Challenges for REDD+ in Indonesia: a case study of three project sites

Abstract

ABSTRACT. Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) is a global initiative aimed at curbing carbon emissions from forest cover change. Indonesia, one of the most biodiverse places on the planet with the third largest extent of tropical forest, has been extensively involved in REDD+. Despite commitments from the government of Indonesia and the international community, the deforestation rate has not stabilized or decreased in the years since REDD+'s introduction in 2007. As of 2012, it was arguably the highest in the world. Although there is an extensive body of literature on REDD+, the need for grounded observations from the field could clarify existing challenges and inform future pursuits. We present the results of a case study of three REDD+ project sites to identify important criteria at the root of success or failure: finance, community, boundary enforcement, monitoring, and outcomes of attempted carbon sequestration and biodiversity preservation. Challenges identified for each criteria include a lack of sufficient funding opportunities, inability to enforce boundaries due to corruption, and lack of a solid plan for involving communities. Carbon sequestration and biodiversity preservation results were mixed because of a lack of monitoring and problems with encroachment. We argue that changes must be made to Indonesian policy to help enable enforcement of project boundaries, monitoring technologies should be utilized, and stakeholders, particularly at the national level, need to address some of the challenges discussed to achieve effective REDD+ outcomes in the future.

Tropical forest and peatland conservation in Indonesia: Challenges and directions

“…Ineffective enforcement of existing laws is frequently regarded as a major barrier towards achieving conservation and restoration efforts in Indonesia, including in relation to enforcement of (protected) area boundaries and prevention of illegal activities such as illegal logging within these (Curran et al, ; Enrici & Hubacek, ; Nellemann, Miles, Kaltenborn, Virtue, & Ahlenius, ), fire use and management (Nurhidayah & Djalante, ; Varkkey, ), wildlife killing (Meijaard et al, ) and trade (Freund, Rahman, & Knott, ; Nijman, ), plus bypassing of laws stipulating that forests in concessions are permanent by re‐zoning as concessions for plantation development (Gaveau, Sloan, et al, ). For example, Indonesia's Government Regulation (PP No.…”

Governing on Implementation of REDD+ Project: Case Study of Berbak Landscape

“…Monitoring and evaluation are also important and have to be done jointly by all actors involved. As what was said by Enrici and Hubacek (2018), good monitoring conducted by all involved actors in the project can ensure its success. In addition, the first phase of the project was done only in the area of the National Park, while its second phase expanded the scope of the project to include the Berbak landscape.…”

“…REDD+ project implementation also faces challenges: issues that arise from the preparation phase and obstacles that appear during the implementation phase. A study conducted by Enrici and Hubacek, (2018) in three REDD+ project sites in Indonesia founds that lack of monitoring, minimum involvement of stakeholders, incapability for boundary enforcement, and insufficient funding for the project are the main obstacles for its implementation. The implementation of the REDD+ project in Berbak landscape is facing the same challenge; lack of budget is seen as the main factor that hampers the implementation in the second phase.…”

“…After the conference issued the agreement, Indonesia, in 2008, established The National Council on Climate Change (Dewan Nasional Perubahan Iklim / DNPI) to formulate strategies and strengthen the position of Indonesia in the international climate change forum. Moreover, since it has the third largest area of tropical forest after Brazil and Congo (Enrici & Hubacek, 2018), Indonesia is seen as a potential site for conducting the REDD+ project in the scheme of joint implementation mechanism. The Berbak Carbon Initiative project is one of the collaborative REDD+ projects in Indonesia.…”

Infrastructure development and contested forest governance threaten the Leuser Ecosystem, Indonesia

“…Ecosystem restoration licenses, which are increasingly promoted in Indonesia, may also provide limited support for larger forest ecosystems. Restoration licences are commercial permits to restore degraded production forests to natural states, potentially entailing the sale of ecosystem services, ecotourism, and non-timber forest products (Walsh et al, 2012;Buergin, 2016;Enrici and Hubacek, 2018). While these licenses may unify larger forest areas, they are still based on discrete forest concessions, meaning they must be applied piecemeal across a larger area of production forest.…”