When the lungs smoke

Pak Alim is one of the project participants. The project is very important, he said, because perhaps the only area in Central Kalimantan is where the conditions of the rainforest are recreated.

Pak Alim and his colleagues are trying to restore water to the swamp forest (Photo: BBC)

This is a swamp forest, planted on meters of thick, mud-rich soil. Peat is important, because it is capable of handling greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane. Pak Alim likes to call these forests " the lungs of the world". But these lungs are increasingly shrinking.

Forest fires

According to the conservation organization Wetlands International, 48% of Indonesia's swamp forests have been destroyed and most of the remaining areas are being degraded by illegal logging.

Marcel Silvius, senior program officer at Wetlands International believes that this is one of the biggest environmental disasters of the time. He told me: "If only draining water from wetlands, Indonesia is generating 632 million tons of carbon dioxide per year."

"If you count from the annual forest fires, the country emits 1400 million tons. Thus, the total Indonesia discharges 2000 million tons per year. The Dutch figure is 80 million tons."

Annual forest fires in Indonesia are a huge problem. Recently, fires are increasing. Some cases are caused by companies. They choose to clear the forest quickly and inexpensively. Some cases are caused by local people who have plowed forests to earn a living.

"We have to work hard to turn it into agricultural land like today."Ratni, Kalimantan farmer

Ratni has lived here for 30 years. She came to the immigrant government campaign to bring farmers to exploit the swamp south of Kalimantan.

She said: "In the beginning it was very difficult. There were no roads, the land was difficult to exploit. Just tossing the cigarette down was the land that was burning. We had to work hard to turn it into agricultural land. like today. "

Ratni and her neighbors say they still use fire to clear the land every year. However, the swamp forests around here have run out of water, due to being sucked into water for agriculture, due to the rapid transport of wood and fire. Last year, fires made the forest covered with soot.

Fear of flooding

However, there is a place in this forest that is still green, young trees are beginning to cast shadows. This is where the pilot project Pak Alim and his colleagues are greening the land. He introduced us to a small dam, blocking the flow to keep water.

"Since the construction of the dam, we have found this place to be greener. Without it, the amount of water here is very low and the area will not be able to recover after wildfires."

However, he said it was necessary to be very careful. He explained: "If we apply strong measures and flood the entire area, we may have more forests, but we will also harm the local community when flooding their agricultural land. Before that , dense forests retain water during the rainy season but now floodwaters can flood from all directions. "

The Indonesian government agrees that there is no simple solution for the swamp forest area.

The Indonesian government has a dilemma before holding water for wetlands

Agus Purnomo, a senior official of the Indonesian Ministry of Agriculture, believes that there are two main subjects causing difficulties. These are big companies and local farmers.

For big companies, the solution is to use the law. That's easy to do, he said."With the second difficulty, the main thing to face is poverty."

"In order for people not to destroy forests for agriculture, we need to develop development projects that directly benefit the local poor, and this is a challenge that the government needs to address comprehensively."

Irony of the environment

People like Ratni can be a part of deforestation, but they are also the first to suffer.

Each year, the cloud of dust generated from wildfires descends on this community, sometimes for weeks. It made Ratni unable to breathe. So is her tree.

Restoring water to nearby wetlands will help reduce wildfires and smog clouds, but it will also erase Ratni's home and livelihood. It also limits the government's plans to develop the country's multi-energy industry.

Worldwide demand for alternative forms of energy, such as palm oil, is putting pressure on Indonesia's forests, as tree planting companies need land to operate.

That is the irony that the global community needs to address, if green energy will help prevent rather than promote climate change.

Lucy Williamson