Tag
Loading...

Carbon activities in the Bukit Panjang Rantau Bayur or Bujang Raba protected forest in Bungo Regency, Jambi , have been done by the community and the Warsi Indonesia Conservation Community since 2018 under a Payments for Ecosystem Services project. The project aims to support the capacity of forest-dependent communities in five villages to protect their 7,291-ha conservation forest in the face of rapid land use change for palm oil. In August 2023, postdoc Yuti Ariani conducted fieldwork at this site to understand the carbon activities and digital practices. This logbook presents stories from the field.

Lubuk Beringin

Lubuk Beringin Forest

Lubuk Beringin, situated in Sub-District Bathin III Ulu, Bungo district, Jambi province, covers a total area of 2,800 hectares, of which 84 percent is designated as watershed protection forest (Akiefnawati et al., 2010a). In 1997, the village joined the Integrated Conservation and Development Project (ICDP) - Kerinci Seblat National Park (KSNP) program, managed by NGO KKI-Warsi to establish village rules for environmental preservation. The agreement encompassed commitments such as preserving forest areas, refraining from cultivating land with slopes steeper than 80 degrees, and planting bamboo along riverbanks to prevent erosion and landslides. The ICDP-KSNP came to an end in 2002 due to evaluations indicating that its objectives were not met (Akiefnawati et al., 2010a). Despite its failure, the program enabled a relationship between the local villagers and NGO KKI-Warsi regarding natural resources management and biodiversity conservation.

In 2008, KKI-Warsi approached the Lubuk Beringin officials about the opportunity to apply for a forest management permit in their region (Sari, 2013). This led to an event as the Minister of Forestry officially awarded Lubuk Beringin as the first village forest (Hutan Desa) management right on March 30, 2009. Covering an expanse of 2,356 hectares within the Bukit Panjang-Rantau Bayur Forest, this area is now under the stewardship of the Lubuk Beringin village administration (Akiefnawati et al., 2010b). The forest area is determined by the Ministry of Forests based on a proposal prepared by the village and submitted by the head of the regency. The Ministry of Forests issues a 35-year management license, during which the village establishes a forest management institution responsible for creating a comprehensive 35-year management plan along with annual plans. In a protected forest like Hutan Desa, revenue streams are limited due to the forest's location in ecologically significant areas, such as steep slopes prone to erosion or watershed catchment areas. Activities are confined to harvesting non-forest timber products, but communities can engage in afforestation activities to generate revenue through REDD+ or payment for ecosystem services schemes.


References

Akiefnawati, R., Villamor, G.B., Zulfikar, F., Budisetiawan, I., Mulyoutami, E., Ayat, A., Noordwijk, M. van, 2010a. Stewardship agreement to reduce emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD): Lubuk Beringin’s hutan desa as the first village forest in Indonesia (Working paper No. 102). World Agroforestry Centre.

Akiefnawati, R., Villamor, G.B., Zulfikar, F., Budisetiawan, I., Mulyoutami, E., Ayat, A., Van Noordwijk, M., 2010b. Stewardship agreement to Reduce Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD): case study from Lubuk Beringin’s “Hutan Desa”, Jambi Province, Sumatra, Indonesia. Int. For. Rev. 12, 349–360.

Sari, I.M., 2013. Community Forests at a Crossroads: (Master Thesis). University of Oslo, Norway.

Sungai Telang

Interview on Digital Practices in Sungai Telang, Jambi

On 23 August 2023, Smart Forests postdoc Yuti Fatimah (YAF) joined NGO KKI Warsi facilitator Famila Juniarti and two forest surveyors, Alpirkon (AP) and Adnin to Sungai Telang village forest.

YAF joined forest surveyors to Sungai Telang forest, 23 August 2023

The forest surveyors showed how to use an application to guide their forest monitoring.

In this interview, Alpirkon and Adnin, members of a forest patrol team, shared insights into their recent forest survey and the tools they used. The team, comprising 15-20 people, installs signboards in over 1,000 hectares of forest area. These people were divided into two teams of 10 members each. Installation for 60 signboards took four days, depending on the terrain. For the survey, they used Avenza Maps, an application guiding their routes and progress, with markers indicating their locations. The team utilizes GPS devices for tracking and potentially creating a village forest map in the future. Training from KKI Warsi equipped them with skills in using Avenza Maps and GPS tools. The team conducts field surveys every three to four months, revisiting previously installed markers by following directions on Avenza Maps. The GPS device syncs with Avenza maps, displaying their travel trail.