Indonesia’s rainforests may take the spotlight, but its marine and coastal vegetation are also significant contributors to global oxygen supply and absorption of carbon dioxide
Jessica Darmawan, Rob Daniel, Moray McLeish & Charles Vincent Jakarta Globe 11 Dec 14;
What is the connection between every breath you take, your breakfast, and your shampoo? Here’s a clue: It supports millions of jobs, millions of homes, and millions of people who are dependent on it every day. If you guessed “oceans,” congratulations! Wherever you may be while reading this article — whether you live in the mountains, cities, farmlands or along the coast — you impact and are impacted by the sea.
The ocean is vital to the air we breathe, with phytoplankton producing half of the world’s oxygen and absorbing almost a third of global carbon dioxide emissions. The ocean stores heat and carbon — essential in regulating the climate and mitigating climate change. The ocean is a part of our meals every day, with ocean ingredients like algae used in many food products and 30 percent of the world’s fisheries used to feed farmed chicken and fish.
The ocean is a part of our daily routine, where you’ll find ocean-derived compounds flowing out of shampoos, vitamins and medicines.
Oceans are equally important in shaping global weather cycles, absorbing most of the sun’s radiation and helping to distribute heat around the globe. As ocean waters are heated, they evaporate and increase the temperature and humidity of the surrounding air to form rain clouds, which are then carried long distances on the wind.
The vastness of the oceans allows the huge build-up of heat and moisture that we call the monsoon. Without this phenomenon, the inner reaches of large continental masses such as India and China would not be able to support the huge populations they currently do.
The ocean’s value is often taken for granted and its importance forgotten. The health of the world’s oceans is on the decline. Activities involving unconstrained fishing, carbon dioxide emissions generated from burning of fossil fuels, run-off pollution from unsustainable agricultural practices, coastline ecosystem degradation and pollution from industries such as oil and gas extraction affect oceans as much as oceans affect us.
Rising levels of carbon dioxide, which the oceans absorb, lead to chemical reactions that turn seawater more acidic, depleting the oceans of carbonate ions that corals, algae and marine vegetation need to thrive.
Increased greenhouse gas emissions have also led to the warming of oceans. One of the most vulnerable ecosystems to temperature change is coral, as even a slight temperature rise can cause coral bleaching, which slows coral growth and can lead to large-scale reef die-off. This in turn deprives reef-dwelling species of a home.
Coral bleaching is especially prevalent in Indonesia, where one of the most destructive and swift coral bleaching events ever recorded occurred on the northern tip of Sumatra. Not only does this devastate one of the world’s most biodiverse coral reefs, it also increases the vulnerability of marine communities dependent on these reefs for their livelihoods.
Adding to this vulnerability is the over-exploitation of fish stocks and unsustainable fishing practices. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that 70 percent of the global fish population is fully used, overused or in crisis.
Indonesia, where 30 percent of the world’s illegal fishing occurs, contributes to this global statistic, and unsustainable fishing practices such as bombing and cyanide poisoning are among common fishing practices here. This further accelerates the depletion of fish stocks, threatening the sustainability of fish populations and global food security.
As the world’s largest archipelagic nation, and one that separates the Pacific and Indian oceans, Indonesia is unique. Indonesia’s seas are the mixing zone of these two oceans. The shifts in sea surface temperatures that occur here are closely linked to the El Niño phenomenon and for generating global-scale weather patterns.
This porous barrier between the Pacific and Indian oceans means that marine species that are native to each ocean can coexist here. The Wallace Line, which is an imaginary boundary that runs between Australasia and Southeast Asia, marks the observed difference in flora and fauna on either side of the line. The line runs through Indonesia between Kalimantan and Sulawesi and through the Lombok Strait between Bali and Lombok. Along this line is a mix of the Asian and Australian species and numerous endemic hybrids. This means that Indonesia is home to 75 percent of all known marine life, Indonesia’s reefs are home to more than 500 species of corals, 10,000-plus species of plants and invertebrates, and more than 3,000 species of fish.
Just as oceans are essential to life, Indonesia’s marine and coastal environments are integral to the livelihoods and prosperity of its population and those far beyond its shores. Known as one of the “lungs of the world,” its rainforests may take the spotlight, but its marine and coastal vegetation are also significant contributors to global oxygen supply and absorption of carbon dioxide. Along Indonesia’s coastline, the second-longest in the world at 54,716 kilometers, are the world’s largest mangrove forests with an area of 3.2 million hectares, and according to a United Nations Environment Program report ,the world’s largest seagrass meadows.
The same report cites these coastal vegetated habitats as highly effective carbon sinks, where much like the peat swamps on land, they absorb and store carbon for an indefinite period, with mangroves having the carbon sink capacity of six times and seagrass meadows double that of pristine Amazonian forests. Yet the world’s coastal habitats are declining faster than its rainforests, with 71 percent of Indonesia’s mangrove forests damaged by unsustainable urban, agricultural and aquaculture development.
The diversity of Indonesia’s marine resources serves as a crucial source of livelihoods for millions of Indonesians. Jakarta and other major cities like Surabaya, Medan, Semarang and Makassar are among the three-quarters of the nation’s cities located in coastal areas. Born as small ports, these cities have grown into communities for 65 percent of Indonesia’s population who live within 50 kilometers of the coastline.
Fisheries, aquaculture, sea transport, energy and mineral resources, marine tourism and other maritime industries and services contributed about 30 percent to the country’s GDP in 2011, and employed more than 20 million people. Millions of visitors travel to Indonesia’s beaches and diving spots annually, generating jobs and developing coastal and marine tourism into one of the fastest-growing economic sectors.
Indonesia’s marine resources also provide important nutrients that local and global citizens depend on. Fish and other seafood products create healthy and delicious meals served at dining tables around the world, and Indonesia is the world’s largest producer of tuna and seaweed. Even if fish is not a part of your menu, hundreds of common foods such as cheese, peanut butter and fruit drinks contain seaweed.
Brown seaweeds are used to make water-based products thicker and more stable over extreme differences in temperatures, pH and time, which are essential in making shampoos, soaps, toothpastes and creams. It is also used for medical purposes, from treating colds to making bandages to making calcium supplements.
This goes to show the overwhelming involvement of oceans in your daily life, from breathing to eating to health and the climate.
Indonesia’s new government may be the start a new era for Indonesia’s marine and coastal environments, with the leadership emphasizing the sea’s increasingly central role in the country’s prosperity and future. The new government has released a maritime doctrine that will define policies for the next five years and envisions transforming the nation into a global maritime fulcrum.
The doctrine’s five main pillars focus on: (1) Rebuilding Indonesia’s maritime culture; (2) Maintaining and managing marine resources; (3) Prioritizing the development of maritime infrastructure and connectivity; (4) Practicing maritime diplomacy; and (5) Developing maritime defense and security.
Through enhancing the economy and improving local livelihoods, eliminating conflicts at sea, and integrating connectivity throughout Indonesia’s archipelago, these five pillars will in turn impact regional economy, security and connectivity as well.
While significant challenges lay ahead in implementing this maritime vision, it is a step in the right direction. Too long has the value of Indonesia’s oceans been in the shadows and too long have its oceans suffered from unsustainable practices. Indonesia’s marine and coastal environments are immensely valuable and the damage impacts people locally and globally.
It is time to reignite the nation’s naval motto, “Jalesveva Jayamahe,” meaning “In the seas we will triumph.” No doubt a motto originally focused on triumph over our enemies, but it can also be read to mean that if the oceans are healthy we will be prosperous; and if we are all healthy and prosperous we will have few enemies.
Jessica Darmawan is a consultant; Rob Daniel and Moray McLeish are technical advisers in sustainability and climate change practice; and Charles Vincent is a technical adviser consulting leader at PwC Consulting Indonesia.
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