Peat swamp forests in Borneo and Sumatra-Original state, development and disasters during the past 50 years with a proposal for future eco-resource management-

Abstract

The tropical peat swamp forests of Southeast Asia are unique and valuable forest types. Because of the difficulty of approaching the interior, these forests have remained untouched for many years. In the last two decades, however, development projects and forest fires have caused serious damage. Drawing from my experience in Sumatra and Borneo from the 1970s to the present, I describe here the original forest patterns, development typologies, and hazards. I also propose a new concept of “eco-resources” to promote better preservation and more healthy forms of development. Eco-resources are richest and most diverse in the tropics; and shifting to higher latitudes they become progressively more simplified. As peat swamp forests represent the last frontier of unspoiled nature, a total understanding of the relationship between human activities and nature is inevitably a central issue.