conservation
• fisheries, including aquarium fish trade
• international carbon trade
• freshwater supply for coastal municipalities and industry
• tourism development
• Interesting investment option for international research
• ecosystem functioning
• genetic and species biodiversity
• carbon sequestration
• Benefit of disaster risk reduction, preventing the
significant costs related to soil subsidence, flooding
and resulting land loss

30. Thank
y u
More information on
www.wetlands.org