location: Sumatra

location: Sumatra

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Censured Sumatra coal plant blamed for sickening children in Indonesia’s Bengkulu
- A 2×100 megawatt coal power plant established by Chinese state-owned enterprise, Power Construction Corporation of China (PowerChina), incurred environmental penalties in 2023 from Indonesia’s environment ministry for dumping fly ash into a protected marine area off the city of Bengkulu in Sumatra.
- Residents of Teluk Sepang in 2019 formed a grassroots organization to advocate for clean air while holding to account PowerChina’s Indonesian affiliate, PT Tenaga Listrik Bengkulu.
- Data from a local clinic in Teluk Sepang showed a large share of young people living in the shadow of the coal plant suffer from respiratory diseases.

Global brands join drive for deforestation-free palm oil in Indonesia’s Aceh
- Major brands including Nestlé, PepsiCo and Unilever have launched the Aceh Sustainable Palm Oil Working Group to align with a new road map for deforestation-free palm oil in the Indonesian province.
- Aceh, on the island of Sumatra, is home to the Leuser Ecosystem and other critical habitats, but has lost nearly 42,000 hectares (104,000 acres) of forest since 2020, much of it driven by expansion of oil palm plantations.
- The initiative aims to boost the livelihoods of smallholder farmers, protect high conservation value forests, and help producers comply with new global rules like the EU Deforestation Regulation.
- While the plan has drawn international backing, civil society groups stress its success depends on ensuring accountability, transparency and sustained pressure to halt illegal deforestation.

Pulp and paper giant APP moves closer to regaining FSC stamp despite pending review
- The Forest Stewardship Council has allowed Asia Pulp & Paper — “one of the world’s most destructive forestry companies” — to resume its remedy process toward regaining certification it lost in 2007 for deforestation and land conflicts.
- Watchdog groups say the decision is premature because a legal review of APP’s links to Paper Excellence/Domtar, the biggest pulp and paper company in North America, is still unfinished.
- Critics warn the move could erode trust, enable greenwashing, and expose communities in conflict with APP-linked companies to further harm.
- NGOs are calling for the remedy process to be paused until the review is completed and for full transparency on corporate ownership and compliance.

How Indonesian companies dodge fines for forest & peatland fires
- While Indonesia’s courts have fined plantation companies more than $21 trillion rupiah ($1.3 billion) for forest and peatland fires, almost none of that money has been collected.
- This fuels a cycle of impunity where fires continue to flare up in concessions already found guilty by court.
- In a common pattern, companies found guilty of burning forests either shield their assets, declare bankruptcy or exploit loopholes to avoid paying.
- Indonesia’s enforcement gaps also allow repeat offenders to continue operating unchecked, profiting from the very land they were banned from using.

World Orangutan Day: Ongoing threats & habitat loss haunt these great apes
Despite years of research into their complex behavior and intelligence, orangutans remain critically endangered on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra, where they’re endemic. Mongabay has extensively covered the threats they face from habitat degradation and what studies say about how human activities affect them. This World Orangutan Day, on Aug. 19, we take a […]
NASA satellites show surge in Indonesia hotspots as 2025 fires send smoke to Malaysia
- NASA satellite data show a dramatic uptick in fire hotspots across Indonesia, with smoke from Sumatra detected in Malaysia in late July.
- The July spike follows early warning signs in May and June, with most fires detected in peatlands and fire-prone agricultural areas, raising alarms over worsening air quality, public health, and environmental damage.
- Activists warn the 2025 fire season could be one of the worst in recent memory, rivaling past disaster years.
- The crisis unfolds a decade after Indonesia’s 2015 fire disaster, which burned 2.6 million hectares, caused an estimated 100,000 premature deaths, and triggered a regional haze crisis affecting Singapore and Malaysia.

As Indonesia reclaims forests from palm oil, smallholders bear brunt of enforcement
- Indonesian authorities have reclaimed 2 million hectares (5 million acres) of forest from illegal oil palm plantations under a militarized crackdown, but critics say it disproportionately targets Indigenous communities and smallholders while sparing large corporations, deepening land inequality.
- Much of the reclaimed land is being handed over to state-owned plantation company PT Agrinas Palma Nusantara, raising concerns that private monopolies are being replaced by a state one, with some communities pushed into profit-sharing schemes critics call exploitative.
- In biodiversity-rich Tesso Nilo National Park, thousands of families are being forcibly evicted, while powerful figures like a local legislator evade sanctions, highlighting a two-tiered policing system.
- Activists are calling for a new forestry law to address outdated legislation, protect Indigenous land rights, mandate ecological restoration, and close legal loopholes that allow corporate violators to avoid accountability.

Civil society challenges Indonesian deregulation law over rights and environment
- Indonesia’s controversial Job Creation Law is facing new legal challenges from civil society groups who say it weakens environmental protections and human rights.
- One lawsuit targets provisions that restrict public involvement in environmental impact assessments and remove key legal tools for opposing harmful projects.
- A second lawsuit challenges special privileges granted to large-scale infrastructure projects, accusing the law of facilitating forced evictions and land grabs.
- A case study cited in the legal battle is the Rempang Eco City project, which residents say has displaced Indigenous communities without their consent and through the use of violence.

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.

Hope and frustration as Indonesia pilots FSC’s logging remedy framework
- Indonesia is the first test case for the Forest Stewardship Council’s new remedy framework, which allows logging firms to regain ethical certification by addressing past environmental and social harms.
- However, NGOs have found serious flaws in the process, including lack of consent, rushed assessments, and exclusion of many affected Indigenous communities.
- The process also faces backlash over poor transparency, intimidation of Indigenous rights activist, and allegations of undisclosed corporate ties to ongoing deforestation.
- Some communities see the framework as a rare chance to reclaim land and rights — but only if it becomes truly fair and accountable.

Listings of Indonesian islands renew fears of privatization for coastal communities
- Listings of Indonesian islands on a foreign real estate site have sparked concerns about privatization, prompting the government to block the site domestically and clarify that islands cannot be sold to foreign entities under national law.
- Officials said the listings were likely aimed at attracting investment, not outright sales, but critics warn such practices enable control over island and offshore areas, often displacing fishers and triggering land conflicts.
- A 2021 regulation allows foreign investors to lease small islands for up to $1,900 per km² per year, and a government portal launched in 2024 streamlines permits for islands smaller than 2,000 km², accelerating commercialization.
- Watchdogs say 254 small islands have already been privatized, often without adequate oversight, and warn that unchecked investment could jeopardize fisher livelihoods and national sovereignty over maritime territories.

Mentawai’s primates are vanishing. One hunter is trying to save them.
Founder’s Briefs: An occasional series where Mongabay founder Rhett Ayers Butler shares analysis, perspectives and story summaries. In the jungles of Siberut Island, the cries of the bilou once echoed freely. Now, they’re harder to hear. Siberut is the largest of the Mentawai Islands, an archipelago off western Sumatra, Indonesia, where a battle is unfolding […]
Pay-to-release program reduces shark deaths, but backfires in some cases
- A pay-to-release program for threatened sharks and rays significantly reduced bycatch in Indonesia, with 71% of wedgefish and 4% of hammerheads released alive; but it also led some fishers to intentionally catch these species to claim incentives.
- Unequal payments across regions (ranging from $1 to $135 per fish) and the absence of national protective laws have complicated conservation efforts in key fishing areas like East Lombok and Aceh Jaya.
- A rigorous randomized controlled trial revealed unintended consequences: wedgefish mortality dropped by just 25%, while hammerhead mortality rose by 44% due to incentive-driven targeting.
- Local NGO KUL, which runs the program, has revised it to limit payouts and promote gear swaps, aiming to better align conservation outcomes with fisher livelihoods in the world’s top shark- and ray-catching nation.

A fragile win as Indonesia cancels high-risk mine permit after court ruling
- Indonesia’s environment ministry has finally revoked a permit for a controversial zinc-and-lead mine in earthquake-prone Dairi district, following a Supreme Court ruling and years of community protests over safety and environmental risks.
- The court last August found the mine’s planned tailings dam posed unacceptable dangers due to high seismic activity, landslide risk, and unstable terrain; experts called the location one of the worst possible sites for such a project.
- The revocation sets a legal precedent by confirming that environmental approvals under Indonesia’s deregulation law can be challenged in court, strengthening public access to environmental justice.
- Despite the ruling, concerns persist that developer PT Dairi Prima Mineral may seek a new permit, as similar cases have seen revoked projects revived; activists urge the government and China, a key investor, to respect the court decision.

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.

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.

Indigenous conservationists lead the fight to save Mentawai’s endangered primates
- Five of the six nonhuman primate species found in the Indonesia’s Mentawai Islands have traditionally been hunted; traditional beliefs forbid killing the sixth, Kloss’s gibbon, or bilou.
- With widespread deforestation and the erosion of traditional practices that governed hunting behavior, all of the islands’ primates are now endangered or critically endangered.
- Malinggai Uma Tradisional Mentawai, a grassroots, Indigenous-led organization, is working with communities to protect primates within the framework of Indigenous Mentawai customs.

Sumatran tiger protection needs more patrols, tougher penalties, study finds
- A new study on Sumatran tiger conservation in Indonesia’s Gunung Leuser National Park underscores that poaching remains the top threat, despite extensive patrols and antitrafficking efforts over the past decade.
- Researchers found that while patrols removed hundreds of snares and law enforcement increasingly pursued criminal charges, poaching rates remained high and tiger populations continued to decline in some areas.
- Despite stricter conservation laws and improved prosecution rates, the financial rewards of poaching still outweigh the penalties, limiting the deterrent effect on poachers and traffickers.
- The study recommends increasing patrols in high-risk areas, improving community engagement in law enforcement, and providing alternative livelihoods to reduce the economic lure of poaching.

Indonesia court hands down ‘heaviest sentence’ yet for tiger poacher in Sumatra
A court in Indonesia has sentenced a man to five years in prison for the killing of a critically endangered Sumatran tiger in September last year in North Sumatra province. “As far as I know, it’s the heaviest sentence ever imposed for crimes involving protected wildlife in Indonesia,” Iding Achmad Haidir, chair of the Sumatran […]
Critically endangered Sumatran elephant found dead near Leuser; cause uncertain
LANGKAT, Indonesia — A critically endangered Sumatran elephant was found dead April 4 on the border of the Gunung Leuser National Park in Sumatra’s Langkat district, officials said. The elephant was male, around 10 years old, and weighed no more than 2 tons. Officials said they believe the individual had been dead for several days […]
Illegal trafficking of siamang gibbons is a concerning and underreported crisis (commentary)
- As authorities have continued to criminalize great ape trafficking, “small apes” like gibbons, which are also coveted by the illegal pet trade and whose trade is also lucrative, are likely to see an increasing threat to their long-term survival if nations don’t act to protect them too, a new op-ed states.
- Of all gibbon species, the siamang is the most trafficked, making it one of the most, if not the most trafficked ape species, as highlighted by a recent siamang trafficking bust at a major Indian airport.
- “Urgent action is needed to combat this ongoing crisis before the song of the siamang and other gibbons vanishes from the forests of Sumatra,” the author argues.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily Mongabay.

Snared, skinned, sold: Brutal March for Indonesia’s Sumatran tigers
- Police in Indonesia charged at least 11 people in the month of March with wildlife crimes after a tiger was butchered in Riau province and alleged traffickers were found with body parts in the semiautonomous province of Aceh.
- In West Sumatra province, conservation officials successfully trapped a young female tiger whose leg had previously been amputated, likely in a snare trap.
- Sumatran tigers are a critically endangered subspecies of tiger and fewer than 400 are believed to remain in the wild.

Indonesia’s peatlands face growing flood risks amid widespread degradation
- Nearly half of Indonesia’s peatlands are vulnerable to flooding due to degradation from exploitation, with 6 million hectares (15 million acres) — twice the size of Belgium — highly at risk.
- Peatland drainage, subsidence and fires have significantly reduced the water retention capacity of these carbon-rich ecosystems, leading to inland and coastal flooding, particularly in Sumatra and Borneo.
- Despite efforts to curb exploitation, industrial activities continue to degrade peatlands, with 33% of peat hydrological units overlapping with concessions for oil palms and pulpwood plantations.
- National and international policies, like the EU Deforestation Regulation, fail to fully address peatland degradation as a form of deforestation, prompting calls for stricter regulations and corporate accountability.

Indonesians suing pulpwood firms over haze face intimidation, seek human rights protection
- A group of South Sumatran residents suing three pulpwood companies for recurring haze pollution has sought protection from Indonesian human rights commission, citing intimidation, including bribes and threats.
- The lawsuit highlights violations of the right to a healthy environment, as recurring fires on company concessions have caused severe air pollution, harming residents’ health, education and livelihoods.
- The case, which seeks both financial compensation and environmental restoration, is now in the evidentiary stage after mediation failed, and could set a precedent for corporate responsibility in Indonesia’s recurring haze crisis.
- Despite the threats, plaintiffs like Yeyen say they remain committed to the fight for justice and environmental protection, emphasizing the need for corporate accountability and a healthier future for all Indonesians.

Sumatran culinary heritage at risk as environment changes around Silk Road river
- Research shows that landscape changes across the Musi River Basin in Indonesia’s South Sumatra province risks food security across the river delta as fish stocks diminish and protein availability declines, including in the provincial capital, Palembang.
- Some fish traders and artisans in the city of 1.8 million worry culinary culture in Palembang is becoming endangered as rising sedimentation in the Musi River threatens the freshwater snakehead murrel fish.
- Reporting in March, during the fasting month of Ramadan, showed prices of food staples made from this fish increasing sharply from previous months as demand surged for fast-breaking events.

Indonesia’s Indigenous Akit community faces exploitation & land loss (commentary)
- For the Akit tribe of Sumatra and countless other Indigenous communities, their land is more than what provides their livelihoods. Rather, it is their past, present, and future, and more than that, it is like their body, a new op-ed explains.
- But the Akit community has steadily seen rights to its territory eroded, as the land continues to fall into the possession of private companies.
- “Respecting Indigenous self-determination is not just a matter of justice, but a journey to a more resilient future,” the authors argue.
- This article is a commentary. The views expressed are those of the authors, not necessarily Mongabay.

Global outcry as petitioners demand no mining expansion in orangutan habitat
- Nearly 200,000 people have signed a petition urging U.K. multinational Jardine Matheson to halt the expansion of the Martabe gold mine in Indonesia’s Batang Toru Forest, home to the critically endangered Tapanuli orangutan.
- Agincourt Resources, a subsidiary of Jardine’s Astra International, plans to clear up to 583 hectares (1,441 acres) of forest for a new mining waste facility, which conservationists warn will push the Tapanuli orangutan closer to extinction and harm other protected species.
- Environmental groups accuse Jardines of misleading sustainability claims and the Indonesian government of failing to enforce conservation laws, despite awarding Agincourt a “green” compliance rating.
- Protesters have demanded Jardines adopt a “no deforestation, no peat, no exploitation” (NDPE) policy for its mining operations and provide clarity on conflicting deforestation figures and the compliance of its expansion plan with its approved permits.

Indonesian watchdog demands prosecution for environmental crime ‘cartels’
- Indonesia’s largest environmental group, Walhi, has filed a complaint with the Attorney General’s Office, accusing 47 companies in the palm oil, mining and forestry sectors of corruption and environmental destruction, allegedly causing 437 trillion rupiah ($26.5 billion) in state losses.
- Walhi identified 18 forms of corruption, including government officials altering forest status to legalize deforestation, granting permits for illegal concessions, and accepting bribes to ignore violations.
- Notable examples include a palm oil company that allegedly cleared 1,706 hectares (4,215 acres) of forest in Aceh province before obtaining an environmental permit, and nickel mining in North Maluku that has devastated marine ecosystems.
- The AGO has confirmed receipt of Walhi’s complaint, and said that it will pursue allegations of corruption in those cases; however, it noted that any environmental violations would fall under the jurisdiction of other agencies.

Tragedy haunts community on shore of Sumatra’s largest solar farm
- A joint venture between Indonesia’s state-owned electricity utility PLN and Saudi developer ACWA Power says it remains on track to build Sumatra’s largest floating solar power array on Lake Singkarak by 2027.
- The renewable energy project’s managers face a difficult task on the ground getting local community members on board with the project, given lingering memories of a flash flood 25 years earlier linked to a hydroelectric plant.
- Local fishers told Mongabay Indonesia they also fear the installation of solar panels on the lake’s surface will impact the stocks of the fish they rely on as their primary source of income.
- Indonesia has set ambitious renewable energy goals to meet its international climate change commitments, but several energy transition projects are creating new land conflicts and cases of displacement across the world’s fourth most populous country.

Illegal seabed dredging surges as Indonesia resumes sand exports
- Reports of unauthorized seabed dredging have surged following Indonesia’s decision to resume sea sand exports in 2023, raising environmental concerns and exposing weak marine law enforcement.
- Officials argue that removing sediment helps ocean health and prevents land buildup, but experts and activists warn the policy contradicts marine conservation efforts and lacks transparency.
- Dredging threatens mangroves, coral reefs, and fish populations, with projected losses to fishing communities far outweighing state revenue and corporate profits.
- Experts urge the government to reinstate the export ban, conduct thorough environmental impact assessments, and allocate funds for ecological restoration and affected communities.

Volunteer radio station brings old media to remote Sumatran tiger habitat
- A volunteer radio station established by environmental nonprofits and staffed by local community members is bringing news and entertainment to villages around Bukit Rimbang Baling Wildlife Sanctuary, a Sumatran tiger habitat in Indonesia’s Riau province.
- Young volunteers at the station interned at a radio station on Java Island, where they learned to broadcast and repair transmitters in the remote Sumatran forest, which is inaccessible by road and has almost no cellphone service.
- The radio station offers a means for young people in disparate communities to share ideas and information on the economy and environment.

Unchecked illegal trawling pushes Indonesia’s small-scale fishers to the brink
- Small-scale fishers in Indonesia face declining catches as illegal trawlers deplete fish stocks in near-shore waters, violating exclusion zone regulations.
- Trawling, a destructive fishing method banned in certain areas, is widely practiced due to weak law enforcement, with local authorities citing budget constraints for lack of patrols.
- The impact on traditional fishers has been severe, with daily catches and incomes plummeting, leading to economic hardship, job changes and social issues, such as increased poverty and divorce rates.
- Fishers and advocacy groups are calling for stricter enforcement of fishing laws and government action to protect small-scale fishers’ rights and livelihoods.

Surge in legal land clearing pushes up Indonesia deforestation rate in 2024
- Indonesia’s deforestation increased in 2024 to its highest level since 2021, with forest area four times the size of Jakarta lost; 97% of this occurred within legal concessions, highlighting a shift from illegal to legal deforestation.
- More than half of the forest loss affected critical habitats for threatened species like orangutans, tigers and elephants, particularly in Borneo and Sumatra.
- Key industries driving deforestation include palm oil, pulpwood, and nickel mining, with significant deforestation in Kalimantan, Sumatra and Papua; a new pulp mill in Kalimantan in particular may be driving aggressive land clearing.
- Despite an existing moratorium on new forest-clearance permits, there’s no protection for forests within existing concessions, allowing continued deforestation, and spurring calls for stronger policies to safeguard remaining natural forests.

Mother of 2 jailed in Sumatra as wildfires dragnet continues to catch small farmers
- A court in Jambi province on the Indonesian island of Sumatra has sentenced a local woman to one year and four months in prison for using fire to clear farmland, a traditional practice among smallholder farmers.
- Indonesia’s laws technically allow small farmers to use controlled burning in certain circumstances, but conflicting regulations and government crackdowns have led to harsh penalties for individuals like Dewita.
- A 2023 Mongabay investigation found that more than 200 farmers across Indonesian Borneo had been convicted for land burning since the country’s 2015 wildfire crisis, highlighting systemic targeting of smallholders.
- While hundreds of small farmers have been prosecuted for land burning, large plantation companies responsible for far more extensive fires rarely face criminal charges.

Coming to a retailer near you: Illegal palm oil from an orangutan haven
- A surge of deforestation for oil palm plantations in a Sumatran orangutan reserve means top consumer brands may be selling products with illegal oil palm in them, a new report says.
- Rainforest Action Network (RAN) says satellite imagery shows much of the deforestation in Rawa Singkil Wildlife Reserve occurred from 2021 onward.
- That means any palm oil produced from plantations established on land cleared during that time would be banned from entering the European market under the EU’s antideforestation regulation (EUDR).
- Brands such as Procter & Gamble and palm oil traders like Musim Mas have responded to the findings by dropping as suppliers the mills alleged to be processing palm fruit from the deforested areas.

Indonesian scientist under fire for revealing extent of illegal tin mining
- An Indonesian forensic scientist whose testimony has proved crucial in securing rulings against environmental violators faces a third potential lawsuit.
- A complaint filed with police alleges that Bambang Hero Saharjo lacked competence to assess the damages in an illegal tin laundering case, which he calculated had caused more than $16 billion in environmental damages.
- Bambang’s testimony has led to several convictions in court, including for the CEO of Indonesia’s biggest tin miner.
- Prosecutors have defended his assessment, and activists say the campaign against him is a systematic attempt to silence him from speaking out against environmental crimes.

On Indonesia’s unique Enggano Island, palm oil takes root in an Indigenous society
- Formed millions of years ago in the Indian Ocean by a process independent of tectonic collision, Indonesia’s Enggano Island is now home to many unique species and a diverse Indigenous society of subsistence farmers.
- Since the early 1990s, developers have sought to obtain control over large parts of the island, but encountered staunch opposition from its six Indigenous tribes.
- Today, PT Sumber Enggano Tabarak, which has been linked to the billionaire-owned London Sumatra group, is seeking to establish an oil palm plantation over 15,000 hectares (37,000 acres).
- Civil society researchers and Indigenous elders say the island lacks sufficient freshwater to provide irrigation to both the community and an industrial oil palm plantation, and that a plantation at scale risks catalyzing an ecological crisis.

Satellite data show bursts of deforestation continue in Indonesian national park
- Tesso Nilo National Park was created to protect one of the largest remaining tracts of lowland forest on the island of Sumatra, and as a refuge for threatened wildlife such as critically endangered Sumatran tigers and elephants.
- Despite being declared a National Park in 2004 and expanded in 2009, Tesso Nilo has experienced continued deforestation in recent years, largely driven by the proliferation of oil palm plantations.
- Satellite data show Tesso Nilo lost 78% of its old growth rainforest between 2009 and 2023.
- Preliminary data for 2024, coupled with satellite imagery, show continued forest loss this year.

As Sumatra loses mangroves to oil palms, local fishers also suffer
- Interviews in Kwala Langkat, a fishing village in Indonesia’s Langkat district, along the Malacca Strait, suggest fisheries incomes have collapsed after local elites ripped out a mangrove ecosystem to establish a new oil palm plantation.
- In June, Mongabay reported that police had arrested three residents of Kwala Langkat village in connection with alleged criminal damage to a structure used on the oil palm plantation.
- More than a third of the world’s population today lives within 100 kilometers (60 miles) of the coast, a more than 50% increase in absolute terms compared with 30 years ago.

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.

Indonesian mother imprisoned for protesting palm oil factory next to school
- Gustina Salim Rambe, a mother from North Sumatra province, was sentenced in October to more than five months in prison following a demonstration against a palm oil factory built adjacent to two schools in Pulo Padang village.
- Representatives in Indonesia’s national Parliament had urged police to apply principles of “restorative justice” rather than criminalize Gustina.
- Civil society advocates pointed to separate regulations and laws that should protect from prosecution people who speak out against alleged environmental abuses.
- From 2019-24, Amnesty International recorded similar cases affecting 454 civil society advocate in Indonesia.

Canopy bridges serve a lifeline for Sumatra’s tree-dwelling primates
- An NGO is working with local authorities in Indonesia’s North Sumatra province to build canopy bridges for primates to safely cross roads that fragment their forest habitats.
- Pakpak Bharat district has seen rapid growth of new roads to improve communities’ access to schools and hospitals, with the trade-off being that many of these roads disrupt wildlife connectivity.
- The bridges, designed to meet the needs of different species, have been used by various wildlife, though not yet the critically endangered orangutans that the designers had in mind, and are monitored regularly through camera traps and maintenance checks.
- Conservationists highlight the bridges’ role in preventing inbreeding among isolated populations and sustaining the ecosystem’s biodiversity, with hopes to expand the initiative across Sumatra.

Orangutan conservation and communication: Gary Shapiro’s half-century journey from zoos to the wilds of Borneo
- Gary Shapiro’s work on orangutan cognition and communication spans five decades, beginning with his pioneering studies teaching sign language to ex-captive orangutans in Borneo.
- His research evolved into a lifelong commitment to orangutan conservation, leading him to co-found organizations like Orangutan Foundation International, focusing on protecting orangutans and their rainforest habitats from logging and palm oil plantations.
- Shapiro advocates for “orangutan personhood,” emphasizing their intellectual and emotional capacities, and calls for global action to save both the orangutans and their critical habitats amidst the ongoing climate and biodiversity crises.
- Shapiro recently spoke with Mongabay Founder and CEO Rhett Ayers Butler about his work and the state of orangutans in the wild.

Sumatra citizen lawsuit seeks accountability for haze-causing fires
- Three companies that manage pulpwood plantations in Indonesia are facing a citizen lawsuit over repeated fires on their concessions that have been blamed for illnesses and other disruptions.
- The companies are located in South Sumatra province and are all suppliers to Asia Pulp & Paper, the largest pulp and paper producer in Indonesia.
- In the lawsuit, residents of areas affected by haze from the fires say they want the companies to know that “what they are doing is wrong because it damages our families and the environment.”
- Citizen lawsuits are increasingly being used by communities across Indonesia to hold companies accountable for environmental damage, amid rising dissatisfaction with the inability of law enforcement to crack down on serial violators.

For Indonesian oil palm farmers, EU’s deforestation law is another top-down imposition
- By the end of this year, exporters of products derived from palm oil and six other agricultural commodities to Europe will be required to comply with the newly enacted EU Regulation on Deforestation Free Products, or EUDR.
- The law requires exporters to prove the commodities were not produced on recently deforested land, and that their supply chains are free of human rights abuses and environmental violations.
- Experts say compliance will likely be a struggle for small farmers, who sell their crops through chains of intermediaries, and who often lack clear land titles even on long-settled land.
- During reporting in Indonesia’s North Aceh province, oil palm smallholders told Mongabay they weren’t even aware of the EUDR, let alone prepared to comply with it.

‘Stop the stupidity’: Indonesia’s top court orders end to mine in quake zone
- Indonesia’s highest court has ordered the revocation of the environmental permit for a zinc-and-lead mine being built in a seismically active zone in Sumatra.
- The ruling upholds a lower court’s decision last year that sided with independent scientific analysis that the region was far too prone to earthquake risk for the planned mine and its waste dump to be feasible.
- Residents of communities living near the planned mine in Dairi district, North Sumatra province, have welcomed the ruling, saying they hope it puts “a stop to this stupidity.”
- The mining developer’s Chinese and Indonesian backers, however, say they will appeal the ruling, and there’s no indication the environment ministry will comply with the order to revoke the permit.

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.

Indonesia’s Farwiza Farhan among Ramon Magsaysay awardees for protecting Leuser Ecosystem
- Indonesian conservationist Farwiza Farhan says she was moved to tears upon learning she’d been awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Emergent Leadership, recognizing her work in protecting the Leuser Ecosystem.
- As the founder of the conservation NGO HAkA, she was instrumental in securing a $26 million court fine against a palm oil company and halting a dam project threatening the Leuser Ecosystem, a key biodiversity hotspot in northern Sumatra.
- The award also highlights her efforts to overcome gender-based discrimination and involve women in conservation activities in the most staunchly conservative province in Indonesia.
- Farwiza said she plans to continue her work by developing a conservation school in Leuser.

A one-time illegal logger grows back a forest for his people in Sumatra
- Efron Simanjuntak, once a successful illegal logger in Sumatra, became a committed forest protector after realizing the impact logging had on the livelihoods of villagers and the environment.
- After serving time in prison, Efron began replanting trees that produce resin, such as frankincense and pine, as part of his efforts to restore the damaged forest and ensure a sustainable income for his community.
- Efron credits being indebted to his ancestors and his role in protecting his family’s frankincense-farming heritage as key to his desire to protect the forest.
- Along with civil society organizations, Efron fought for the recognition of his village’s customary forest by the government, which was finally achieved in August 2024, giving his community stronger legal status to protect their forest from outside threats.

Indonesia expands IPLC land recognition — but the pace is too slow, critics say
- Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo has issued land titles for more than 1 million hectares (2.47 million acres) to Indigenous peoples and local communities (IPLCs), bringing the total extent of IPLC-recognized areas to 8 million hectares (19.77 million acres) nationwide.
- But activists say the pace of recognition for IPLC land rights is slow; the Ancestral Domain Registration Agency (BRWA) has so far mapped 30.1 million hectares (74.4 million acres) of IPLC territories across Indonesia, including forests, rivers and sea.
- Advocates say that having a specific law on Indigenous rights would greatly help IPLCs to have their land rights formally recognized by the government by providing a legal framework that acknowledges and protects the rights of communities.

Sumatran province brings hammer down on illegal oil wells after fatal blasts
- Indonesia’s South Sumatra province was the site of some of the archipelago’s largest oil discoveries by U.S. and Dutch companies during the early 20th century.
- After many wells were abandoned in the 1990s, thousands of farmers who previously tapped rubber moved into freelance oil extraction.
- Fatal explosions at illegal drilling sites this year have prompted the province to form a task force to oversee a crackdown on the sector, which in some locations accounts for more than a third of local employment.

Sumatran tiger confirmed killed by snare in Indonesia’s West Sumatra province
- Officials have confirmed that a Sumatran tiger was found killed by a snare in Indonesia’s West Sumatra province in late July, after farmers had reported encounters with the animal in human settlements over a period of around four months.
- The Sumatran tiger remains the most threatened tiger subspecies in the world, with fewer than 400 individuals estimated to remain in the wilds of Sumatra.
- Tiger species endemic to the Indonesian islands of Java and Bali were declared extinct during the 20th century following decades of hunting and deforestation.
- Researchers are calling for the various conservation and protected forests in West Sumatra and to unified into a single national park and for increased government regulation on snares.

Sumatra community school hands down ancient knowledge to modern generation
- A community near an ancient Buddhist archaeological site on Indonesia’s Sumatra Island has established a voluntary school to teach young people history and culture that dates back centuries.
- The curriculum includes the identification and application of medicinal plants used for generations by traditional healers like Mbok Hawo, a healer in her 60s.
- The founders of the school told Mongabay that the idea for the initiative sprang from worry that changes in society threatened to eclipse cultural heritage, and that preserving this ancient knowledge remained vital to local identity in Muaro Jambi.

Sumatra pulp & paper giants violate zero-deforestation pledge, activists allege
- An investigation by an NGO coalition in Indonesia alleges that two pulp and paper giants — Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) and Asia Pacific Resources International Holdings Ltd. (APRIL) — have cleared natural forests and peatlands in violation of their zero-deforestation pledges.
- The allegations center on a concession operated by PT Riau Andalan Pulp & Paper (RAPP) in Siak district of Riau province, a concession managed by an open market supplier to APRIL, PT Selaras Abadi Utama (SAU), in Pelalawan district of Riau province, and a block of land in Riau managed by a local cooperative that has a working agreement with an APP subsidiary, PT Arara Abadi (AA).
- APRIL reiterated its commitment to sustainability and zero-deforestation and APP denied that any illegal timber had entered its supply chain.

In Indonesia’s Aceh, a once-isolated forest hosts local travelers on bamboo rafts
- In the semiautonomous region of Aceh, an Indigenous community has repurposed the bamboo rafts they use to commute downriver to sell tourism services to nearby urban settlements.
- The forests of Samar Kilang were once out of reach of Indonesia’s economy, until road access enabled local people to travel into the highlands.
- The nonprofit Katahati Institute has been working with women in Samar Kilang to market nontimber forest products and support the community’s ecotourism venture.

Water is key as study shows restoration of drained tropical peat is possible
- Rewetting of tropical peatland that was drained for agriculture can lead to the recovery of the native ecosystem, a long-term study of a former pulpwood plantation in Indonesia shows.
- Researchers studying the 4,800-hectare (11,900-acre) plot that was retired in 2015 by Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) found the water table had risen, soil carbon emissions had gone down, and native trees were springing up and replacing the planted acacia pulpwoods.
- They attributed these outcomes to APP’s efforts to rewet the peat by blocking the canals previously dug to drain the waterlogged soil.
- The findings suggest that “several million” hectares of peatlands in similar condition can be restored this way, “should plantation owners aim to restore forest in parts or all of their peatlands.”

Unrest and arrests in Sumatra as community fights to protect mangroves
- Police in Indonesia’s Langkat district, North Sumatra province, arrested three people in April and May over alleged criminal damage linked to a conflict over a local mangrove forest.
- Civil society organizations in North Sumatra allege that local elites have established oil palm plantations on scores of hectares zoned as protected forest.
- They also allege that these individuals have hired thugs to intimidate local residents who oppose the clearing of mangrove forests to plantations.

Analysis: Michelin’s no-deforestation claims in Indonesia rubber plantation a stretch
- Rubber manufacturer Michelin claims to have avoided millions of tons of carbon emissions and saved thousands of hectares of primary forest in a sustainable rubber plantation project in Indonesia.
- Michelin joined the project in 2014 after buying a stake in the Indonesian rubber company RLU, which in 2018 raised $95 million in green bonds. In 2022, Michelin became RLU’s sole shareholder, and repaid the green bonds raised by the project.
- Reporting by independent media outlet Voxeurop, published in 2022, revealed that deforestation in the RLU concession surged immediately before the company made no-deforestation commitments in 2015, resulting in the loss of critical wildlife habitat.
- In this analysis, Voxeurop reporter Stefano Valentino looks at what has happened with the project since Michelin made its no-deforestation commitments, finding ongoing loss of forest within the company’s concessions.

Floods set to worsen on Sumatra peat as landscape gives way
- A major flood at the turn of the year in Indonesia’s Riau province caused long-term traffic gridlock affecting thousands, with attendant knock-on effects for economic activity in the region.
- One of Riau’s leading experts on peat hydrology told Mongabay that deterioration of the province’s carbon-rich peatland increases risks of disastrous flooding owing to reduced drainage, among other factors.
- Indonesia’s peatland restoration agency said it had worked to rehabilitate 223,258 hectares (551,683 acres) of peat in Riau by end-2023, although large areas requiring urgent restoration work can’t be accessed because they’re located in private plantation concessions.

Mysterious, at risk, understudied flat-headed cat lacks conservation focus
- Little is known about the elusive flat-headed cat, a cryptic Southeast Asian felid that’s found in Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo and southern Thailand.
- This cat is endangered due to its habitat being converted to agricultural lands (including oil palm plantations), pollution and hunting. The small felid confounds researchers who struggle to capture it on camera traps, leaving huge knowledge gaps about its distribution and ecology.
- But collaring of the cat and tailored research is helping fill data gaps, with conservationists now planning range-wide targeted surveys and tagging efforts. Innovative research techniques, such as eDNA, could shed further light on populations, but these methods face their own implementation challenges.
- Protecting the flat-headed cat in the face of multiple threats requires more targeted research, much better funding, and specific targeted conservation action that is currently lacking.

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