Indonesian Land Development and Forest Fires Threaten Global Climate Security

(Palembang, 22nd) — Indonesia’s peatlands are facing a twofold threat from development and forest fires, with the rate of loss accelerating. Villagers in South Sumatra province are striving to protect the peatlands, doing their best to safeguard the last line of defense for local ecosystems and global climate security.
 Peatland is a wetland ecosystem situated between aquatic and terrestrial habitats, formed by the accumulation of large amounts of partially decomposed plant material. Rich in organic matter, it is a crucial global carbon sink. Although peatlands cover only about 3% of the world’s land area, they store approximately 44% of soil carbon, playing an important role in slowing down global warming. For this reason, peatlands are also known as the "lungs of the Earth."
 Indonesia is home to the world’s largest tropical peatlands, but this vital ecosystem has long been subject to human intervention. Peatlands are often drained for agricultural development, destroying their natural water retention capacity, and leading to ecological imbalance. Once drained, peat easily catches fire, with blazes spreading rapidly and prone to reignite, drastically increasing the risk of wildfires.
 World Bank data shows that peatlands were the primary cause of Indonesia’s catastrophic wildfires in 2015. The area burned that year was 4.5 times the size of Bali, resulting in about US$16.1 billion (approximately S$20.7 billion) in economic losses, accounting for about 2% of Indonesia’s GDP that year.
 Despite this, peatland development continues. A 2023 study found that only 18.4% of Indonesia’s peatlands remain “undisturbed,” with vast areas converted into palm oil or timber plantations.
 Environmentalist Pralensa is deeply concerned for the fate of the vast peatlands surrounding Lebung Itam village in South Sumatra. A company claiming to have obtained land use rights has already dug ditches near the village to drain water and plant oil palms.
 Pralensa said: “We protested… We told them this is a community-managed area. According to them, they already own the rights to this land.”

Nearby, Bangsal village is surrounded by peatland plantations and suffers wildfires nearly every year. Villagers used to graze buffaloes on the peatlands and catch river fish in the wetlands, but now not only is the buffaloes’ roaming space restricted, fishery resources have plummeted due to water barriers and pollution from fertilizers and herbicides, putting their livelihoods at serious risk.
According to peatland conservation organization Pantau Gambut, peatland supervision and law enforcement in Indonesia are weak, resulting in unchecked illegal development.
In order to protect their homeland, residents of the two villages jointly filed lawsuits against three companies operating timber plantations near the peatlands, demanding the companies be held legally liable for the health, economic and social impacts caused by forest fires. However, the local court dismissed the cases on the grounds that the plaintiffs “lacked standing to sue.”
Despite this setback, the plaintiffs’ group has indicated they will file an appeal. Local villagers are also actively lobbying the local government to designate the remaining peatlands as protected areas, in order to safeguard the homeland they have relied on for generations.