Economy and environmental impacts of oil palm plantation expansion in Mamuju Tengah district, West Sulawesi Province, Indonesia

Abstract

The expansion of oil palm plantations in Indonesia has led to massive land conversion. At present palm oil in West Sulawesi is the largest oil palm plantations in eastern Indonesia, the development of oil palm which is so rapidly affected by the level of income received by the community when farming oil palm compared to developing other types of plantations such as rubber, coconut, or other types of plantation crops. The growing development of oil palm plantations today is feared to affect biodiversity, which results in changes in the environmental ecosystem in West Sulawesi, especially in Central Mamuju District. Changes in the environmental ecosystem can cause conflicts between humans and animals as a result of the reduced natural habitat of animals, which is the impact of oil palm plantations. This article will explore the environmental and economic impacts arising from oil palm expansion in Central Mamuju Regency, West Sulawesi Province. This research was conducted with a descriptive method to describe the impact of plantation expansion in the Central Mamuju Regency. The results of the study show that there was a change in the environmental ecosystem in the Middle Mamuju Kapubapaten, which resulted in conflicts between humans and animals. As for the economic impact, there was an increase in farmer’s income.