Mitigating Climate Change through Peat Restoration in Central Kalimantan Emissions from peat have put Indonesia among significant emitters in the world. The total emission from the destruction of peat swamp forests between 2000-2005 is around 940 million tons of CO 2 equivalent, according to a 2008 report by Indonesia Forest Climate Alliance (IFCA). This has been the result of the clearing and destruction of extensive areas of peat forests as well as the burning and decomposi- tion that takes place on drained peat. In the 1990s more than one million hectares of wetlands were drained as part of a government driven agricultural initiative in Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. During this time thousands of kilometers of drainage canals were built and large areas of peat land deforested. The majority of this agricultural production initiative failed, however most of the canals remain. This drainage has caused large areas Climate change is increasingly becoming a real threat to nature and communities. Mitigating climate change by reducing and eventually stabilizing levels of greenhouse gas emissions is key to the global fight against climate change. Peat or wetlands only form 3 percent of all land surfaces, yet emissions from burnt and drained peat makes up 10 percent of all carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel. of deforested peat land to both decompose and burn during annual large scale uncontrolled fires. As part of a larger effort, WWF Indonesia joined hands with national and local authorities to establish the Peat Restoration project in Central Kalimantan to help reduce greenhouse gas emission from peat’s decomposition process and fires on drained peat areas. A key initiative of this effort is the canal blockings in the Sebangau National Park. Formerly a logging concession and illegal logging areas, where many drainage canals were built to transport logs, the area is now the largest protected peat forest area on the island. Reductions in carbon emissions are required to reduce the risks of climate change. Action is urgent as greenhouse gas levels are approaching critical levels, and initiatives on the ground to plug the growth of emissions could contribute to the overall effort. Preventing the further degradation and destruction of peat land is an essential part to mitigate as they have been found to be a significant source of emissions. To date, the community based blocking of drainage canals dug into the peat is an effective means to restore the hydrological condition of the soil, thereby preventing further decomposition of the peat, which releases CO 2 into the atmosphere. While the exact impact of canal blockings on reducing the levels of greenhouse gas emissions are being charted and evaluated, the hydrological restoration of drained peat is key to breaking the vicious cycle of seasonal fires thereby potentially preventing large amounts of gas emissions. Support is needed to support the ongoing work to expand this initiative to reach a scale that would significantly feed into the global climate change mitigation. WWF-Indonesia Climate & Energy Program Kantor Taman A9, Unit A-1 Jl. Mega Kuningan Lot 8-9/A9 Kawasan Mega Kuningan Jakarta 12950, Indonesia Tel: 021-5761070 Fax: 021- 5761080 Email: [email protected] Contact us to find out how you can join us and make a difference. wwf.or.id/climate © Text 2009 WWF. All rights reserved. © 1986 Panda symbol WWF. ® WWF Registered Trademark owner. Photos: © WWF-Indonesia, Adventus Panda, Ujel Bausad, Drasospolino, Tira Maya M Design: Arief Darmawan This publication is printed on 100% recycled paper, using vegetable oil - based ink manufactured locally. Contact Peat is a thick layer of organic soil that is trapped in a state of decomposition that is put into halt because of its acidic and anaerobic environ- ment. The organic material, consisting of trees, fungus and partly animal remains, is in a state of extreme humidity and manifests itself in form of swamps, moors, bogs and mires. A natural peat swamp forest functions as a reservoir of water, carbon and biodiversity. Around the world, including Indonesia, large areas of peat soils, are currently drained for agriculture, forestry and peat extraction. As a result, the organic carbon that was built up over thousands of years is exposed to the air, decom- poses and turns into the green- house gas carbon dioxide. This process is taking place all over the world. In tropical regions such as Indonesia, the decom- position process goes more rapidly than in colder regions. Conservative estimates show that decomposition of drained peat causes 1.3 billion tons of CO 2 emissions. Peat fires in The Nature of Peat Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Peat Southeast Asia and Europe as well as peat mining for horticul- ture and fuel bring the annual figure to around 2 billion tons. Since 1990, worldwide peat emissions have increased by more than 20 percent. As soon as groundwater levels fall below land surface, oxygen enters the soil profile and the process of peat oxidation starts. The deeper the groundwater level, the higher the oxida- tion rate becomes. Ground- water levels in an intact peat swamp forest fluctate; during dry periods peat oxidizes while during wet periods peat accumulates. Peat, when drained, turns into a highly combustible material, making it prone to fires in the dry season. In Indonesia, widespread fires are increasingly frequent in drained peat land. About 2.1 million hectares burnt in the 1997/98 El Nino event and drained peat land are becoming major annual fire flash points. In 2002, 2005 and 2006, there were large-scale forest and plantation fires in Central Kalimantan due to forest conversion and peat land exploitation. Blocking the canals in the Sebangau National Park is of crucial importance as it is an effective way to restore the hydrological integrity of the peat swamp forest which is critical to fulfill its natural role as reservoir of water, carbon and biodiversity. It takes thousands of years to form peat. Generally ground- water levels are close to land surface, carbon is sequestered at a rate of approximately 1 millimeter peat accumulation per year, and the area is rich in flora and fauna. Globally, peat form a carbon stock comprising of 528,000 million tons of carbon, which is equivalent to 30 percent of all terrestrial carbon and twice as much as carbons contained in all forests in the world.