InfiniteEARTH and Rimba Raya Conservation work with the community in planting trees in degraded areas within the concession.
Trees help clean the air we breathe, filter the water we drink, and provide habitat to over 80% of the world's terrestrial biodiversity.
WHAT TAKES YEARS TO GROW CAN BE DESTROYED IN MINUTES
It takes thousands of years for peatlands to form and are deficient in nutrients because of the lack of mineral input, and the leaching of organic compounds causes the water to become extremely acidic.
Fires are deliberately started to clear areas for agricultural development. Animals that live in the peat forests; orangutans, sun bears, pangolins and proboscis monkeys, are severely threatened as is their ever decreasing habitat.
According to the United Nations, forests cover 30.7 per cent of the Earth’s surface.
Forests don't only provide food security and shelter, they are key to combating climate
change, protecting biodiversity and the homes of indigenous populations.
Peat swamp forests form in tropical areas where wet soils or frequent flooding prevent organic material from fully decomposing. This organic material slowly accumulates and as it does, more water is retained, in effect becoming a water-logged sponge. As these mounds of organic material build up they can rise above the flood levels, these peat deposits can extend up to 20 m.
In our concession approximately 50,000 hectares of the 64,500 reserve is peat, storing more than 500 billion liters of water
Our long-term goal will be to ensure that this peat swamp forest remains intact for future generations.
This can only happen if we work in partnership with local stakeholders who must allocate value to a natural commodity that they have until now, taken for granted.
We will continue to keep this forest standing as habitat for endangered wildlife and to provide natural resources to the community in a sustainable way.
Every attempt is made to inform and educate the public to ensure that they are aware that their actions have far and long reaching consequences but that we are doing this in partnership as we share a common goal.
Among other immediate, basic needs, people have a need for fuelwood, low-cost construction materials and other wood products which they have traditionally sourced from the local forests. Not only must these needs be met but we must consider how to sustainably fulfill those needs while maintaining or improving the forest environment.
The benefits of trees are extensive, and in developing regions, planting, growing and protecting trees can improve the life of a person, a family or an entire community for future generations.
Trees can help to improve soil quality, provide nutrition and generate income, all while helping to create a healthy environment.
Many people in developing countries live on severely degraded land, and trees are essential to their survival. These land conditions directly affect their living standards: it is very difficult to grow food, collect firewood, or make a living off the land. Thus it is clear that in order to improve their livelihoods , we must reforest degraded areas in our concession.
PLANTING TREES
We are committed to planting trees in and around our concession area. Each year we work with community members in achieving our planting goals and in this way, they become emotionally invested in their forests.
Children in particular are active tree planters and have specifically requested additional tree planting activities. They've discovered that it's an adventure traveling to the remote planting area and they love knowing that somewhere in the forest, there's a growing tree and it's one
they personally planted. This gives them a sense of ownership which will help develop a conservation focused outlook that we hope will secure the forests for future
generations.
This initiative meets the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Download our tree planting brochure