Report

How to Make Investments in Land Rehabilitation Economically Viable

Lessons learned from peatland and mangroves in Indonesia, a sustainable asset valuation assessment

This report presents the results of a Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) assessment for peatland and mangrove restoration in Indonesia. The SAVi assessment uses system dynamics modelling and financial analysis to analyze restoration options for the Katingan peatlands and Belitung mangroves. The study also quantifies the societal benefits and costs of several policy, land-use, and climate scenarios.

By Andrea Bassi, Ronja Bechauf, Emma Cutler on June 16, 2022
  • Our #SAVi assessment shows investing in nature to restore peatlands and mangroves in Indonesia provides a cost-effective way to address climate change and support communities.

  • Ecosystem restoration is an important part of climate change mitigation and adaptation. Both peatlands and mangroves store large amounts of carbon and increase resilience to extreme events.

  • Money matters: To make land rehabilitation lasting and more economically viable, local communities need an additional source of income (like tourism). If not, they may turn to environmentally damaging activities (like plantations and mining) which have less societal benefit than sustainable land management.

Indonesia's commitments to reducing greenhouse gas emissions include efforts to restore 2 million hectares of degraded peatland by 2030 and to restore and better manage mangrove ecosystems. Ecosystem restoration is an important part of climate change mitigation and adaptation. Both peatlands and mangroves store large amounts of carbon and increase resilience to extreme events.

The results of the SAVi assessment presented in this report highlight the social, economic, and environmental value of peatland and mangrove ecosystems. Our results show that sustainable management has high societal value under all simulated climate scenarios. Investing in nature to restore peatlands and mangroves in our study locations provides a cost-effective way to address climate change and support communities. These results provide insight into how similar restoration projects could be done in other locations. They also show that impacts on the local community are critical for success.

Report details