Climate and species protection in the Leuser ecosystem in Sumatra

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One of the largest carbon sinks in Asia, the Leuser ecosystem in North Sumatra (provinces of Aceh and Sumatera Utara) comprises around 2.6 million hectares of tropical rainforest (= around ? of the forest area of Germany) and includes the Gunung Leuser National Park (0.9 million hectares) as well as other large rainforest and water catchment areas. It is the only area in the world that is also home to orangutans, elephants, rhinoceros and tigers. The carbon storage of the forest biomass alone is estimated at at least 350 million tonnes of carbon. In addition, there are around 160,000 hectares of swamps in Leuser Park, which represent an enormous carbon sink. At the same time, the region is a water catchment area that supplies several million inhabitants of northern Sumatra. Due to the size and importance of the area, but also inadequate management (e.g. unclear boundaries), the Leuser ecosystem is exposed to numerous threats such as illegal logging, forest conversion for oil palm, fast-growing tree species, agricultural uses, drainage of peatlands or road and settlement construction.