Cagar Biosfer Giam Siak Kecil Bukit Batu Riau Indonesia

Giam Siak Kecil-Bukit Batu Bioreserve (Indonesian: ''Cagar Biosfer Giam Siak Kecil Bukit Batu'' or CB-GSK-BB) is a

peatland A peatland is a type of wetland whose soils consist of Soil organic matter, organic matter from decaying plants, forming layers of peat. Peatlands arise because of incomplete decomposition of organic matter, usually litter from vegetation, du ...

area in

Riau Province Riau ( Jawi: ) is a province of Indonesia. It is located on the central eastern coast of the island of Sumatra, and extends from the eastern slopes of the Barisan Mountains to the Malacca Strait, including several large islands situated within ...

Sumatra Sumatra () is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the list of islands by area, sixth-largest island in the world at 482,286.55 km2 (182,812 mi. ...

, covering and large parts of

Bengkalis Regency Bengkalis Regency is a regency of Indonesia in Riau Province. The regency was originally established in 1956 and then included most of the northern part of the province, but on 4 October 1999 it was divided up, with most of the territory being spl ...

and

Siak Regency Siak ( Jawi: ), is a regency (''kabupaten'') of Riau Province, on the island of Sumatra, Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific ...

. It is a declared UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Reserve and supports a

sustainable Sustainability is a social goal for people to co-exist on Earth over a long period of time. Definitions of this term are disputed and have varied with literature, context, and time. Sustainability usually has three dimensions (or pillars): env ...

timber industry. It is home to two wildlife reserves, namely Giam Siak Wildlife Reserve and Bukit Batu Wildlife Reserve;

flagship species In conservation biology, a flagship species is a species chosen to raise support for biodiversity conservation in a given place or social context. Definitions have varied, but they have tended to focus on the strategic goals and the socio-economi ...

include the

Sumatran elephant The Sumatran elephant (''Elephas maximus sumatranus'') is one of three recognized subspecies of the Asian elephant, and native to the Indonesian island of Sumatra. In 2011, IUCN upgraded the conservation status of the Sumatran elephant from endan ...

and

Sumatran tiger The Sumatran tiger is a population of ''Panthera tigris sondaica'' on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. It is the only surviving tiger population in the Sunda Islands, where the Bali tiger, Bali and Javan tigers are extinct. DNA sequencing, Sequ ...

History

The bioreserve is located in a province that has seen widespread forest destruction. Extensive

logging Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidder, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or trunk (botany), logs onto logging truck, trucks further reduction, at an average rate of 160,000 hectares per annum, has resulted in 22% left as of 2009.

Deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal and destruction of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. Ab ...

has left the region vulnerable to intensifying

flooding A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant concern in agriculture, civi ...

and

landslides Landslides, also known as landslips, rockslips or rockslides, are several forms of mass wasting that may include a wide range of ground movements, such as rockfalls, mudflows, shallow or deep-seated slope failures and debris flows. Landslide ...

and has supported the highest of Indonesia's provincial population growth rates due to migration. Cleared land for

palm oil Palm oil is an edible vegetable oil derived from the mesocarp (reddish pulp) of the fruit of oil palms. The oil is used in food manufacturing, in beauty products, and as biofuel. Palm oil accounted for about 36% of global oils produced from o ...

and paper has led to not only perennial

haze Haze is traditionally an atmospheric phenomenon in which dust, smoke, and other dry particulates suspended in air obscure visibility and the clarity of the sky. The World Meteorological Organization manual of codes includes a classificati ...

over the province, but also in

Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur (KL), officially the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, is the capital city and a Federal Territories of Malaysia, federal territory of Malaysia. It is the largest city in the country, covering an area of with a census population ...

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

. The UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Reserve was created in 2009.

Flora and fauna

The reserve houses an estimated 189 species of plants, 29 of which are classified as endangered under

CITES CITES (shorter acronym for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Convention) is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals from the threats of inte ...

, Appendix 1 and 3. Peat swamp forest flora are dominant. Several species of animals found in the reserve are classified as endangered under CITES Appendix 1 including the Sumatran elephant (''

Elephas maximus ''Elephas'' is a genus of elephants and one of two surviving genera in the family Elephantidae, comprising one extant species, the Asian elephant (''E. maximus''). Several extinct species have been identified as belonging to the genus, extendin ...

'') and Sumatran tiger ('' Panthera tigris sumatrae''), two species of birds, and one fish. Other

include the

sun bear The sun bear (''Helarctos malayanus'') is a bear species in the Family (biology), family Ursidae found in the tropical forests of Southeast Asia. It is the only species in the genus ''Helarctos'' and the smallest bear species, standing nearly ...

clouded leopard The clouded leopard (''Neofelis nebulosa''), also called mainland clouded leopard, is a wild cat inhabiting dense forests from the foothills of the Himalayas through Northeast India and Bhutan to mainland Southeast Asia into South China. It w ...

marbled cat The marbled cat (''Pardofelis marmorata'') is a small Felidae, wild cat native from the eastern Himalayas to Southeast Asia, where it inhabits forests up to an elevation of . As it is present in a large range, it has been listed as Near Threatene ...

Malayan tapir The Malayan tapir (''Tapirus indicus''), also called Asian tapir, Asiatic tapir, oriental tapir, Indian tapir, piebald tapir, or black-and-white tapir, is the only living tapir species outside of the Americas. It is native to Southeast Asia from ...

, and

hairy-nosed otter The hairy-nosed otter (''Lutra sumatrana'') is a semiaquatic mammal native to Southeast Asia and one of the rarest and least known otter species. It is threatened by loss of natural resources and poaching. Description The hairy-nosed otter has ...

. 162 species of

moth Moths are a group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not Butterfly, butterflies. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is Paraphyly, paraphyletic with respect to butterflies (s ...

are an important "indicator" of forest condition.

Forest fires

Haze due to forest burning and general land clearance is common. Despite establishment of the biosphere reserve in 2009, some 22% of the fires were still burning within it some months later. Again in February 2014, some 1,200 hectares of the reserve were burned. CB-GSK-BB was initiated by private parties in cooperation with the

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

through BBKSDA (The Center for the Conservation of Natural Resources); major stakeholders include the

Sinar Mas Group Sinar Mas is one of the largest conglomerates in Indonesia. It was formed in 1938. It has numerous subsidiaries including Asia Pulp & Paper and palm oil producer PT SMART. The company also acquired Berau Coal Energy from Asia Resource Minerals ...

, a conglomerate which owns the largest paper and pulp company in Indonesia. The company marked

Earth Day Earth Day is an annual event on April 22 to demonstrate support for environmental protection. First held on April 22, 1970, it now includes a wide range of events coordinated globally through earthday.org (formerly Earth Day Network) includin ...

2012, and the reserve has won accolades and acclaim from the press and

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

, among other groups, yet issues of

air quality Air pollution is the presence of substances in the Atmosphere of Earth, air that are harmful to humans, other living beings or the environment. Pollutants can be Gas, gases like Ground-level ozone, ozone or nitrogen oxides or small particles li ...

in the surrounding area as well as in

in neighbouring

are unresolved.

References

External links

UNESCO Giam Siak Kecil-Bukit Batu

Industry preserves globally recognized conservation site

Large-scale forest destruction in Sumatra undermines Indonesia's deal with Norway

{{Authority control Biosphere reserves of Indonesia Environmental issues in Indonesia

History

Flora and fauna

Forest fires

See also

References

External links