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Indonesia’s natural fix to climate change

Words by Smiley Team

While some countries use elaborate technology to tackle climate change, others are turning to natural solutions. One such country is Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s largest economy, which aims to go carbon neutral by 2060. To reach this goal the government is employing one natural fix: mangrove forests.

Known to absorb four to five times more carbon emissions than other tropical forests, mangroves offer a powerful means to balance out the country’s emissions. 

“People often assume man-made solutions offer the best value for money,” wrote forestry expert Dr Mohammad Basyuni. 

“But our review of 53 nature-based sea defence projects (including 12 mangrove projects) revealed that mangroves could be two to six times cheaper than the commonly used alternative (submerged breakwaters) for conditions with relatively low waves,” he added.

Indonesia is home to 21% of the world’s mangrove population. However, its forests have declined by around 40% - the fastest rate of mangrove deforestation in the world.

[Read more positive news about everyday heroes and organisations driving climate action]

This loss had tragic consequences for the environment. As Mohammad explained, “Recent studies have shown that when mangroves are cleared vast quantities of carbon is released into the atmosphere, which accelerates global warming.”

But it also impacted communities. He added: “Without the natural buffer mangroves provide, coastal communities are left exposed to tropical storms, endangering their homes and lives. And local fishing industries and people’s livelihoods are threatened by the loss of natural habitat for thousands of fish species.”

To undo this damage, the country aims to restore 150,000 hectares of mangroves this year and 1.5 million acres by 2024. 

Last year, it achieved a quarter of its 2022 goal because funds were diverted to tackling the Covid-19 pandemic. This meant that conservation workers restored 34,911 hectares, costing 690 billion rupiah ($48.07 million). 

In 2022 the government will increase this budget to 3.2 trillion rupiah, said Hartono, head of the peatland and mangrove restoration agency.

To find out what you can do to protect mangrove forests visit mangrovealliance.org.

 

This article aligns with the following UN SDGs

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