A critical review of peatland ecosystem services research in Indonesia: Uncovering knowledge gaps and research needs

Abstract

Peatlands provide a broad range of ecosystem services (ES) that are critical to ecosystem regulating and human well-being. However, anthropogenic activities threaten their existence, leading to degradation, destruction, and loss of these ecosystems. To effectively convey the value of peatlands, it is important to share knowledge on the ES they provide. This review aims to provide an overview of the ES provided by peatlands in Indonesia. We undertook a critical review of articles published on Scopus, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar to investigate various aspects of peatland ES. Our examination encompassed data types, valuation methods, modes of assessment, ecosystem services categories, study site scale, temporal patterns, purposes of publication, and study limitations related to peatland ES. From a set of 1,115 potentially relevant papers, 45 were selected for analysis. Our findings showed that ES studies are heavily concentrated on the Kalimantan and Sumatra islands, with most studies focused on specific provinces such as Central Kalimantan and Riau. The most commonly used data type, method, and mode of assessment were secondary data, look-up tables, and economic valuation, respectively. Provisioning services were the most frequently studied ES category, followed by regulating services, supporting services, and cultural services. However, gaps persist, including limited data, understanding, and long-term sustainability consideration. Future research should address these gaps by focusing on underrepresented peatland ecosystems, integrating diverse approaches, and considering global peatland issues.