Basten Gokkon
Mongabay
Indonesia
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Past articles by Basten:
As Indonesia’s new capital takes shape, risks to wider Borneo come into focus
SEPAKU/BALIKPAPAN/JAKARTA, Indonesia — In 1977, when Darna was about 8 years old, her family moved from Indonesia’s central island of Java to Borneo, its largest. They were among the tens of thousands of families who participated in then-president Suharto’s transmigration program, which aimed to ease crowding in Java by offering free tracts of land in […] → Read More
Orangutan death in Sumatra points to human-wildlife conflict, illegal trade
MEDAN, Indonesia — An investigation into the violent death of an orangutan in northern Sumatra in January has shone a light on the persistent problem of human-wildlife conflict and illegal trade of the near-extinct species. Farmers in Karo district, on the outskirts of Gunung Leuser National Park, captured the adult male Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii) […] → Read More
Indonesian fisheries fee change promises more revenue, but likely also more violations
JAKARTA — Marine observers in Indonesia have warned of a potential rise in illegal and unreported fishing in the wake of a new policy for how the government collects revenue from big fishing boats. This non-tax revenue includes fees for certification, resource exploitation, port services, quality inspections, and training, among others. The Indonesian fisheries ministry […] → Read More
Machine learning makes long-term, expansive reef monitoring possible
Machine learning can help conservationists monitor climate impacts across large swaths of marine ecosystems over extended periods of time, a task never possible before. The Delta Maps machine learning tool provides a new way to assess which reefs might be best-suited for survival and which play a key role in delivering larvae to others, and […] → Read More
End of the tuna FAD? Indonesia hopes so, but EU isn’t giving up just yet
JAKARTA — The Indonesian government has welcomed a recent decision by fisheries regulators to curtail the use of controversial fish-aggregating devices, or FADs, which critics blame for a steep decline in Indian Ocean tuna stocks. “Indonesia has the same concern with most of the coastal states in the Indian Ocean,” Ridwan Mulyana, the director of […] → Read More
Indonesia opens its ‘ocean account’ for sustainable marine management
JAKARTA — The Indonesian government is designing a new scheme to measure the long-term benefits provided by the country’s marine and coastal ecosystems. The mechanism, known as ocean accounting and in development since 2021, is part of the Indonesian Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries’ wider efforts to promote sustainable marine management. Proponents say it […] → Read More
More than half of reef sharks and rays threatened with extinction, study shows
More than half of known species of coral reef sharks and rays are threatened with extinction, according to new research that underscores the urgent need for improved regional fisheries and marine protected areas management. The study, published Jan. 17 in the journal Nature Communications, identified 79 of the world’s 134 coral reef-associated rays and sharks […] → Read More
More marine protected areas planned for Indonesia’s Maluku after 2022 spree
AMBON, Indonesia — Authorities in Indonesia’s Maluku province say they will establish new marine protected areas this year, following from five created last year alone, as part of wider efforts to preserve natural resources while boosting the local economy. “In 2023, we are already targeting to designate a marine protected area in the waters […] → Read More
Indonesian ‘island auction’ to go ahead despite concerns over permits
JAKARTA — Shares of a private company with the rights to develop tourism facilities inside a marine reserve in Indonesia have reappeared for auction later this month despite the government’s plan to annul a key agreement with the firm. Developer PT Leadership Islands Indonesia (LII) is putting up its shares for bidding via Sotheby’s Concierge […] → Read More
Indonesia’s ‘essential’ mangroves, seagrass and corals remain unprotected
JAKARTA — Much of the mangroves, seagrass beds and coral reefs in Indonesia lie outside protected areas, which could thwart efforts at effective marine conservation, a new report shows. Indonesia currently has 284,000 square kilometers (110,000 square miles) of marine area under protection. But 84% of the country’s 2.79 million hectares (6.89 million acres) of […] → Read More
Unsustainable fishing to be banned in Irrawaddy dolphin’s Bornean sanctuary
JAKARTA — One of the most threatened population of Irrawaddy dolphins in Asia is set to get a much-needed reprieve as officials in Indonesia roll out a ban on unsustainable fishing gear in a key stretch of river. The Bornean population of the species, Orcaella brevirostris, is found in the Mahakam River, of which an […] → Read More
Protecting wetlands is key to Indonesia hitting its climate goals, study says
JAKARTA — Fully protecting Indonesia’s remaining peatlands and mangroves is the key to achieving the government’s goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by the end of the decade — and then some. That’s the finding from a new study by researchers from Indonesia, Japan and the U.S., published Nov. 9 in the journal Environmental Research […] → Read More
As Indonesia protects more marine areas, top priority is management: experts
JAKARTA — As Indonesia aims to protect more of its seas, scientists say in a new paper that effective management of these marine areas must be the government’s top priority in a world faced with global climate change and biodiversity crises. The Indonesian government has pledged to secure 10% of the country’s territorial waters towards […] → Read More
Mangroves and wildlife in Bornean bay at risk from Indonesia’s new capital
JAKARTA/NORTH PENAJAM PASER, Indonesia — The Indonesian government’s strategy to minimize the marine impacts of building a new capital city on the island of Borneo is severely lacking, researchers and activists say. The city of Nusantara, where the government will move the nation’s capital in 2024 from Jakarta, is being constructed in the province of […] → Read More
Indonesian program pays fishers to collect plastic trash at sea
JAKARTA — The Indonesian government has launched a program that will pay thousands of traditional fishers to collect plastic trash from the sea. The four-week initiative is part of wider efforts to cut marine plastic waste by 70% by 2025. The Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries said on Oct. 4 that it had budgeted […] → Read More
Indonesian lobster larvae bound for Singapore reveal role of smuggling network
JAKARTA/BATAM, Indonesia — Indonesian authorities are investigating a network smuggling wild-caught lobster larvae to Singapore, following the seizures of two shipments worth an estimated 33.9 billion rupiah, or about $2.2 million. “The smuggling of lobster larvae remains rampant because there’s still such high demand for it from abroad coupled with some people who really are […] → Read More
Indonesia to update conservation efforts for aquarium favorite cardinalfish
JAKARTA — The Indonesian government is drafting an updated five-year national strategy to protect an endemic reef fish species that’s popular in the global aquarium trade. Indonesia’s fisheries ministry said recently it was working on a new action plan to conserve the wild population of the Banggai cardinalfish (Pterapogon kauderni), a commercial coral fish found […] → Read More
Big data monitoring tool aims to catch up to Indonesia’s booming online bird trade
JAKARTA — Researchers in Indonesia have harnessed the power of big data to monitor the flourishing online trade in songbirds, proposing it as a critical conservation tool in the absence of any other platform to crack down on trafficking. The researchers, from the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), developed their “Support Vector Machine,” or […] → Read More
Indonesia urged to update fisher training program to international standards
JAKARTA — Fisheries and human rights observers in Indonesia are calling for a revamp of the country’s fisher training program ahead of a scheduled evaluation of measures to protect maritime workers at home and overseas. Indonesia, one of the world’s largest fish producers, is home to some 2.3 million people who identify as fishers and […] → Read More
Indonesia pursues agreements to protect its fishers on foreign vessels
JAKARTA — The Indonesian government is forging bilateral agreements to protect the rights of its citizens working on fishing boats under other countries’ flags, in a bid to tackle labor abuses and modern slavery. The foreign ministry in Jakarta said recently that it was establishing a body of “sea-based” agreements with other countries that receive […] → Read More