Given the fact that most lowland forests in the highly populated island of Java have been converted to other uses, the mountain forests play a critical role in providing key ecosystem services such as biodiversity maintenance and partial stabilization of climate through carbon sequestration. This paper assesses the extent to which land-use changes in Mount Papandayan happening during 1994 – 2001 has resulted in loss of forest habitats and carbon sequestered in vegetation. The assessment was done by analyzing the data derived from biodiversity survey for plants and birds, field-measurement of carbon stocks, remote sensing, and interview. The remote sensing method (using Landsat) was used to quantify the extent of deforestation. In order to estimate carbon stock and its changes in the landscape, we have developed a statistical model based on the correlation between the spectral characteristics and field-measurement of carbon stocks. The results indicated that the mixed-forest of Mount Papandayan had high diversity of plants and birds. Deforestation mainly due to conversion to agricultural fields has been instrumental in causing the loss of such diverse habitat. During 1994-2001, around 2,700 hectares of forest have disappeared with the associated loss of carbon of more than 800,000 tons. This paper will also highlight the implication of this finding to the ecosystem management in order to conserve the remaining and restoring the forest.
Proceeding International Conference on Environmental Research and Technology (ICERT 2008): 463-467.
(2008)
v. 5.4.1 build 430-80361bf
