Work

Managing sustainable expansion of smallholder oil palms with strategic spatial planning of land use

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Conserving Indonesia’s peatlands and forests, especially in Central Kalimantan, is crucial for reducing global carbon emissions. Covering about 3 million hectares of peatland and 7 million hectares of forest, Central Kalimantan is a biodiversity hotspot. In this study, we show spatial patterns of smallholder oil palm expansion, land availability for smallholder farmers and the deforestation situations in different forest zones. We assess environmental and socioeconomic trade-offs under different planning scenarios, including business-as-usual, legal deforestation, and zero deforestation. We identify deforested areas suitable for oil palm based on yield potential and emphasize the importance of protecting remaining forests and peatlands from agricultural expansion. Our findings provide valuable insights for effectively using limited land resources and improving spatial planning for smallholder oil palm expansion. By implementing strategic spatial planning, we can mitigate the threat posed by agricultural conversion of forest and peatland ecosystems.

Source: Journal of Land Use Science

DOI: 10.1080/1747423x.2025.2583927

Authors: Jing Zhao, Mark Cochrane, Janice Lee, Xin Zhang, Andrew Elmore

Institutions: University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, Nanyang Technological University

Language: English

Topic: Oil Palm Production and Sustainability

Subfield: Ecology

Field: Environmental Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDGs: Life on land, Climate action

Open Access status: diamond

Funder: National Aeronautics and Space Administration