location: Java

location: Java

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Indonesia’s giant Java seawall plan sparks criticism & calls for alternatives
- Indonesia has launched a massive new project on Java’s northern coast, framed as protection for millions of residents from worsening environmental threats.
- The plan has drawn sharp criticism from experts and activists who question its methods, costs and potential impact on vulnerable communities.
- Calls are growing for deeper public consultation and long-term solutions that go beyond quick fixes.

New model reveals hidden dynamics of Indonesia’s booming songbird trade
- Researchers have built the first model mapping supply and demand in Indonesia’s vast songbird trade, finding that species traits like mimicry and rarity drive demand more than species identity.
- The study identified 332 species from trade data from 2015-2022, and grouped them into three demand clusters: competition birds, vulnerable species at risk from poaching, and household pets kept for status or rarity.
- Findings show substitution fuels the trade, with sellers offering similar species at different price points, quickly expanding pressure to new species and compounding conservation risks.
- The model offers a blueprint for conservation strategies, highlighting the need for market monitoring and community engagement to address cultural drivers behind the trade without triggering backlash.

On Java’s Mount Slamet, two former trappers find new calling as bird protectors
- Ari and Junianto began hunting birds as children in the foothills of Java’s Mount Slamet, near their home in Sambirata village.
- Trapping birds for the illegal wildlife trade became their main livelihood over time, with much of the trade shifting from local markets to social media as the pair came of age and internet access proliferated.
- Ari and Junianto’s view of their vocation shifted in their 20s, and they began to work with conservation organizations to help map bird nests and protect forest areas. Today the pair are active conservationists in Banyumas district, giving talks in schools on the district’s birdlife and working with local charities.
- Banyumas, and the wider Central Java province, is home to numerous endangered and critically endangered species of birds owing to the trade in caged birds, according to the conservation authorities.

Indonesia’s fish farm expansion to absorb D.C.-sized swath of protected forests
- This year, Indonesia’s government announced the first stage of a five-year plan to expand and intensify aquaculture production on 78,000 hectares (193,000 acres) along the north coast of Java Island.
- The first phase, 20,400 hectares (50,400 acres), will cover four districts in West Java province.
- Civil society leaders in Indonesia point to problematic experiences with similar “strategic” projects administered by the central government, adding that the initial plan in West Java risks further diminishing local fishers’ standing, rather than stimulating the community economy.
- A review of zoning documents by Indonesian environment watchdog Walhi showed the initial stage in West Java would include reclassifying 16,078 hectares (39,730 acres) of protected forests for the project — an area nearly the size of Washington, D.C.

Rare Javan leopard sighting renews focus on conservation, monitoring efforts
- A rare Javan leopard was recorded on camera in Mount Lawu forest, Central Java, after officials installed camera traps following a hiker’s report.
- The endangered big cat’s presence highlights Mount Lawu’s ecological importance, where Tahura Mangkunagoro park conserves diverse plants, birds and mammals.
- With only around 350 Javan leopards left in the wild, the sighting underscores urgent threats to the species from habitat loss, hunting and human pressure.
- Authorities and conservation groups are expanding camera-trap surveys and preparing a 2026–2031 action plan to safeguard the species through better monitoring, habitat protection and community engagement.

Indonesia’s aquafarm revamp sparks fears for fate of farmers and mangroves
- Indonesia plans to revitalize 78,000 hectares (193,000 acres) of state-owned aquaculture ponds, starting with 20,400 hectares (50,400 acres) in West Java province, aiming to boost yields, create 119,000 jobs and attract investors.
- Small-scale farmers like Warno in Karawang district, who rent and maintain ponds from the state, say they fear losing their livelihoods without compensation if the government takes over their farms.
- NGOs and experts warn the program could fuel mangrove clearing, coastal damage and privatization of coastal areas, while sidelining local communities’ rights and voices.
- Critics also raise concerns over the government’s push for more farming of saltwater tilapia, citing risks from the invasive species and an industrial aquaculture model that could reduce locals to laborers.

Batang coal plant’s seawater permit imperils marine life, fishing communities
- The Batang coal-fired power plant in Central Java, now legally permitted to use vast amounts of seawater for cooling, has raised alarms among experts over its impact on marine ecosystems and traditional fisheries.
- Since operations began, the plant has displaced fishing communities, polluted coastal waters with heated discharge and caused up to a 50% decline in shrimp catches, particularly affecting traditional fishers in Roban Barat.
- Community resistance was met with intimidation and arrests, while some residents accepted compensation from the operator, PT Bhimasena Power Indonesia, further dividing the local population.
- Critics, including Greenpeace and KIARA, say the project reflects Indonesia’s coal-centered energy policy, undermining both environmental justice and climate goals, as the country continues to expand fossil fuel use despite international pressure to shift toward renewables.

Burning, burying and banning: Indonesia’s cities struggle to manage their garbage
- Indonesia’s garbage crisis is growing, with illegal dumping and unmanaged waste threatening communities, tourism, and ecosystems — as seen in the unsanctioned disposal of nearly 200 truckloads of trash near a popular beach in Yogyakarta.
- Despite a 2008 law banning open dumping, enforcement has long been delayed, but as of April 2025, the central government has officially ordered the closure of 343 landfills and threatened jail time for noncompliant local officials.
- Local governments are scrambling to comply, with some cracking down on illegal dumping, promoting waste sorting, or offering cash incentives — though problems like corruption, poor infrastructure, and public resistance to waste separation persist.
- Experts say lasting solutions require public cooperation, better funding, and consistent enforcement, as Indonesia struggles to change long-standing attitudes and behaviors toward waste management.

Natural bridges to reconnect the last Javan gibbons
JAVA — Indonesia. Throughout the misty mountains of central Java, the call of the Javan gibbon (Hylobates moloch) once echoed throughout the forest. Today, their voices are fading. Java is one of the most densely populated regions on Earth, and decades of logging, agriculture and infrastructure development have fragmented the forest, while rampant hunting and […]
Villagers in Sumatra bring ancient forest flavors back to the table
- Women living around the 7th-century Muaro Jambi temple complex in Sumatra, Indonesia, have revived ancient ingredients and cooking techniques to serve one-of-a-kind meals to visitors.
- Their dishes are inspired by the plants and animals depicted on the bas-reliefs of another ancient Buddhist site: Borobudur in Java.
- The ancient menu has proved popular both among visitors and locals, who are rediscovering their agrobiodiverse heritage.
- The women have nurtured an ancient food forest and garden in Muaro Jambi to conserve the diverse wild plants and varieties in their menus.

After years of silence, Indonesia moves to assess its iconic wildlife
- Indonesia, home to critically endangered orangutans, elephants, tigers and rhinos, has gone nearly two decades without official updates on the populations of some key species.
- Under the previous forestry minister, population surveys and conservation plans were shelved or retracted, and relationships with conservation organizations were often tense.
- Under new leadership, the ministry has signaled that initiating wildlife surveys and publishing population and habitat viability analyses (PHVAs) are key priorities, and surveys of several key species are already underway.
- While welcoming pro-science statements from environment authorities, conservationists caution that data remain alarmingly deficient for many species, and that updating surveys is time-consuming and expensive — a particular concern given recent cuts to the ministry’s budget.

Indonesia convicts trafficking accomplice in a Javan rhino poaching scandal
- Indonesia’s Supreme Court has sentenced Liem Hoo Kwan Willy to one year in prison for facilitating communication in the illegal trade of Javan rhino horns, overturning his earlier acquittal despite evidence linking him to the transactions.
- The ruling is part of a broader crackdown following the 2024 exposure of organized poaching in Ujung Kulon National Park, where police linked up to 26 rhino deaths to coordinated criminal networks involving local and international actors.
- Conservation groups have raised concerns over flawed population data, with evidence suggesting rhino killings began as early as 2018 and continued despite official reports of stable numbers, while key suspects and evidence remain unaccounted for.
- Meanwhile, the recent identification of three new Javan rhino calves offers hope, credited to strict park protections and improved monitoring, even as experts warn that ongoing poaching threatens the species with extinction.

Silvery lining for Java’s endangered gibbon as Rahayu Oktaviani wins Whitley prize
- Indonesian conservationist Rahayu Oktaviani, known for her work with Java’s silvery gibbon, received this year’s Whitley Award for achievements in grassroots conservation.
- The 50,000 British pound ($67,000) prize will be used to expand her foundation’s work carried out local communities near Gunung Halimun-Salak National Park in West Java province.
- Halimun-Salak is where up to half of the 4,000-4,500 silvery gibbons estimated to exist in the wild remain.
- Indonesia is home to nine species of gibbon, but only one of those species lives on Java, the world’s most-populous island.

Central Java villages take fast fashion to the cleaners at Indonesia’s Supreme Court
- Indonesia’s Supreme Court recently confirmed the bankruptcy of the country’s largest textile group, Sritex, which made garments for global fast fashion retailers like H&M.
- The court also awarded damages to 185 people in Central Java province who had filed a class action suit against a Sritex subsidiary over toxic gas leaks and river pollution.
- More than 10,000 Sritex workers lost their jobs as the heavily indebted firm collapsed, but local residents say the environment has showed signs of recovery since the subsidiary stopped producing synthetic fibers near Java’s longest river, the Bengawan Solo.

Wildlife crime crackdown in jeopardy worldwide after US funding cuts
- In 2019, Malawi dismantled the Chinese-led Lin-Zhang wildlife trafficking syndicate, a major win in its fight against the illegal wildlife trade, thanks in part to funding from the U.S. government.
- The Trump administration’s recent slashing of international development funds, however, threatens these gains, leaving frontline enforcers and conservation programs without critical support.
- NGOs across Africa and Southeast Asia, running initiatives from sniffer rat programs to antipoaching patrols, tell Mongabay they’re struggling to fill the funding gap.
- Experts warn that without urgent alternative, and sustainable, sources of funding, heavily trafficked species like elephants, rhinos and tigers could face accelerated declines.

As Indonesia phases out coal, what happens to people & environments left behind?
- An analysis by the Indonesian Center for Environmental Law (ICEL) finds that the country’s energy transition plans do not address the remaining impacts of coal plants such as pollution, degraded ecosystems and lost livelihoods.
- This raises a critical question about what happens to the communities and environments left behind as the country plans to retire its coal-fired power plants to tackle climate change.
- In Cirebon, West Java province, fishers and farmers had to change professions when their land was used for a coal plant; now, some want to return to their former work, but their lands and sea are polluted and degraded from years of coal plant operations, and traditional livelihoods are no longer viable.
- ICEL program deputy director Grita Anindarini said Indonesia could benefit from drawing examples from other countries or jurisdictions whose transitions are designed to remedy harm, with land redistribution, economic diversification and Indigenous rights being central to their plans.

In an ancient Javanese sultanate, coastal women battle climate fallout
- The coast of Demak district, the site of the first Islamic sultanate on the island of Java, has been inundated by the sea over decades owing to groundwater extraction and development.
- The erosion of human settlements is likely introducing new risks for women: “Our conclusion is that women and children, as well as poor families, including the elderly and disabled, are the most vulnerable,” a local legal aid nonprofit told Mongabay.
- Globally, around 90% of fish species are either fully exploited or overfished, and climate change is set to worsen the crisis by disrupting fish reproduction as oceans warm and acidify.

Chauffeur at Indonesia energy nonprofit drives uptake of biogas by Java farmers
- A former migrant worker and chauffeur has pioneered the use of biogas in his home village near the city of Yogyakarta on Indonesia’s Java Island.
- A net zero roadmap published by the International Energy Agency requires the production of biogas to quadruple by the year 2050.
- Critics of biogas at the industrial dairy scale say it absorbs conservation funding that is better spent elsewhere.
- Local residents near Yogyakarta city say the installation of anaerobic digesters has improved household finances and that they no longer need to queue to buy propane cylinders.

Illegal sea fence displaces fishers and sparks land scandal near Jakarta
- A property developer installed 30 kilometers (19 miles) of bamboo fencing in the sea near Jakarta, blocking fishers’ access; an investigation revealed it encompassed 280 ocean plots for which title deeds had been illegally issued.
- The fence has forced many fishers to stop working, while coastal farmers have lost their land to the same luxury development; residents also face eviction with no clear alternatives.
- Authorities have sanctioned a handful of individuals from the public and private sectors and started revoking the illegal deeds, but activists are demanding criminal prosecutions against the companies responsible.
- The case highlights weak oversight of Indonesia’s national strategic projects, raising concerns over environmental destruction, loss of livelihoods, and government favoritism toward big developers.

Thousands of birds seized in massive Indonesian bird-trafficking bust
- More than 6,500 illegally trafficked birds were seized from a truck at a port in the Indonesian island of Sumatra last month in what activists believe to be the largest seizure of trafficked bird’s in the nation’s modern history.
- The birds, which included 257 individuals from species protected under Indonesian law, are believed to have been captured across Sumatra and were bound for the neighboring island of Java, where songbirds are sought as pets and for songbird competitions.
- The birds were all found alive, and have since been checked by a veterinarian and released back to “suitable natural habitats.”
- Local NGO FLIGHT says more than 120,000 Sumatran trafficked songbirds were confiscated from 2021 to 2023, a number that likely represents just a fraction of those captured and sold.

Clock ticks on Indonesia shark skinners as predator population plunges
- Indonesia accounts for more sharks caught in open water than any other country, but fish stocks around the main island of Java are in crisis due to years of overfishing by large vessels using purse seine nets.
- In the fishing port of Brondong, a major landing site in East Java province, fishers continue to process dozens of species of sharks caught increasingly far from the world’s most populous island.
- Shark conservation is attracting increasing international attention because of the relative lack of protection and awareness of the predators’ roles in ocean ecosystems.

More alarms over Indonesia rhino poaching after latest trafficking bust
- A recent rhino horn trafficking bust in southern Sumatra may be linked to a poaching network in Java responsible for killing 26 Javan rhinos since 2019.
- The arrest of a 60-year-old suspect in the bust highlights the broader crackdown on the illegal wildlife trade, including the use of cyber patrols to monitor online trafficking activities.
- Investigations have uncovered significant discrepancies between official rhino population figures and actual numbers, suggesting that many rhinos have disappeared due to poaching, despite government claims of population growth.
- Conservation experts stress the exclusivity of the rhino horn trade network and the need for specialized efforts to dismantle it.

Polluting copper mine in Java suspended as farmers decry lost crops
- A copper mine in Pacitan district on the island of Java has been temporarily closed by Indonesia’s mining ministry after contaminated irrigation water allegedly harmed food crops belonging to 200 families.
- A lawyer for the company, PT Gemilang Limpah Internusa, told Mongabay Indonesia the company would conduct remedial measures and aim to reopen the mine within months.
- In March, Mongabay Indonesia spoke with farmers in Pacitan who had suffered income losses in addition to uncertainty as to the future viability of their crops.

Javan rhino poaching saga reveals serious security lapse
- The poaching of up to 26 Javan rhinos in Indonesia’s Ujung Kulon National Park highlights critical lapses in security and conservation efforts.
- An investigation by Mongabay Indonesia discovered that the poaching was orchestrated by organized groups with access to insider information about rhino movements.
- The primary poacher, Sunendi, was caught with detailed maps and data on rhino locations, allegedly provided by a former park patrol auxiliary member.
- Despite some arrests, many questions about the full extent of the poaching operations and the fate of the missing rhinos remain unresolved.

Where Javan leopards thrive, so do other wildlife, study shows
- Where Javan leopards thrive, the diversity and abundance of other wildlife species is also enhanced, a new study shows.
- Researchers used camera traps across Java from 2020 to 2022 to identify the richness of animal life in areas with more leopards.
- Many of these species, such as barking deer and wild boar, are leopard prey, while others, such as dhole wild dogs and Javan rhinos, aren’t.
- The study highlights the importance of targeted conservation strategies that also include protecting these other species and restoring habitats, to support the endangered Javan leopards and their ecosystems.

Java farmers vow to live under own steam as geothermal project falters
- A major renewable energy project in Indonesia’s Banten province has yet to be developed more than 15 years since the area was zoned for geothermal energy.
- At issue is opposition from local farming communities, who see threats to their livelihood and worry about contamination of water sources.
- Indonesia has the world’s largest geothermal energy potential, but a complexity of factors has weighed on development of the sector, including community objections to land conversion.

Javan rhino poacher gets 12 years in record sentence for wildlife crime in Indonesia
- A court in Indonesia has sentenced the head of a rhino poaching gang, Sunendi, to 12 years in jail for killing six rhinos, as well as stealing camera traps and illegal possession of firearms.
- At trial, it was revealed that Sunendi tracked down the rhinos after drawing up a map of their likely locations based on the data from the stolen camera traps.
- The sentence is the longest ever meted out in Indonesia for wildlife crime, and conservationists say they hope it will act as a determent.
- However, the loss of so many Javan rhinos — Sunendi’s and another gang claim to have killed a combined 26 rhinos, out of a population of 70-odd — puts the species closer to extinction than it has been since 2012.

Poachers claim to have killed one-third of all Javan rhinos, Indonesian police say
- An expanding investigation into poaching of Javan rhinos suggests as many as 26 of the critically endangered mammals, out of a total population of 70-odd, may have been slaughtered by poachers since 2019.
- Police in Indonesia have arrested 13 alleged members of two gangs that they say were responsible for the poaching spree in Ujung Kulon National Park, the last place on Earth where Javan rhinos are found.
- Two other men, charged with fencing the horns, say they were destined for China; police say they’re aware of at least two Chinese nationals who may also be involved.
- Suspicions about poaching at Ujung Kulon have swirled in recent years, but the latest revelations suggest the Indonesian government’s widely criticized lack of transparency about rhino counts served to conceal the scale of the problem.

Max sentence request for Javan rhino poacher too low, experts say
- Indonesian prosecutors are seeking a five-year-sentence for a poacher who confessed to participating in the killing of seven Javan rhinos.
- Experts say that while this sentence is the legal maximum and would be the longest they are aware of for a poaching offense in Indonesia, it remains too low to serve as a strong deterrent.
- As the trial continues, another alleged poacher has also been arrested in Ujung Kulon, the national park home to all of the world’s remaining Javan rhinos, a population believed to stand at fewer than 70 individuals.

Indonesian activist freed in hate speech case after flagging illegal shrimp farms
- Indonesian environmental activist Daniel Frits Maurits Tangkilisan has had his sentence overturned on appeal, in a case that saw him charged over a Facebook post highlighting illegal shrimp farms operating in a marine protected area.
- The appeals court held that while the post constituted hate speech, as a lower court had ruled, it was made in defense of the constitutional right to a healthy environment.
- Three fellow activists face prosecution under the same charges for posting a video of their opposition to the polluting shrimp farms in Karimunjawa National Park, an ostensibly protected area.
- The case is one of hundreds prosecuted under the widely panned online speech law that activists and rights experts say has been exploited by the state and business interests to silence critics.

Indonesia resumes lobster larvae exports despite sustainability, trade concerns
- The Indonesian government will resume a controversial policy of exporting lobster larvae, initially just to Vietnam, in exchange for investment in its own lobster-farming industry.
- The ban has met with controversy since it was introduced in 2016; a subsequent attempt to lift it failed after the fisheries minister at the time was arrested for taking bribes to issue export permits.
- The current minister says the lifting this time around is based on pragmatic considerations, with law enforcement efforts failing to stop the smuggling of lobster larvae.
- Critics say the move will benefit Vietnam more than it will Indonesia, given that the former’s far more advanced lobster-farming industry generates far more value from the sale of mature lobsters than Indonesia ever could from the sale of larvae.

A single gang of poachers may have killed 10% of Javan rhinos since 2019
- A poaching case currently being heard in an Indonesian court has revealed that at least seven Javan rhinos were killed from 2019-2023 for their horns.
- The world’s sole remaining population of Javan rhinos lives in Indonesia’s Ujung Kulon National Park, with official population estimates standing at around 70 individuals.
- A single suspect has been arrested and indicted in the case, with three alleged accomplices still at large.
- The revelation from the recent indictment raises questions about security at the park, most of which has been closed off to the public since September 2023 over poaching concerns.

New calf, same threats: Javan rhinos continue to reproduce despite perils
- Recent camera-trap images of a Javan rhino calf, estimated to be 3-5 months old in March, demonstrate that the species continues to reproduce despite being beset by challenges.
- The species is confined to a single habitat, and while its population is officially estimated at more than 70 individuals, a report last year cast doubt on those figures, alleging that 18 of those rhinos had not been spotted on camera for years.
- The peninsula of Ujung Kulon National Park, where all Javan rhinos live, has been closed to all visitors since September 2023 after poaching activity was detected.

In Java Sea, vigilantism and poverty rise as purse seine fishing continues
- Fishing communities on small islands in the Java Sea and farther afield have long complained that large purse seine vessels are encroaching on traditional fishing grounds.
- On Sembilan Island, between the islands of Java and Borneo, local fishers have resorted to vigilantism due to what they say is inaction by authorities to prevent fishing with the purse seine, known locally as cantrang.
- The head of the local fisheries department told Mongabay Indonesia that fishers would see a crackdown against the boats.

Indonesian court jails environmentalist for flagging illegal farms in marine park
- An Indonesian court has sentenced an environmental activist to seven months in jail for a Facebook post in which he criticized the growing problem of illegal shrimp farms operating inside a marine park.
- The court found that Daniel Frits Maurits Tangkilisan had “created unrest” because of his post, under a controversial 2008 law on online speech that’s been widely used to silence environmental and human rights activists.
- Three other activists face similar charges in the case, which centers on their efforts to highlight the presence of illegal shrimp farms inside Karimunjawa National Park, which is supposed to be a protected area.
- Fellow rights activists have lambasted the ruling against Daniel, saying it sets a dangerous precedent for exploitation of the justice system to silence and criminalize individuals.

‘The Javan tiger still exists’: DNA find may herald an extinct species’ comeback
- A 2019 sighting by five witnesses indicates that the long-extinct Javan tiger may still be alive, a new study suggests.
- A single strand of hair recovered from that encounter is a close genetic match to hair from a Javan tiger pelt from 1930 kept at a museum, the study shows.
- “Through this research, we have determined that the Javan tiger still exists in the wild,” says Wirdateti, a government researcher and lead author of the study.
- The Javan tiger was believed to have gone extinct in the 1980s but only officially declared as such in 2008, along with the Bali tiger; a third Indonesian subspecies, the Sumatran tiger, is also edging closer to extinction.

Biomass-burning coal plants leave the air even dirtier, Java communities say
- PLTU 1 Indramayu, a 13-year-old coal power complex, has begun adding biomass to the coal it burns on the north coast of West Java province.
- Indonesia’s state electricity firm said its 43 coal units nationwide consumed 1 million metric tons of biomass across in 2023, a 71% increase over 2022, as it seeks ways to trim emissions.
- In Indramayu, local people fear coal plants are endangering public health.

Indonesian activists face jail over FB posts flagging damage to marine park
- Four environmental activists in Indonesia face up to 10 months in jail for “hate speech” after complaining online about the proliferation of illegal shrimp farms inside a marine park.
- Karimunjawa National Park, which is supposed to be a protected area, has seen the number of such farms inside its borders proliferate in recent years, which groups like Greenpeace have linked to ecosystem degradation.
- Daniel Frits Maurits Tangkilisan is the first of the four members of the #SaveKarimunjawa movement to go to court; a verdict in his case is expected on April 4.
- All four men have been charged under a controversial 2008 law on online speech, which critics say has been abused vigorously by the Indonesian state to stifle dissent and opposition.

Java rice farmers suffer crop failure as copper mine pollutes local irrigation
- Rice farmers in Cokrokembang village, East Java province, suspect contamination from a nearby copper mine operated by PT Gemilang Limpah Internusa is to blame for recent crop failures.
- Water pollution from the mine is visible in the Kedung Pinihan River, while tests conducted by the local government reveal levels of copper compounds far exceeding environmental standards.
- Despite attempts to address the issue, including government involvement and remedial measures by the company, farmers like Parno continue to suffer declining yields, prompting calls for compensation for affected farmers.

Indonesians uprooted by mining industry call for a fairer future amid presidential vote
- Ahead of Indonesia’s presidential election on Feb. 14, people from across the country affected by extractive industries gathered at the site of a notorious mudflow disaster in East Java province.
- The Lapindo mudflow continues to impact thousands of residents with diverse social repercussions, including displacement, environmental pollution, and obstructed access to education and health care.
- The gathering attracted participants from various regions across Indonesia to raise awareness of the impact of mining and extractive industries on affected communities.

Maluku farmer turns guardian of eastern Indonesia’s threatened parrots
- Jamal Adam, a former farmer, began volunteering with forest rangers on Indonesia’s Halmahera Island before joining the region’s largest bird sanctuary when the rehabilitation facility opened in 2019.
- The Halmahera center admits mostly parrots on site and rehabilitates numerous species before later releasing them back into the wild.
- Indonesia’s North Maluku province historically saw relatively low tree cover loss compared to the rest of the country, but groups have raised concerns that a local nickel mining boom will threaten bird habitat in the medium term.

Harsh dry season sours harvest prospects for Java coffee farmers
- Indonesia is the world’s fourth-largest producer of coffee, after Brazil, Vietnam and Colombia, but the archipelago’s farmers are less productive than their competitors.
- In East Java province, farmers have seen yields plummet as a protracted water deficit shrinks fruit and introduces pests.
- Total output is expected to drop by more than 20% this season, while increasingly frequent extreme weather may pose challenges to the viability of some smallholders in lowland areas of Indonesia.

Java’s frogman reflects on half-century dive into amphibian world
- Djoko Tjahjono Iskandar has spent nearly 50 years exploring rural Indonesia in pursuit of novel frog species.
- Indonesia is home to almost 10% of around 6,000 known species of frogs in the world; however, scientists warn half of amphibians worldwide could be lost without urgent action.
- The archipelago of 270 million people also accounts for a majority of the world’s exports of frogs’ legs to Europe and other regions, most of which are caught in the wild.

Communities on troubled Java river mold future from plastic waste
- The Ciliwung is a highly polluted river running from Mount Pangrango in western Java, through the city of Bogor, before ending in the bay north of Jakarta, Indonesia’s capital.
- Since 2018, Bogor Mayor Bima Arya Sugiarto has overseen an initiative to rehabilitate the river, which was awash with plastics and dangerous levels of fecal coliform bacteria.
- Bogor is among more than 50 global cities participating in the Plastic Smart Cities, initiated by WWF to help eliminate plastics from nature.

Indonesian utility PLN ordered to disclose coal plants’ emissions data
- Indonesia’s Public Information Commission (KIP) has ordered state-owned utility PLN to disclose emissions data for some of the country’s biggest coal-fired power plants.
- Civil society groups have hailed the decision as a victory against government opacity and a major step toward accountability for public health.
- The KIP’s decision isn’t the end of the story, however; there’s a long history of various government ministries simply refusing to comply with its orders for data disclosure, and it’s not clear whether PLN will buck that trend.

Java’s crumbling coastline and rising tide swamp jasmine flower trade
- Growers of jasmine flowers in lowland areas of Indonesia’s Central Java province are vulnerable to coastal erosion and rising sea levels.
- Research published in 2022 showed Central Java’s Semarang was among the fastest-sinking major cities in the world.
- Jasmine grower Sobirin has altered his home on three occasions since 2010, raising the floor to adapt to increasing tidal surges.

Indonesia offers lobster larvae exports to Vietnam in exchange for investment
- Indonesia is seeking investment from Vietnam to develop Indonesia’s fisheries sector, especially the lobster farming industry, the country’s fisheries minister said during a visit to Hanoi.
- In exchange, Indonesia could supply up to 300 million lobster larvae to Vietnam and would stop seizing Vietnamese fishing boats encroaching into Indonesian waters, instead just turning them back.
- Jakarta banned exports of lobster larvae in 2016 to prevent the overharvesting of wild population from the country’s rich waters, but smuggling remains rampant.
- Despite concerns about potential harm to the domestic aquaculture industry, the government plans to finalize a decree to resume exports, citing the economic benefits and potential to reduce smuggling.

Finance and support are key to fishers adopting eco-friendly gear, study shows
- Access to financing, the support of a peer group, and a general awareness of environmental problems are all factors that make it more likely a fisher will switch to using eco-friendly gear, a new study shows.
- The findings come from a three-month survey of nearly 650 blue swimming crab fishers on the north coast of the Indonesian island of Java.
- It found that those who made the switch also enjoyed significantly higher production and profitability, while also reducing their catch of egg-bearing female crabs, thus helping the sustainability of stocks.
- The study authors say these factors should provide valuable insights for fisheries policymakers in Indonesia and other less-industrialized countries.

To help beleaguered Javan rhinos, study calls for tree felling, captive breeding
- The sole remaining population of Javan rhinos, around 70 individuals, persists in a single national park in Indonesia.
- A new paper argues that conservationists should clear some areas of the park to increase feeding areas for rhinos, and create a captive-breeding program for the species.
- Recent government reports indicate that 13 of the remaining Javan rhinos display congenital defects, likely due to inbreeding.
- Despite intensive monitoring by camera trap, scientists know relatively little about the species’ reproductive behavior and breeding patterns.

Indonesia remembers Kuntoro Mangkusubroto, rare policymaker who stood for nature
- Kuntoro Mangkusubroto, a respected Indonesian policymaker and environmentalist, passed away earlier this month, leaving behind a legacy of dedicated and direct leadership.
- Kuntoro’s lifelong dedication to environmental causes, including his support for Indigenous rights, was rooted in his early years as a nature lover.
- His former colleagues and collaborators recall Kuntoro’s integrity and commitment to balancing developmental and environmental interests.
- His ability to find common ground among diverse stakeholders, address challenges with innovative solutions, and emphasize the well-being of Indigenous communities showcased a practical leadership style with a lasting impact.

Farewell, Java stingaree: Scientists declare the first marine fish extinction
- In December 2023, scientists declared the Java stingaree (Urolophus javanicus), a species of stingray, extinct.
- It’s the first marine fish confirmed to have gone extinct due to human actions.
- Scientists know very little about the species, which they haven’t spotted since a naturalist purchased the specimen from which he described the species at a fish market in Jakarta in 1862.

Indonesia delays enforcement of widely panned fisheries policy
- The Indonesian government has pushed back the implementation of a new fisheries policy based on catch quotas amid near-universal criticism from stakeholders.
- The fisheries ministry said the year-long delay would allow more time to prepare the fundamental infrastructure, but some observers speculated it was likely also linked to political factors.
- The quota-based fisheries management policy, introduced in March this year, will have affected industrial, local and noncommercial fishers, while small fishers are exempted from the quota.
- The fisheries ministry, however, said it would use the extended time to increase efforts for public outreach, education and gaining support for the implementation of the new policy.

Iconic Indonesian raptor still threatened by habitat degradation, isolation
- The latest survey has showed an increase in population of the Javan hawk-eagle, an iconic bird of prey endemic to Indonesia, from the previous survey carried out in 2009.
- Still, the research also found habitat isolation is a growing concern, linked to the small size of forest patches as primary forest is lost due to human activity.
- The Javan hawk-eagle heavily relies on primary forests for breeding, particularly for the tall trees in which it builds its nests.
- The hawk-eagle is Indonesia’s national bird, and conservation efforts were meant to boost its population by 10% from a 2019 baseline; this hasn’t happened, according to the recent survey.

Java farmers displaced by dam remain treading water after decades
- Farmers displaced by Indonesia’s Jatigede Dam have been forced to find new livelihoods or move to different regions of the archipelago.
- Many families were paid the equivalent of just 50 U.S. cents per square meter of land at the time, or 4.5 cents per square foot, as land acquisition accelerated in the 1980s.
- Indonesia’s second-largest dam is about to commence operation as a 110-megawatt hydroelectric plant, in addition to providing irrigation water for around 1 million farmers.

Key Indonesian fish populations depleted & new assessments needed, study shows
- The wild populations that sustain a significant Indonesian fishery are more depleted than the government had estimated, as highlighted by a recent scientific study.
- The authors have called for a reevaluation of the method used to assess fish stocks to address the overexploitation of these populations.
- The Indonesian deep-slope demersal fisheries have helped position Indonesia to be the world’s second-largest exporter of snapper species.

Indonesia renews effort to resume controversial lobster larvae exports
- The Indonesian government is drafting a new policy that could allow the resumption of lobster larvae exports, which were banned in 2016 to prevent overharvesting of wild stocks.
- The fisheries ministry says a resumption is necessary to boost local fishers’ earnings and develop the domestic aquaculture industry.
- However, critics say the new policy mirrors a previous attempt to resume exports in 2020, which spawned a corruption scandal that led to the fisheries minister at the time being jailed.
- The ministry says this time around the policy will be monitored and enforced more strictly, although questions still remain over how sustainably lobster larvae can be harvested from the wild.

Fisherwomen fight plan for coastal salt farms on Indonesia’s Madura Island
- A group of women in Sumenep district of East Java province is leading a protest against the local government’s proposal to develop a salt farm on 20 hectares (49 acres) of land on the coast of Gersik Putih village.
- In 2009, the local government issued land titles on 73 hectares (180 acres) of land along the coast of Tapakerbau hamlet in Gersik Putih, and all of it was to become salt farms.
- The fishers say the plan could jeopardize their fishing jobs and the sustainability of the marine ecosystem on which they have for generations depended for their livelihoods, and they say they believe the salt ponds have exacerbated the flooding there in recent years.
- The protest in Sumenep is one of many against plans for the development of coastal aquaculture in Indonesia, a country that has the world’s second-longest coastline.

In Indonesia, ‘opportunistic’ whale shark fishery shows gap in species protection
- Indonesia has since 2013 banned the capture, trade and exploitation of whale sharks, a protected species.
- Yet scores of records from 2002-2022 shown whale sharks continue to be butchered and sold along the southeastern coast of Java Island after either beaching or being unintentionally caught by fishers, according to a new study.
- The continuing illegal exploitation shows the need for more awareness raising against it by conservation authorities and groups, experts say.
- Indonesia is home to the longest coastline in Asia, and its waters serve as both a habitat and an important migratory route for species of marine megafauna like whale sharks.

Small-scale fishers in Indonesian isles flag use of banned net by outsiders
- Fishers on a group of small islands in the Java Sea are calling for a crackdown on larger boats using a banned type of seine net in their waters.
- The Masalembu Islands, which lie in one of the most heavily trafficked fishing zones in Indonesia, have frequently seen boats from elsewhere encroach into the near-shore zone that’s reserved for small-scale traditional fishers.
- The local fishers say these bigger boats typically use a cantrang net, banned by the fisheries ministry but still in widespread use amid a lack of law enforcement.
- The fishers have petitioned the government to clearly designate the traditional fishing zone that should be strictly off-limits to these cantrang boats.

Jakarta snags ‘most polluted’ title as air quality plunges and officials dither
- Air pollution in Jakarta has hit such dire levels recently that the Indonesian capital has been named the most polluted city on Earth.
- Both the city and national governments blame vehicle emissions for the problem, yet deny that the more than a dozen coal-fired power plants ringing the city are a factor.
- A court in 2021 found the government liable for improving air quality, but the administration of President Joko Widodo chose to appeal rather than comply with the ruling.
- Now, the president himself is reportedly among the more than 630,000 cases of respiratory illness recorded in Jakarta in the first half of this year.

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