Review: Causes and impacts of anthropogenic activities on mangrove deforestation and degradation in Indonesia

Abstract

Abstract. Cahyaningsih AP, Deanova AK, Pristiawati CM, Ulumuddin YI, Kusumawati L, Setyawan AD. 2022. Review: Causes and impacts of anthropogenic activities on mangrove deforestation and degradation in Indonesia. Intl J Bonorowo Wetlands 12: 12-22. Indonesia is a country with the largest extent of mangroves in the world. However, as the human population increases, the extent and quality of the mangroves decrease. The increasing population is in line with the increase in human activities, leading to deforestation and degradation of the mangrove forests. This paper aimed to review anthropogenic activities that cause mangrove deforestation and degradation in Indonesia and the impacts of such anthropogenic activities on the mangrove ecosystems and formulate the efforts to overcome mangrove deforestation and degradation in the country. Various human activities are the primary drivers of deforestation and degradation of mangroves, including land conversion from mangrove forests into other land uses (e.g., agricultural lands, ponds, infrastructure developments, and human settlements), extractive activities (e.g., mining and logging), and household and industrial activities (e.g., plastic debris, heavy metals pollutants). These anthropogenic factors reduce mangrove forest area, changes in mangrove composition, uneven species abundance, and pollution. Combined with sea-level rise caused by global climate changes, such activities pose devastating threats to Indonesian mangroves. Efforts to overcome these problems include increasing awareness of communities regarding mangrove conservation, conducting mangrove restoration programs, and promoting sustainable management of mangrove, for example, through ecotourism. On top of that, community participation plays an essential role in Indonesia's sustainable management and conservation of mangrove forests.