EXPANSION OF OIL PALM PLANTATIONS IN THE ASIAN AROWANA (Scleropages formosus) GOLDEN RED CONSERVATION AREA IN RIAU PROVINCE, INDONESIA AND ITS EFFECTS ON SOIL EROSION AND WATER QUALITY
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.59465/ijfr.2026.13.2.249-268%20Keywords:
land use change, soil erosion, endangered species, habitatAbstract
The study was conducted due to rapid land use change driven by oil palm expansion in the Arowana Golden Red Conservation Area (AgrCA) in Riau Province, Indonesia. The study assessed the expansion of oil palm plantations and their influence on the environment of AgrCA. Using satellite imagery in 2017 and 2021, we found that oil palm plantations expanded from 2,234 ha (60.4% of the total area of AgrCA) in 2017 to 2,752 ha (74.4%) in 2021 by the conversion of swamps and swamp forests. The soil erosion rate estimated by a USLE method ranged from 5.26 to 186.34 t ha−1 yr−1 in the AgrCA. The soil erosion rates of oil palm plantations were the same as those under other agricultural land uses such as other plantations, mixed farms, and horticulture. Cleared land (land clearing or replanting area) that had not yet been planted exhibited the highest soil erosion rates. To mitigate the risk of soil erosion, it is crucial to replant oil palm trees on the cleared land as soon as possible. Water bodies adjacent to old oil palm plantations and the cleared land exhibited low levels of dissolved oxygen and were considered very trophic regarding phosphate concentrations. The low water quality was probably caused by the residual effects of fertilization in the old oil palm plantations.
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