Title
Planning to remove UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Sumatra from being 'In Danger'
Author(s)
Setyawati, T.;Nando, S.;Marthy, W.;Andayani, N.;Sheherazade,;Linkie, M.
Published
2021
Publisher
Animal Conservation
Published Version DOI
https://doi.org/10.1111/acv.12626
Abstract
Protected areas are a cornerstone of biodiversity conservation. They form the basis of national strategies for meeting Convention on Biological Diversity and climate change targets. UNESCO has afforded World Heritage Site (WHS) status to 213 natural sites, primarily protected areas, in recognition of their outstanding universal value. However, 17 of these sites are currently inscribed on the ‘World Heritage in Danger’ list because their integrity and functioning are primarily threatened by anthropogenic threats (UNESCO, 2019). Infrastructure development, notably roads and dams, is the highest ranked threat, accounting for 25% of the inscriptions, including the Tropical Rainforest Heritage of Sumatra (TRHS) in Indonesia, which has been on the Danger List since 2011 (Fig. 1). The TRHS encompasses a cluster of three national parks (Bukit Barisan Selatan, Kerinci Seblat and Gunung Leuser) covering 2.5 million hectares of rainforest or >4 million hectares with their intact forest landscapes (Fig. 2). These landscapes contain 85% of all Sumatran orangutans Pongo abelii, 65% of Sumatran tigers Panthera tigris sumatrae, 55% of Sumatran elephants Elephas maximus sumatrensis, the only viable population of Sumatran rhinos Dicerorhinus sumatrensis and a wealth of biodiversity (UNESCO, 2011; Fig. 3). In 2013, the IUCN conducted a monitoring mission to assess the state of the TRHS, including threats and the required corrective measures (IUCN, 2013). From this, criteria for the ‘Desired State of Conservation for the Removal of properties from the List of World Heritage in Danger’ (DSOCR) were developed and ratified by the WHS Committee in 2014 and upheld by an IUCN monitoring mission in 2018 (IUCN, 2018). This describes 12 broad ranging corrective measures, including closing/rehabilitating mines, improving species monitoring and managing the wider landscape. Here, we focus on the measure concerning road development. Based on discussions with colleagues from the ministries of National Development and Planning (BAPPENAS), Public Works and Housing (PUPR) and Environment and Forestry (MoEF), we present three new types of action that are urgently needed to mitigate this threat (Alamgir et al., 2017). Firstly, we recommend establishing a multi‐agency government body consisting of these three ministries and mandated to address the DSOCR criteria and, more broadly, road construction through forest areas. This would raise awareness of the TRHS issues that require an inter‐agency response, share responsibility among ministries and improve their communication and coordination on this critical issue. Kerinci Seblat National Park provides an example of how this could work. In 2012, local governments proposed nine new roads that, if realized, would fragment the TRHS into ten sections. Despite the roads lacking the required environmental impact assessment and national government approval, partial construction of five began anyway. In 2018, the national park authority assessed all nine road proposals to determine their need and conformity to the prevailing MoEF regulations. The park authority held a workshop in 2019 with local government, Fauna & Flora International (long‐term national park partner), UNESCO, WCS and, for the first time, the three ministries (MoEF, BAPPENAS and PUPR). This produced a set of joint recommendations to: halt road construction because of the predicted detrimental impacts; undertake road impact assessments and formulate appropriate mitigation actions; and, engage the Coordination Ministry of Human Empowerment and Culture, as the responsible party for the WHS. Secondly, improve the design and implementation of Strategic Environmental Assessments (SEAs) on infrastructure development in forest areas to ensure that they are conducted to a high standard. SEAs are crucial in informing the development of provincial spatial plans and medium‐term (5‐year) economic development plans, which govern the fate of vast areas of forest (GoI, 2009). The SEAs are monitored by the government’s Corruption Eradication Commission, thereby giving them extra weight. To ensure consistency and standards are met, the Government of Indonesia should develop an accredited training syllabus (including training of trainers) that becomes a mandatory part of provincial government annual work plans and budgets. This would empower provincial agencies to run their own trainings and independently conduct high‐impact SEAs. Gunung Leuser National Park provides a recent example of how this could work. The 2013 and 2018 IUCN missions highlighted two national roads and one provincial (Karo‐Langkat) road that required immediate attention because they bisected Gunung Leuser National Park, including areas frequently used by tiger, elephant and/or orangutan (Fig. 4). The 5‐km Karo‐Langkat road had existed as a gravel path, until it was tarmacked by the army in 1982. The road then became derelict and naturally reforested until it was reopened and resurfaced in 2011 by the North Sumatra provincial government (Sloan et al., 2018). As a step to address this issue, the national park authority is working with PUPR to ensure that the UNESCO‐requested SEA and mitigation plan is prioritized in its 2020–2021 work plan and budget. Thirdly, we welcome the issuance of the MoEF regulation on road construction in forest areas in 2019 (MoEF, 2019). In relation to this, we encourage related ministries to work together to broaden this regulation to cover all infrastructure, and elevate it to an overarching cross‐sector policy, such as Presidential regulation, that supersedes all existing ministerial regulations and inconsistencies. The past removal of 15 natural WHS from the danger list took, on average, 9 years (ranging from 2 to 21 years; UNESCO, 2019). This included corrective measures such as road closure in Iguaçu National Park (Brazil, 'in danger' from 1999 to 2001), minimizing environmental damage from a constructed road in Sangay National Park (Ecuador, 1992–2005) and rerouting a planned road in Simien National Park (Ethiopia, 1996–2017) (Figure 1). The three TRHS protected areas span 7 provinces, each with its own subnational government that repeatedly propose new roads, dams and geothermal plants, which are at odds with central government policy and the DSOCR. The challenges are stark, but if they are to be effectively tackled, then an inter‐ministerial body must play a central role in ensuring that infrastructure development adheres to national law, ideally as a new presidential regulation. This approach is broadly applicable across Indonesia’s other forest‐rich provinces, such as West Papua, Papua and North Kalimantan, where >5000 km of roads are planned for construction or being constructed (Alamgir et al., 2019; Sloan et al., 2019).
Keywords
Biodiversity; Conservation; Environmental Science; Ecology

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