A 1995 decision to drain Indonesian peatlands for rice led to a catastrophic 1997 fire, releasing up to 40% of annual global fossil fuel emissions.
1995 decree triggers environmental disaster
In 1995, Indonesian President Suharto signed presidential decree number 82, which aimed to transform one million hectares of peatlands in Central Kalimantan into rice paddies. The goal was to boost food security by creating a vast agricultural area, but the project faced significant challenges due to the unique nature of peat soil.Peatlands and their ecological role
Peatlands are layers of partially decomposed plant matter that store large amounts of carbon, often accumulating over thousands of years. When saturated with water, they act as natural carbon sinks, but when drained, they become highly flammable and can burn underground for extended periods.Drainage leads to massive carbon release
To convert the peatlands into rice fields, the Indonesian government drained the area by digging canals and clearing forests. This process dried out the peat, making it susceptible to fire. In 1997, the drained peatlands caught fire, releasing between 0.81 and 2.57 billion tons of carbon—equivalent to 13 to 40 percent of annual global fossil fuel emissions at the time.Failed agricultural project
Despite significant investments in irrigation and infrastructure, the rice cultivation project failed. The nutrient-poor peat soil was unsuitable for traditional rice farming, and the project was eventually abandoned. The result was a vast area of deforested, drained peatlands with no agricultural output.Repeating the same mistake
In 2020, the Indonesian government initiated a similar project on 900,000 hectares of peatlands in Borneo. Environmental experts have raised concerns that this new initiative could lead to a similar disaster, repeating the environmental and climatic damage seen in the 1990s.
