The Rimba Raya Biodiversity Reserve REDD Project

Other threats to biodiversityAdditional threats to biodiversity in the Project Zone includeforest degradation from illegal logging, human-­‐induced fires, anda broad range of ‘edge effects’ associated with plantations,including unsustainable hunting by resident worker populationsand capture of songbirds for the commercial pet trade. Each isdescribed below in order of declining severity.Logging. The most important direct threat to biodiversityresulting from illegal logging in the Project Zone includesdegradation of forest habitat, on which a large portion ofresident biodiversity depends. Biodiversity in areas adjacent toconcentrations of illegal logging in the south are especially at risk.Indirect impacts of illegal logging include hunting for subsistenceand commercial purposes by loggers and increased risk of firesassociated with temporary human shelters (especially in peatareas).Fires. Fires in the Project Zone are concentrated in two clusters,one in the south and another in the north (see Section G1.8.4).Historically, fires have been a major cause of forest loss in peatand mineral soil areas, and remain a current threat especially inseasonally inundated grassland areas in the south (see Section G1.2). Direct negative impacts of fire include total destruction ofnatural habitat, with the potential for long-­‐term continuousdegradation – especially on peat areas due to cyclical fires.Hunting. Preliminary data from the social survey indicate that,on the whole, hunting by local communities occurs at low levelsand is limited primarily to deer. No evidence was found fortrapping of songbirds or other wildlife by local communities forthe local or outside commercial pet trade. Available datatherefore suggest that threats to biodiversity in the Project Zonearising from hunting and/or trapping are much less severe thanthreats posed by oil palm, logging, or fires.G1.8. Project Zone High Conservation ValueEvaluationAn evaluation of whether the project zone includes any of the followingHigh Conservation Values (HCVs) and a description of the qualifyingattributes:This section requires an assessment of High Conservation Values(HCV) present in the Project Zone and a description of theirqualifying attributes. It distinguishes six categories of HCVdenoted as G1.8.1-­‐1.8.6, which correspond to HCVs 1-­‐6,respectively, of the Global HCV Toolkit (ProForest 2003) and theHCV Resource Network (www.hcvnetwork.org). A nationalinterpretation (Toolkit) based on the Global Toolkit wasdeveloped for Indonesia in 2003, and revised in 2008. For thissection, the description of HCVs present in the Project Zonefollows the definitions and criteria outlined in the revised Toolkitfor Indonesia, as summarized in Table 7 below.The following discussion of HCVs should be considered apreliminary identification, or HCV pre-­‐assessment, based on acombination of: (i) rapid appraisal social surveys; (ii) a variety ofsecondary data sources including land cover maps, on-­‐line spatialdata sets (e.g. hotspot fire records), satellite imagery, ecosystemmaps, and published and unpublished data sources; and (iii)expert opinion. Of the 13 values and sub-­‐values defined in theToolkit for Indonesia, 10 are deemed present in the Project Zone,one is potentially present and two are deemed absent. Asummary of findings is presented below in Table 8.54