GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS FROM TROPICAL PEAT FOREST AND PEAT OIL PALM PLANTATION -A REVIEW

CHIENG BEND YUAN

This project is submitted in partial fulfillment of

the requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of't: ngineering With

Honours (('ivii Engineering)

To my beloved purenis and family

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to take the opportunity to express my sincere appreciation to people that

have given contributions towards the success of this thesis. First and foremost, I

would like to thank God for His grace and mercy throughout this project. It is by His

hands and wisdom in guiding me to finish my work within study period.

My appreciation also goes to my FYP supervisor, Professor Ir. Dr Law Puong Ling

for his academic guidance throughout this project. Thanks for gave out a lot of

precious time for discussion and checking errors in my thesis.

I would also like to thank Universiti Malaysia Sarawak for providing a resourceful

library that enabled me to gain adequate information for my thesis.

Last but not least. I would like to thank my family members and friends for all your

support and care.

Thank you.

ill

ABSTRAK

Ulasan jurnal telah dibuat bagi menentukan pembebasan gas rumah hijau (GI IG) dari

hutan gambut and pcnanaman kclapa sawit di kawasan gambut. Kebanyakan CiII(i

adalah tcrdiri daripada CO,, C114, dan N20. dcngan C'O: mangandungi 90% daripada

kcscluruhan GWP manakala (. '114 dan N_O hanya mengandungi <1% daripada

jumlah GWP. Kcbanyakan kawasan gambut bcrada di Asia Tenggara (69%) yang

mana Indonesia mcnyumbang 53.1% daripada potcnsi karbon tcnggclam global

dengan karbon simpanan dianggarkan bcrnilai 20.28 Mt C yr''. Kawasan gambut

yang tclah ditcbang mcmpunyai pcmbcbasan GII(i yang lebih tinggi daripada hutan

gambut semulajadi disebabkan pertambahan pcmbebasan CO, daripada pembakaran

( 1.42 - 4.32 Gt, 'y) dan juga danpada pcnguraian setnula di parit (700 Mt yr", tahun

2009). Penanaman kelapa sawit di tanah gambut tclah mcnycbabkan hutang karbon

yang tinggi (melebihi 3000 Mg ha"') uniuk dibayar discbabkan oleh pembebasan

carbon yang tinggi kepada udara semasa penebangan (648 f 337 Mg ha") dan juga

daripada pcnguraian semula di tanah (55 Mg of CO, ha*' yr"). Walaubagaimanapun,

penanaman kelapa sawit di kawasan berrumput telah didapati berupaya

mengurangkan CO, dengan nilai 135 Mg ha" C'O,. Jadi, penanaman kelapa sawit di

kawasan berrumput adalah lebih sesuai bagi mcngurangkan pembebasan (ill(i.

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ABSTRACT

Reviews had been carried out on related journals in determining the G11G emissions

from tropical pcatlands and peat oil palm plantations. Majorities of G11G arc CO2,

CH4, and N, O, with CO2 consisted of 90% of total GWP while C: 114 and N, ()

contributed <1% of total GWP. A majority of tropical pcatlands arc located in

Sourthcast Asia (69%) while Indonesia alone has accounted for 53.1% of global

potential carbon sink with estimated carbon storage of 20.28 Mt C yr ' Degraded

pcatlands have relatively higher GHG emissions than natural peat forests due to

additional CO2 emissions from peat fire (in range of 1.42 to 4.32 Gt/y) and soil

decomposition in drainage (approximately 700 Mt yr i, year 2009). Establishment of

oil palm plantation on peat soil resulted in a high carbon debt (over 3000 Mg ha* 1) to

pay due to large amount of carbon losses into atmosphere during land clearing (648 s

337 Mg ha") and soil decomposition in drainage (approximately 55 Mg of ('O, ha"

yr1 ). However, oil palm plantation established on grassland rehabilitation acted as

carbon sink with a net sequestration of 135 Mg ha'' CO,. Therefore, it is preferable

for establishing oil palm plantations on grassland rehabilitation.

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TABLE OF CONTENT

Dedication

Acknowledgement

Abstrak

Abstract

Table of Content

List of Tables

List of Figures

List of Abbreviations and Notations

List of Appendices

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Greenhouse Gases

1.2 Peat Forest

1.3 Oil Palm Plantation

1.4 Problem Statement

1.5 Scope of'study

1.6 Aim and Objectives

1.7 Structure of thesis

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CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Tropical Pcatland: Distribution and Carbon storagc 9

2.2 GHG Emissions from Tropical Pcatland 11

2.2.1 Natural Tropical Pcatland 12

2.2.1.1 Mcthanc Fluxcs 12

2.2.1.2 Carbon Dioxidc Fluxcs 14

2.2.2 Dcgradcd Pcatland 15

2.2.2.1 Deforestation 18

2.2.2.2 Rolc of Firc 19

2.2.2.3 Draincd Pcatlands 20

2.3 Pcat oil palm plantation and GHG 23

CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY

3.1 General

3.2 Background Study

3.3 Data Collection

3.4 Importance of Data Collection

3.5 Results and Discussions

3.6 Conclusion and Recommendations

3.7 Progress of Work

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CHAPTER 4 RESULT AND DISCUSSIONS

4.1 Peat distribution. thickness and carbon storage 32

4.2 Deforestation Rate in South East Asia 35

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4.3 G11G Emissions from Natural

Tropical Peat Forest 38

4.3.1 CI{4 Flux Emissions 38

4.3.2 C02 Flux Emission 40

4.4 GIIG Emissions from Degraded Pcatland 42

4.4.1 C'11, Flux Emissions 43

4.4.2 CO, Flux Emissions 45

4.5 Comparison of GI IG Emissions from

Natural and Degraded Forest 48

4.6 Role of fire on Carbon Loss

from Tropical Pcatland 50

4.7 Carbon Flux by Location and Land Use 51

4.7.1 CO_ Flux Emissions 52

4.7.2 ('II., Flux [: missions 54

4.7.3 N"O Flux [: missions 56

4.7.4 Total GWP for Different Ecosystems 58

4. X Oil Palm Plantations and (ill(i Emissions 60

3.8.1 CO, Emissions in Grassland and Forest

by using Zero-Burning Method 60

4.8.2 CO, [: missions in Grassland and

Forest by using Burning Method 61

4.8.3 (iiI(i Balance for Oil Palm Plantation

on Grassland and on Forests 62

4. X. 4 Comparison of'Oil palm Plantations 65

and other Biofuels Plantations

VIII

CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

5.1 Conclusion

5.2 Recommendation

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71

REFERENCES 73

APPENDIX 84

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LIST OF TABLES

Table

4.1 Global Tropical Peatland

4.2 Estimates of Carbon Polls and Carbon Sinks

4.3 Deforestation Rates (2000-2005) of Total Peat

Swamp Forest, in SEA

4.4 Deforestation Rates (19X5-2000) of Peat

Forests in Some SEA Countries

4.5 Carbon Gas Emissions from the Peat Surface in

Natural and Degraded Peat Swamp Forest in

Central Kalimantan. Indonesia.

4.6 Carbon Flux by Location and Land Use

4.7 CO, Emissions by Location and Land Use

4.8 ('11, Flux Emissions by Location and Land Use

4.9 N, () Flux Emissions by Location and Land Use

4.10 Total GYP of the Soils for Different Ecosystems

4.1 1 CO, (: mission (MG till'' ) Due to Complete Decomposition of Above and Below Ground Biomass of Forest or Grassland Vegetation alter C'om erring the Land into an Oil Palm Plantation

4.12 CO, E quiv'alent Emission I MG ha'') Caused by Burning and Decomposition of' Biomass of' Forest or (Irassland Vegetation during the First 25 year Oil Palm Rotation

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4.13 GHG Balance in C02 Equivalents (Mg ha') for Oil Palm Plantation on Grassland and on Forest on Mineral and Organic Soil. during the First 25-year Oil Palm Rotation 65

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LIST OF FIGURES

Figure Page

1.1 Carbon Cycle in Natural Peat forest

2.1 Schematic Illustration of CO-, Emissions from

Drained Peatlands

3.1 Progress of works

4. I Lowland peat extents in Southeast Asia

4.2 Peat Depth/Thickness Classes by Area in

Indonesia

4.3 Land ('over on Peatlands in Indonesia and

Malaysia

4.4 Methane Fluxes at Various Peat Watertable Depths and Annual Cumulative Methane Emission from I lollows of Peat Swamp Forest

4.5 1lwnmock and Ilollow Mean ('O. Flux Rates from Peat Swamp Forest at Various Peat Watertable (WT) Depths

4.6 Watertable Depth and Annual Cumulative CO, Emission from Mixed Peat Swamp Forest I lummoeks and I lollows

4.7 Peat ('I I, Fluxes Rates at Three Tropical Peatland Sites at Various Peat Watertable Depth ('lasses

4.8 Annual Cumulative C'11, and CO, Fluxes at the Peat Surface of Three Drained Sites

4.9 Peat CO, Fluxes Rates at Three Tropical Peatland Sites at Various Peat Watertable

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Depth Classes

4.10 Historical, Currcnt and Projcctcd CO: Emissions from Pcatlands duc to Drainagc (fires cxcludcd)

4.11 Cumulativc CO_, cmissions from SE Asia over 100 ycars

4.12 Fire Ilotspot Data (Number of Fires Counted per ycar)for Borneo from 1997 to 2006

4.13 Tentative Estimate of Annual and Average Annual Carbon Emissions due to Peatland Fires

4.14 GWP for CO_ by Locations and Land Usc

4.15 GWP for C'H, by Locations and Land Use

4.16 GWP for N, O by Locations and Land use

4.17 Carbon Debt. Biofuel Carbon Debt Allocation, Annual Carbon Repayment Rate, and Carbon Debt Repayments for Different Biofiuel Production

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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND

NOTATIONS

GI1G

GWP

co, CHa

N, O

Ha

Pg

Gt Mg

mg

FAO

Greenhouse Gases

Global Warming Potential

Carbon Dioxide

Methane

Nitrous Oxide

Hectare

Pctagram (g x 10

(Iigatonnc (t x 10°)

Megagram (g x 10")

Milligram (g x 10")

Percent

Food and Agriculture Oragniiation of the United Nations

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LIST OF APPENDIX

Appendix Page

Oil Palm Plantation in Malaysia (1957-2007) 85

Oil Palm Plantation in Indonesia (1990 --- 2008) 86

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CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Greenhouse Gases (GHG)

Greenhouse effect is no doubt one of the major problems nowadays due to its

contribution to the global warming. Greenhouse effect is caused by the trapping of

heat from the sun in lower atmosphere of the earth. Grccnhousc gases ((ill(i) are

gases in the atmosphere which give rise to this greenhouse effect. (; llG allow

shortwave or solar radiation to penetrate down to the atmosphere and the Earth's

surface (The Green Lane, 2003). (ili(1 traps heat in the atmosphere which then

causing the radiation been absorbed and the Earth's surface becomes warm.

Greenhouse gases can be produced either in natural or man-made. "Natural

greenhouse effect" is an important phenomenon to biological life on Earth.

"Enhanced greenhouse effect" is caused by human activities such as burning fossil

fuels, deforestation or land surface change, industrial processes, etc. The additional

Gl iG produced by enhanced greenhouse effect has increased the concentration of

I

GHG in the atmosphere at an alarming rate thus changing the temperature and

climate system which then contribute to global warming. The main GHG fluxes arc:

carbon dioxide (C02), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N20).

1.2 Peat Forest

Tropical pcatlands are major storage for carbon dioxide and source of

atmospheric methane. The peat content in Southeast Asia is the highest among

regions, as much as approximately 69% of overall global peat. According to Riclcy

et al. (2008), peat swamp forests in natural state have the ability to sequester carbon

from the atmosphere during photosynthesis, retain this in plant biomass and store

part of it in the peat. The change in pcatland C storage results from changes in the

balance between net exchange of CO,, emission of ('114. and hydrological losses of

carbon (e. g. dissolved organic and inorganic C and particulate organic C)

(International Peat Society, 2008). Net pcatland flux is determined largely by the net

balance between CO, uptake in photosynthesis and C release by ecosystem

(autotrophic and heterotrophic) respiration (Riclcy et al., 2008). Recently, (ilI(i

emissions released from peat forest have increased rapidly due to over deforestation

for agricultural developments. Figure 1.1 shows the carbon cycle in natural peat

forest.

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Figure I. I: Carbon Cycle in Natural Peat forest (Source: Minkkincn et al., 2008)

1.3 Oil Palm Plantation

UNDRAINED NATURAL FOREST

Global palm oil production is increase by 9% every year due to the expanding

of'biofuel markets in European Union and by food demand in Indonesia, India and

China (Clay, 2004: European Commission, 2006). Oil palm plantations are

structurally less complex than natural forest with uniform tree age structure, low

canopy, sparse undergrowth, less stable microclimate and greater human disturbance

and are cleared and replanted on a 25-30 year rotation (Corley and Tinker, 2003;

Danielsen et al., 1995; Pell et al., 2006). Oil palm is harvested in many tropical

countries on more than 12 million hectares and yields over 32 million tonnes of oil

annually. It accounts for more than one quarter of the global vegetable oil market

and is the most important oil crop next to soy bean. (Genner and Sauerhorn, 2000)

ý

Indonesia and Malaysia own the largest oil palm production (over 80%) in global oil

palm plantation. Oil palm plantations in Indonesia often replace forests which arc

previously degraded by fire and logging and illegal oil palm development has been

increased by 4.4 million ha to 6.1 million ha with the total forest loss about 28.1

million ha in pcatland and climate change (FAO, 2006; Hansen et al., 2005;

McMorrow ct al., 2001; Ministry of agricultural republic of Indonesia).

In Malaysia, oil palm was first planted commercially in Peninsular Malaysia

since 1917 for replacing rubber plantations and forest (Corley et al., 2003; Abdullah

et al., 2007). As land became scarce, its expansion was shifted to Sabah and Sarawak

in association with logging and was facilitated by the reclassification of some state

forest reserves to allow conversion to oil palm plantations (Hansen et al., 2005;

McMorrow et al.. 2001). Between 1990 and 2005, the oil palm plantation area in

Malaysia has increased by 1.8 million ha to 4.2 million ha while 1.1 million ha of

forest were lost (FAO. 2006; Malaysian Palm Oil Board). Oil palm establishments

usually associated with deforestation, peat fire, and peat drainage which resulted in

high amount of GH(i emissions due to carbon losses in peat soil. Therefore, further

studies should be done for determining oil palm plantation impact to the greenhouse

effects.

1.4 Problem Statement

There are uncertainties and knowledge gaps in determine (ill(i emissions from

pcatlands. According to Page et al. (2OO8). although tropical peatlands have global

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significant carbon sinks that store large amount of carbon, the data on this

information are subjcctd to uncertainly and errors due to inaccuracy of precise

pcatlands locations because of rapid land-use change developments in recent years.

Since the smog episode in 1997 in Southeast Asia, oil palm has been at the

centre of an environmental controversy as oil palm was seen to be a polluter which

use substantial input such as fertilizers and pesticides, discharging considerable

amounts of effluent from oil mills, and consuming large amounts of water during

processing (Lamadc and Bouillct, 2005). However, oil palm itself has high carbon

sequestration which can help to reduce atmospheric (ilIG through carbon fixation.

Therefore, this paper focuses on determining the major GIIG fluxes in pcatforcst and

oil palm plantation establishment.

1.5 Scope of Study

This study focused on extensive literature review on the greenhouse gas

emissions from tropical peat forest and peat oil palm plantation. It is concentrated on

data compilation and statistical data analysis from journals, scientific magazines,

news, engineering websites etc which is related about greenhouse gas emission from

peat forest and oil palm plantation. GlIG are compared based on its types, emission

rate, and global warming potential under different situations such as waterlevel, types

of vegetation. drainages, peat fire etc. By reviewing and comparing all the available

data and information, it comes out with problem identification and recommendations.

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1.6 Aim and Objectives

The purpose of this research is to compare the amount of GHG emissions from

peat forest and peat oil palm plantation. It is essential for determining the

effectiveness of carbon sequestration in peat forests and oil palm ecosystems in

order to find the best solution to mitigate global climate change which caused by

GHG emissions.

The main objectives arc:

o To study the amount of greenhouse gases produced by peat forest and palm

oil plantation under different situations.

o To determine the types of greenhouse gases produced by peat forest and palm

oil plantation.

o To compare the emission rate of GI IG in peat forest and oil palm plantation.

o To investigate the causes for GIIG formations and emissions from peatfbrest

and peat oil palm plantations.

o To study the effectiveness of peat oil palm plantations in reducing (111(1

emissions.

o To search for effective solutions for mitigating (i i(I emissions.

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1.7 Structure of Thesis

This thesis consists of five chapters which aim to clarify the concepts in

determining the major GHG emissions from peat forest and peat oil pal plantations.

Chapter 1 gives general information related to grccnhousc gases effects,

grccnhousc gases (GHG) emissions from peat forest, and oil palm plantations in

Southeast Asia. Figure 1 illustrate about carbon cycle in natural peat forest.

Chapter 2 is the literature review on journals and wcbsitcs about greenhouses

gases (GHG) emissions from natural peat forests, degraded peat forests, and peat oil

palm plantation. It focuses on the major fluxes between sources and sinks of GI IG in

peatforest and oil palm plantation establishment. It also mentioned about pcatland

distribution and carbon storage in Southeast Asia. (ill(; formation and emissions

from different peat ecosystems are also studied.

Chapter 3 describes the methodology which is formed from analysis of data and

information collected. The steps are background study, data collections, results and

discussions, and finally, conclusion and recommendations.

Chapter 4 focuses on the results and discussions of this study. Graphs and tables

have been plotted for indicating the results. Discussions are made based on the given

results.

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Chapter 5 assimilates the conclusion of this research. It consisted of the overall

results for GHG emissions from different land use in peatlands. Effectiveness and

suitability of method to mitigate greenhouse gases emissions in oil palm plantations

arc discussed and recommendations are given for improving the problems.

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CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Tropical Peatland: Distribution and Carbon storage

Tropical pcatlands arc found in mainland East Asia, Southeast Asia, the

Caribbean and Central America. South America and southern Africa with current

estimate of the total area of undeveloped tropical pcatland is in the range 30 45

million hectares, which is approximately 10-12% of the global peatland resource

(Immirri & Maltby. 1992; Riclcy ct al., 1996). In lowland Southeast Asia, pcatlands

form part of the mosaic of rain forest types that includes mangrove, lowland

diptcrocarp, heath, montane and cloud forests (Riclcy ct al., 1996, Page et al., 1999).

Most tropical peatlands arc located at low altitudes where peat swamp forest

occurs on top of a thick mass of organic matter, to which it has contributed over

thousands of years, forming accumulated deposits up to 20 in thick (Anderson.

1983). According to Fargione et al. (2008), soil and plant biomass arc the two

largest biologically active stores of the terrestrial carbon which both of them contain

9