Ayompe, L. M., Schaafsma, M., & Egoh, B. N. (2021). Towards sustainable palm oil production: The positive and negative impacts on ecosystem services and human wellbeing. Journal of Cleaner Production, 278. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.123914
The researchers seek to evaluate the effect of palm oil production, which is extremely prevalent in the tropics, on ecosystem services. Palm oil production accounts for nearly sixty percent of global oilseed exports due to its ability to produce a significantly greater yield per hectare than alternative oil crops. In recent years, the demand for palm oil has increased significantly.
While the introduction of the palm oil trade to developing countries boosts their respective economies, there are many negative externalities that come with this. Palm oil plantations are associated with many negative environmental impacts due to its processing. The most notable is deforestation and subsequent disruption to the hydrological cycle. Other negative externalities include habitat and biodiversity loss, forest fragmentation, disruption of food chains, and soil erosion. Fertilizers, use of toxic chemical, and improper disposal of waste products lead to the pollution of air and local water supply.
To increase sustainability, some major corporate groups have adopted practices that decrease or result in zero net deforestation along with “no exploitation” policies. All countries that produce palm oil fall under the classification of developing or least developed. In some cases, palm oil production comprises up to 5% of GDP in these locations. Some studies report positive economic growth on a local scale. However, many individuals often suffer when land is converted into palm oil plantations; they are unable to collect foods that occur in the previously established ecosystem or cultivate crops on newly converted land. Humans are also affected by air pollution and lessened access to clean water.
The researchers extracted data from other research papers, most of which originated from Indonesia. With respect to tropical areas and time, Asia was featured most in the gathered data. When focusing on both economic and ecological factors, negative impacts were more often reported than their positive counterparts. Industrial palm oil production encompassed a wider range of negative impacts than smallholder producers. However, smaller operations were more likely to produce negative social impacts. Industrial producers offered more opportunities, specifically access to education, medical care, better housing and increased tax revenue. Both varieties of producers positively impacted poverty. They also both contribute to negatively to ecosystem services, including carbon sequestration. (Ayompe, Schaafsma, & Egoh, 2021)
Lawrence, D., & Vandecar, K. (2015). Effects of tropical deforestation on climate and agriculture. Nature Climate Change, 5, 27-36. doi:https://doi.org/10.1038/nclimate2430
This article primarily focuses on the effects on deforestation in the tropics. Nations in the tropics, such as the Philippines, Brazil, Ecuador, Chad, Indonesia, and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), are typically in the process of becoming fully-developed. They are often home to lush forms of native vegetation, most of which are incapable of growing at alternate latitudes as they require a relatively unchanging climate to prosper. However, these forests are often cut down, most often as a means to increase productivity for first world companies. The researchers, beyond the basic climatological effects, seek to discover the effects of severe climate change on the agricultural industry. They conclude that deforestation has effects on both a local and global scale.
Lawrence and Vandecar use tower, ground-based, and satellite observations to analyze the effects of tropical deforestation. Specifically, general circulation models utilize the hydrologic cycle to increase their accuracy. To increase precision, they utilize the placement of plant canopies, which have a direct effect on the transfer of energy, gases, and the movement of water. Locals often experience dryer conditions; satellite data confirms that evapotranspiration will transfer moisture back to places that are occupied by vegetation but not the areas that have been previously cleared.
On a moderate scale, cloud cover falls into an imbalance. Observations from satellite data in the Amazon reveals greater cloud cover over deforested area; conversely, forested areas experienced less cloud cover. Satellite data from the lowlands of Costa Rica and Nicaragua generated the opposite effects; deforested areas experienced relatively little cloud cover, but only during the dry season. Forested areas experienced the contrasting effects, developing robust cumulus cloud fields. Further tropical measurements also indicate a correlation between rainfall and vegetation density. More than half of tropical areas supported the idea that air masses passing over dense vegetation produced more rainfall than their lesser populated counterparts; those passing over dense tropical forests proved to generate at least twice as much rainfall as those with sparse vegetation.
However, when rain events did occur in deforested areas, they possessed greater intensity than those occurring in highly vegetative locations. Rainfall seasonality has also been shown to shift. In Brazil, meteorological data shows that the wet season has been delayed in areas with little vegetation by approximately 11 days while their densely forested counterparts have experienced little shifting in 30 years.
This relates to Amartya Sen’s definition of human development by highlighting environmental turmoil. Without a proper environment to prosper in, there can be no prosperity. The more inconsistent a country’s environment is, even the shift of a few days between a dry and wet season, can disrupt an entire economy, especially those that are centered around agriculture and do not possess the resources to function interdependently. (Lawrence & Vandecar, 2015)
Michaelowa, A., & Michaelowa, K. (2015, October 21). Do rapidly developing countries take up new responsibilities for climate change mitigation? Climactic Change, 133, 499-510. doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-015-1528-6
Michaelowa et al. discuss climactic changes, specifically greenhouse gas emissions that originate from developing countries. This study brings into question how liable developing nations are for the actions they take while striving for success. They note the sustainability practices of developed nations, such as the construction of a fully carbon-neutral city.
Developing countries fall on a wide spectrum when considering global warming. Many of them, such as Indonesia, assert that developing countries should receive aid or face lower expectations when it comes to mitigating emissions. The study also recognizes Singapore, which does not produce fuel and therefore possesses a smaller carbon footprint. While it makes an effort to make sufficient domestic reforms toward sustainability, Singapore is very reluctant to take up international commitments for change.
This study, while not explicitly, challenges whether one of Sen’s core ideas is flawed. Are the negative externalities that come along with opportunity, the ability to succeed, greater than any positive reward? Can a social system be so flawed that it cannot prosper without the sacrifice of a group of people? (Michaelowa & Michaelowa, 2015)
Santika, T., Wilson, K. A., Budiharta, S., Law, E. A., Poh, T., Ancrenz, M., . . . Meijaard, E. (2019). Does oil palm agriculture help alleviate poverty? A multidimensional counterfactual assessment of oil palm development in Indonesia. World Development, 120, 105-117. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2019.04.012
This study seeks to qualify the effects of the palm oil industry on developing economies. Positive impacts have been observed in household income, consumerism, local development and employment rates, which are all common variables in measuring a nation’s economic health. However, smallholders, who have little sway when compared to their industrial counterparts, rarely experience the benefits and proper economic compensation.
Due to the amount of land required to cultivate and harvest palm oil plants, larger corporations often enter disputes with local peoples, sometimes as a precipitate of failing to consult with them. Depletion of resources overall has resulted in the deterioration of air and water quality, delivering a greater burden to some communities. While general income does increase with the expansion of the palm oil industry, less wealthy farmers, or simply those who have little access to opportunities, fall victim to social disparities.
Santika et al. emphasize the need for landscape-based assessment over broad areas to help generalize findings. This is feasible as a means to create a general rule or global legislation. However, overgeneralization can lead to greater suffering on the part of the most vulnerable individuals. For example, an area in need of stricter sustainability practices, particularly to reduce erosion, may not be allotted the resources required to place proper riparian buffers. Consciousness of variation is also heavily emphasized, specifically in reference to the lack of an even distribution in reference to economic prosperity.
This study also explores variables such as population density, ethnic distribution and primary livelihood across Indonesia. In comparing these factors, researchers noted the disruption of existing economic infrastructures. Conflict ensued in areas that exhibited a previous reliance on a free market. Failure on the part of larger corporations to distribute funds and evenly provide economic benefits to those involved contributed to social inequalities and disparities. (Santika, et al., 2019)
Skiba, U., Hergoulc’h, K., Drewer, J., Meijide, A., & Knohl, A. (2020). Oil palm plantations are large sources of nitrous oxide, but where are the data to quantify the impact on global warming? Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 47, 81-88. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2020.08.019
Areas in Malaysia and Indonesia produce more than 84% of the world’s crude palm oil. More than half of palm oil plantations replaced previously existing vegetative areas. Environmental and social externalities are often treated as interchangeable with economic factors. Therefore, the gravity of negative effects resulting from palm oil production may not be felt in full by those most closely involved.
The researchers in this study seek to define the relationship between palm oil production and the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide (N2O). Due to the warm climate present in the tropical environment coupled with high decomposition rates, these areas emit a large amount of N¬2O.
As forests, shrublands, and other naturally occurring vegetation are cleared to make way for palm oil plantations, the emissions of greenhouse gases are modified. It is common for corporations to clear the area by a practice referred to as “slash and burn” agriculture. This contributes to the emission of greenhouse gases by exacerbating the release of methane, nitrous oxide, and carbon dioxide. Directly after the process is performed, organic matter is more likely to be mineralized into ammonium and nitrate, which are then transformed into nitrous oxide through means of microbial processes such as nitrification.
Deforestation directly contributes to erosion and subsequent water pollution. There are some countries, as a method of preserving ecosystem services, that mandate riparian buffer strips. A strip of vegetation to hold the soil in place can prevent phosphates, nitrates, and other organic matter from flowing into rivers and other sources of water that may be utilized for drinking.
This relates to the ideas described by Amartya Sen due to the climatological effects displayed. Climate change, especially in tropical climates, has an innate ability to displace individuals, populations even. It brings to mind Kader Mia and his lack of economic freedom. Climatological issues can spur similar events except on a much greater scale. (Skiba, Hergoulc’h, Drewer, Meijide, & Knohl, 2020)