The Lungs of the World on the Edge of Extinction
Kalimantan, the untamed wilderness, where great apes roam free in tropical rainforests, where the forests remain mysterious and still refuse to yield undiscovered animals and plants, where humans still live in harmony with nature. If you want to witness this Kalimantan for yourself, than you will have to be fast.
The tropical rainforests of Indonesia are being rapidly destroyed for the fuel of the future, Palm oil. Palm oil is in big demand for the biofuel market. But bear in mind, this biofuel is not the green answer to pending oil shortages, and is certainly not benefiting planet earth. Local farmers, who have for generations worked on and respected the land, are being forced off by the big Palm oil companies.
In Central Kalimantan many different companies are working with one main purpose, rapidly converting forests to Palm oil plantations. For example, PT Nabatindo Karya Utama is at present destroying the last remaining 7,000 hectares of tropical rainforests within the Kotawaringan area. Orangutans, Gibbons, and all the other animals have nowhere to hide, nowhere to go. The survivors are forced in to the small remaining pieces of forests, the so-called “green zones”, where due to overpopulation they will be forced to compete for food and space, and many will die of starvation.
These animals are highly endangered and protected under Indonesian law but yet no effort to enforce the law is undertaken to save these animals. The Orangutan is one of the last great apes, and is not only protected under Indonesian law but also internationally under the Convention for the Trade in Endangered Flora and Fauna (CITES). Appendix II of the CITES convention states that these apes can’t be traded for any commercial purpose. To destroy their habitat for profit is in violation of the core principle of the convention.
The Orangutan can be seen on the old 5,000 Rupiah notes, as a proud symbol of Indonesia’s fauna. But its home is disappearing and the Orangutan with it. If the destruction goes on at the current rate, the sad irony is that the only place we will be able to observe Orangutans in the near future will be on the 5,000 Rupiah note.
Where once stood rich forest, now millions of palm oil plants can be observed. The heat and drought is unbearable, making it hard to imagine that this area used to be humid and full of life.
A group of local people are working to preserve the last remaining 7,000 hectares within the area of Kotawaringan, an area that they are dependant on and have been preserving since childhood. The lake from which the local residents depend on for their fisheries is polluted with pesticides from the Palm oil plantations. Dead fish can be spotted on the edge of the lake, and locals in contact with the water will end up with skin problems. How long can they keep up the fight against the massive Palm-oil industry alone?
Global warming is happening here and now. The destruction of Indonesian rainforests is bringing this planet closer to the edge. Palm oil cannot become the fuel of the future at the expense of the rainforests. The blood of animals is fueling the Palm oil industry, causing irreversible damage.
