Peatland Forest Clearance in Riau

In May 2011, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono signed a decree committing Indonesia to a moratorium on the issuance of new permits in primary forests and peat land. Although this moratorium, renewed in May 2013 for a further two years, leaves around 40 million hectares of forest unprotected, the moratorium is important to help achieve Indonesia’s greenhouse gas emissions reduction goal of 26 percent by 2020. Indonesia is one of the world's largest producers of greenhouse gases, largely owing to the rapid destruction of its forests and peat lands for palm oil and pulp and paper. This shoot includes images of land clearance and deforestation, palm oil plantations, and pulp concessions in Riau, Sumatra.