Soil Health and Biodiversity

The Power of Biodiverse Forests to Spread Prosperity: An Example from the Island of Borneo

Currently, companies give limited attention to biodiversity reporting despite expert recommendations to utilize broader cost-benefit analyses of land degradation and land remediation. Forest benefits are often enjoyed by everyone, while the benefits of felling trees or degrading peatlands are concentrated privately and for a brief period of time. In response, a number of investors and governments are beginning to recognize and track the deeper and broader value of forests and the rich biodiversity within them.

In particular, two-thirds of all species on Earth are found in natural forests and maintaining intact forests is critical if we hope to halt the mass extinction crisis. Key biodiversity hotspot areas such as Sundaland in Southeast Asia, Wallacea mainly in Indonesia, and the Atlantic Forest and the Cerrado in Brazil, are threatened by deforestation for agriculture.

On the island of Borneo alone, where there are around 15,000 species of plants (on par with the plant diversity in the entire African content), the following biodiversity attributes are at play:

Lifestyle Benefits – Since 1950, half of the Bornean rainforest in Indonesia and Malaysia has been felled for oil palm plantations. Yet the majority of the local forest village populations are against large-scale deforestation for oil palm production and see biodiverse forests as a critical aspect of their lives, important for access to forest products, clean water, fishing, medicine and recreation. Rural or indigenous residents are often at a political disadvantage and without much choice about the use of their land.

Food Security – Oil palm in places like Borneo may contribute to food insecurity when it is used for biofuel or sold for livestock feed in distant countries instead of used to feed local farm animals. It must be noted that areas already cleared for agriculture can have a net benefit in food security; however, communities may have to wait about four years for the oil palms to reach enough maturity to provide food. This transition period makes the food supply vulnerable.

Water Flow – Rainforests store an abundant amount of water and even create part of their own rainfall. Borneo’s humid climate, maintained all year, is ideal for oil palm trees, which are thirsty plants. In contrast,  large-scale deforestation for oil palm plantations leads to a drier environment and lower yields. In Borneo, hot and dry conditions exacerbated by deforestation and climate change have made certain land no longer financially viable for the production of palm oil. Plantation developers will move on to lusher, less-drained land, thus spreading a degenerative cycle.

Carbon Storage – Intact forests, especially tropical forests, sequester twice as much carbon as planted monocultures. In Borneo, a majority of land clearing is done through the use of fires despite the practice being illegal. These fires release the stored carbon and contribute to Indonesia's large carbon footprint.

While deforestation can result in the loss of many valuable biodiversity attributes, converting monocultures to multi-species forests has been found to generate higher delivery of ecosystem goods and services to humans when applied appropriately. The demand for regenerative agriculture at scale is growing. In September 2019, a coalition of multinational companies formed to identify meaningful solutions at an industry level. Meanwhile, in Borneo, young students and aspiring farmers learn about different techniques, including regenerative agriculture, to re-write and rebuild an industry that can sustain diverse species and the local community.

Biodiversity’s role in providing cultural and public health benefits, food security, water flow, and carbon storage is becoming increasingly evident to stakeholders in the public and private sectors. Its potential additional benefits, such as moderating extreme weather events and preventing erosion, will only become more and more important as the world adapts to climate change.