Is oil palm agriculture really destroying tropical biodiversity?

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 significant biodiversity losses, whereas conversion of pre-existing cropland (rubber) to oil palm results in fewer losses. 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.

Responses of Soil Fungi to Logging and Oil Palm Agriculture in Southeast Asian Tropical Forests

“…In addition to logging, Southeast Asian tropical forests are now threatened by the expansion of oil palm agriculture, which in the past few decades has been the most rapidly expanding equatorial crop [37,40]. Oil palm (Elaeis guineensis: Arecaceae) is cultivated in expansive monoculture plantations, and severe loss of forest-associated species has been documented in these habitats [41,42].…”

“…Oil palm (Elaeis guineensis: Arecaceae) is cultivated in expansive monoculture plantations, and severe loss of forest-associated species has been documented in these habitats [41,42]. Palm oil, the commercial commodity extracted from oil palm fruits and kernels, is currently the most lucrative vegetable oil crop in the world, and Indonesia and Malaysia alone account for more than 80 % of all palm oil production [40,43]. To date, only a single culture-independent study has been conducted in oil palm agricultural soils in Malaysia, which found that bacterial communities were dramatically different in these ecosystems relative to primary and logged forests [44].…”

Functional structure of ant and termite assemblages in old growth forest, logged forest and oil palm plantation in Malaysian Borneo

“…Also, a review of tropical forest dung beetle communities showed similar diversity declines with increasing habitat disturbance, along with a reduction in the number of forest species (Nichols et al 2007). A range of taxa including birds (Peh et al 2006;Koh and Wilcove 2008), butterflies (Koh and Wilcove 2008) and dung beetles (Edwards et al 2013;Gray et al 2014) show substantial losses of biodiversity when forest is converted to oil palm plantation (see also review by Fitzherbert et al 2008). Changes in assemblages, and particularly the loss of functionally important species, can have significant impacts on ecosystem functioning (Hooper et al 2005).…”

“…Global demands for timber and palm oil (e.g. Fitzherbert et al 2008, Danielsen et al 2009, Sodhi et al 2009) mean that increasing areas of habitat are being converted-nearly 80 % of Malaysian Borneo was affected by logging and clearing operations between 1990 and 2009 (Bryan et al 2013), with areas typically following a succession from old growth to logged forest, through to oil palm plantation (McMorrow and Talip 2001;Koh and Wilcove 2008;Bryan et al 2013). Logged forest and oil palm plantations now dominate the landscape of Malaysian Borneo (Bryan et al 2013).…”

Changing Place: Palm Oil and Sense of Place in Borneo

“…This has created a new, largely homogeneous landscape, with fragmentation of natural forest and correspondingly low levels of biodiversity (Bruhl et al 2003;Koh & Wilcove 2008). These changes have also impacted on meanings of place.…”