Ecoregional Assessment of Biological Diversity in East Kalimantan

East Kalimantan Ecoregional Assessment: Chapter 1 – Background & Analysis Process
Momberg et al. (1998) also introduce for the first time in East Kalimantan the concept of
including the eco-cultural framework of the various tribal land-use patterns into conservation
planning for biological diversity. They argue strongly that most landscapes and habitats,
including forests, in East Kalimantan are already human-modified and best thought of as
cultural landscapes. They state that possibly only the Belayan-Kongkemul Mountain Range
(in the southwestern border region of East Kalimantan) can be considered a primary
landscape in the sense that past human activities have had no discernable impact on the
ecology of the region. All other areas have a long history of human modification. They state
that the Krayan Highland Plateau, Apo Kayan Beratus Mountains, and Benuaq/Tanjung
lowlands are examples of well-developed cultural landscapes. Finally, the report tentatively
describes some 25 ‘Eco-Cultural’ regions for East Kalimantan.
The TNC approach
This ECA, following the guidelines of TNC Ecoregional Planning (TNC 2000), addresses
some of the inherent problems that exist in past and current spatial planning in East
Kalimantan. It does this by defining a scale at which the available data can be applied;
clearly describing terminology; producing topical map layers where possible; and, applying a
clear logic and documentation to the process of selecting target ecological systems and
species, and the viability ranking of these target systems – such as has been formulated in a
number of TNC conservation programs worldwide. Further, we have strived to make the
process transparent, methodical and repeatable. Data will be entered into a conservation
database with input and discussion invited from a wide range of stakeholders, including
environmental and biological experts, and all appropriate levels of government as well as
local communities.
Our process differs from the prior WWF effort (Momberg et al. 1998) in that it goes above
and beyond consideration of only existing protected areas. This assessment looks at the entire
landscape of East Kalimantan and reviews current condition of major forest types, underlying
geology and landforms, and known species occurrences to assemble a portfolio of sites to
build in functionality and viability for long term conservation across the province. It also
proposes strategies for addressing broad-scale threats with the goal of improving the situation
for not only the existing “protected areas” but also for the non-gazetted areas of high
ecological importance.
We are interested in the Eco-Cultural regional concept espoused by the WWF report for East
Kalimantan, and this concept was considered for inclusion in this current planning process.
However, the nascent state of knowledge about such regions in East Kalimantan, coupled
with the paucity of information about the trajectory of change resultant from traditional
human impact on the East Kalimantan environment, led to our decision not to incorporate
this concept into this first basic portfolio of conservation sites. Once the recommended
portfolio is finalized, traditional human impacts will be considered in the Site Conservation
Planning (now Conservation Area Planning) stage, a much more detailed analysis process,
which will propose a suite of conservation implementation strategies to be applied at sites by
TNC or others.
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