Is oil palm agriculture really destroying tropical biodiversity?
sexta-feira, junho 08, 2018
Authors: Lian Pin Koh & David S. Wilcove
Abstract
Oil palm is one of the world’s most rapidly expanding equatorial crops. The
two largest oil palm-producing countries—Indonesia and Malaysia—are located
in Southeast Asia, a region with numerous endemic, forest-dwelling
species. Oil palm producers have asserted that forests are not being cleared to
grow oil palm.
Our analysis of land-cover data compiled by the United Nations
Food and Agriculture Organization suggests that during the period 1990–2005,
55%–59% of oil palm expansion in Malaysia, and at least 56% of that in Indonesia
occurred at the expense of forests. Using data on bird and butterfly
diversity in Malaysia’s forests and croplands, we argue that conversion of either
primary or secondary (logged) forests to oil palm may result in signifi-
cant biodiversity losses, whereas conversion of pre-existing cropland (rubber)
to oil palm results in fewer losses.
 |
| Problematic or not? Tools to track palm oil down to the plantation or smallholder system would help promoting sustainable practices. Aerial view of oil palm plantation in East Asia. Credit: asnidamarwani / Fotolia |
To safeguard the biodiversity in oil palmproducing
countries, more fine-scale and spatially explicit data on land-use
change need to be collected and analyzed to determine the extent and nature
of any further conversion of forests to oil palm; secondary forests should be
protected against conversion to oil palm; and any future expansion of oil palm
agriculture should be restricted to pre-existing cropland or degraded habitats.
0 comentários
Agradecemos seu comentário! Volte sempre :)