Deforestation Affects Four Key Animals in Aceh, Including Sumatran Elephants

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Aceh Conservation and Natural Resources Agency (BKSDA) assesses that deforestation has caused wildlife in the forest of Aceh to become increasingly isolated.

"Deforestation caused habitat fragmentation on key animals so they become isolated," said Aceh BKSDA Forestry Police Coordinator, Rahmat, as quoted by Antara in Banda Aceh on Monday, March 4, 2024.

Rahmat said that Aceh has four key animals. The first is the Sumatran elephant (Elephas maximus sumatranus) whose population is estimated to be around 1,100 individuals. The next key animal is the Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii) with an estimated population of 1,400 individuals.

"What is worrying is that there are only around 170-200 Sumatran tigers (Panthera tigris sumatrae) left, and only 20 left for the Sumatran rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis). They are no longer united, their groups have separated," said Rahmat.

Referring to data from the Aceh Environment and Forestry Office (DLHK), deforestation affected 5.3 thousand hectares of Aceh’s forests during the 2021-2022 period. According to Rahmat, deforestation causes a reduction in forest area, the loss of various types of flora and fauna, and narrows the habitat of wildlife. Key animals, he said, became isolated due to reduced space for movement or roaming. This condition ultimately causes changes in wildlife behavior and increases incidents of conflict with humans.

"Changes in the behavior of animals tend to come down to residential areas. For example, monkeys who are often given food, will come down by the road awaiting to be fed by humans," said Rahmat. On the other hand, he warned that deforestation also increases the potential for hydrometeorological disasters and damage to water resources.

For information, referring to the Decree of the Minister of Environment and Forestry, the area of Aceh's forests and waters reaches 3.5 million hectares. This forest area is divided into conservation forests – including waters – covering an area of 1 million hectares; protected forests of around 1.7 million hectares; and production forests of 710 thousand hectares. Meanwhile, the land and water conservation areas under the management of the Aceh BKSDA total 419 thousand hectares, which are divided into eight areas.

Rahmat emphasized that the Aceh BKSDA continues to make efforts to protect and secure conservation areas. The efforts in question include security patrols, boundary marking, installing information boards, as well as empowering local communities. "We also provide outreach and training to improve the local economy, as well as repressive operations in the context of law enforcement," said Rahmat.

ANTARA

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