BANGKOK, July 5 (AFP): More than 700,000 hectares of forest in Indonesia have been cleared for mining since 2001, including large tracts of primary forest, a new analysis using satellite data has found.
The TreeMap, a conservation start-up, used high-resolution imagery from several satellites and two decades of data from the long-running Landsat programme to map mines and related infrastructure and track deforestation.
It estimates that mining -- including pits, processing facilities, tailings areas and roads -- resulted in the clearing of 721,000 hectares (7,210 square kilometres) of forest between 2001 and 2023.
An estimated 150,000 hectares of that was primary forest, areas with high carbon stock and tall trees that include intact old growth, according to the analysis released this week. The group's Nusantara Atlas shows the striking disappearance of forest cover in time-lapse sequences as mines and associated infrastructure are developed.
The mines were identified using a combination of "visual interpretation and machine learning", explained David Gaveau, founder of The TreeMap.
Satellite images show deforestation toll of Indonesia mines
FE Team | Published: July 06, 2024 00:08:36
Satellite images show deforestation toll of Indonesia mines
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