Authors:
John Bathgate
Book:
Proceedings of the 14th International Peat Congress
Venue:
Stockholm
Keywords:
carbon-emissions, climate-change, deforestation, livelihoods, peat-swamp-forest
Documentfile:
Bathgate 2012: Development Context of Coastal Riau Peatland, Sumatra, Indonesia
Summary:
Theme IX. Tropical peatlands
SUMMARY
Riau Province is 40% peatland. In the last 20 years much of it has been cleared for Riau’s land-based economy. The clearing sequence is often initiated by uncontrolled activities like illegal logging and slash and burn subsistence farming. Development to formal agriculture plantations follows some time later. To halt this sequence in the interests of global climate will be difficult in the current social context where rural poverty is being alleviated through agriculture. Alternative models of development need to be introduced.