Forest conversion to rubber around Sumatran villages in Indonesia: Comparing the impacts of road construction, transmigration projects and population

Abstract

Agricultural expansion is the main factor contributing to forest clearance in Indonesia. In particular, the expansion of cash tree crop cultivation–primarily rubber–has a greater impact than the expansion of shifting cultivation. This paper examines the impact of various factors on the acceleration of forest conversion to rubber based on a case study of four villages in Jambi Province, Sumatra. Household surveys on land tenure, land acquisition methods and forest-clearing activities were conducted for 160 randomly selected households in the four villages. Data analysis by ordinary least square (OLS) regression found the following: (1) both road construction, which reduces transportation cost and time and raises rubber profitability, and agricultural population density are significant determinants of forest clearance; (2) proximity to Transmigration projects, which influence the land tenure of the local people, temporarily encourages them to clear forest, but does not accelerate their forest-clearing in the long-term; and (3) no particular households, but rather, all households were responsible for forest-clearing.