Planning for low-emissions development in Tanjung Jabung barat district, Jambi province, Indonesia

Tanjung Jabung Barat district in Jambi province, Sumatra, has had one of the province’s
highest rates of carbon emissions associated with land-use changes. During 2005–2009, the average annual emission of carbon dioxide or equivalent in the district reached 9.66 tonne per hectare. The main source of emissions was the conversion of previously logged forest to rubber and oil palm plantations. The national development policy to establish industrial tree plantations (Hutan Tanaman Industri/HTI) has greatly influenced the level of emissions in the district. At the time of writing, HTI is the dominant land-use system in Tanjung Jabung Barat.
Forest areas in Tanjung Jabung Barat cover 240 090.55 ha1 or 48% of the district’s total area. Approximately 71% of the forest area is categorised by the Government as Production Forest. Spatial analysis conducted by the World Agroforestry Centre
(ICRAF) showed that most of the Production Forest areas were allocated for HTI (156 306 ha) and oil palm plantations (90 655 ha).