The Expansion of Palm Oil Plantation and the Crisis of Orangutan Habitat in Indonesia: A Literature Review
DOI:
10.29303/jbt.v26i2.11690Published:
2026-05-01Downloads
Abstract
Indonesia is the country with the best biodiversity in the world, as measured by its terrestrial and marine biodiversity. However, at the same time, there is additionally a significant decline in biodiversity. One species experiencing population decline is the orangutan, because of the growth of oil palm plantations that convert natural forests, resulting in the loss and fragmentation of orangutan habitats. This paper aims to analyze the effect of oil palm plantation expansion at the orangutan habitat crisis in Indonesia. This paper uses a literature review method with a descriptive-qualitative approach, drawing on scientific journals, conservation organization reports, and official government documents. Data are analyzed descriptively and analytically to study the relationship between oil palm plantation growth and orangutan habitat. The outcomes of the study indicate that orangutans are noticeably depending on the complexity of natural forests for nesting and foraging. Forest conversion to homogeneous monoculture oil palm plantations reduces habitat and food sources and increases conflict between humans and orangutans. This has caused a decline within the orangutan population, resulting in its categorization as a critically endangered species. The weak implementation of oil palm plantation management and orangutan conservation policies further exacerbates the crisis of the orangutan habitat. Therefore, efforts to strengthen integrated palm oil plantation governance and orangutan conservation based on ecosystem restoration are crucial.
Keywords:
Expansion Habitat Oil Palm OrangutanReferences
Ancrenaz, M., Gumal, M., Marshall, A.J., Meijaard, E., Wich, S.A., & Husson, S. (2024). Pongo pygmaeus (amended version of 2023 assessment). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024: e.T17975A259043172. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2024-1.RLTS.T17975A259043172.en (Accessed on December 19, 2025)
Barus, P., & Ahsan, A. (2025). Hubungan usaha perkebunan kelapa sawit dengan pengentasan kemiskinan melalui penciptaan lapangan kerja: Studi kasus empat kabupaten di Riau. Syntax Literate: Jurnal Ilmiah Indonesia, 10 (4): 4168-4179. DOI: https://doi.org/10.36418/syntax-literate.v10i4.58626
Badan Pusat Statistik (BPS). (2025, November 19). Nilai ekspor bulanan hasil industri menurut komoditas (Juta US$), 2025. Badan Pusat Statistik. https://www.bps.go.id/id/statistics-table/2/MjMxMiMy/nilai-ekspor-bulanan-hasil-industri-menurut-komoditas.html (Accessed on December 19, 2025)
Eryan, A., & Nugroho, A. A. (2019). Telaah kerugian dan tanggung jawab pemulihan pada kasus konservasi sumber daya alam hayati dan ekosistemnya. Dalam: Arah baru kebijakan penegakan hukum konservasi sumber daya alam hayati dan ekosistemnya, Nugroho, A. A., Subagiyo, H., & Fatimah, I. (Eds), Indonesian Center for Environmental Law (ICEL), pp: 107-151. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/375083786_Arah_Baru_Kebijakan_Penegakan_Hukum_Konservasi_ICEL (Accessed on January 18, 2026)
Fauzi, F., Aisyah, S., Oktavianus, R., Rizal, M., Herianto, Pidjat, C., & Hidayat, N. (2024). Estimasi populasi orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii) di Taman Hutan Raya Lapak Jaru Kabupaten Gunung Mas Provinsi Kalimantan Tengah. Jurnal Hutan Tropis, 12 (4): 523-533. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.20527/jht.v12i4.21448
Fitzherbert, E. B., Struebig, M., J., Morel, A., Danielsen, F., Bruhl, C. A., Donald, P. F., & Phalan, B. (2008). How will oil palm expansion affect biodiversity?. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 23 (10): 538–545. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2008.06.012
Gaveau, D. L. A., Sheil, D., Husnayaen, Salim, M. A., Arjasakusuma, S., Ancrenaz, M., Pacheco, P., & Meijaard, E. (2016). Rapid conversions and avoided deforestation: Examining four decades of industrial plantation expansion in Borneo. Scientific Reports, 6, 32017: 1-13. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/srep32017
Greenpeace. (2021). Deceased estate: Illegal palm oil wiping out Indonesia’s national forest. Greenpeace Southeast Asia. https://www.greenpeace.org/southeastasia/publication/44744/deceased-estate-illegal-palm-oil-wiping-out-indonesias-national-forest/ (Accessed on December 19, 2025)
Kelompok Kerja Pengelolaan Lansekap Batang Toru Berkelanjutan. (2019). Ekologi orangutan tapanuli (Pongo tapanuliensis). Kelompok Kerja Pengelolaan Lansekap Batang Tori Berkelanjutan. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Dede-Rahman-2/publication/336851911_EKOLOGI_ORANGUTAN_TAPANULI_Pongo_tapanuliensis (Accessed on December 28, 2025)
Meijaard, E., Garcia-Ulloa, J., Sheil, D., Wich, S. A., Carison, K. M., Juff-Biognoli, D., & Brooks, T. M. (eds.). (2018). Oil palm and biodiversity: A situation analysis by the IUCN Oil Palm Task Force. IUCN Oil Palm Task Force Gland, Switzerland: IUCN. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.CH.2018.11.en (Accessed on December 19, 2025)
Nowak, M.G., Rianti, P., Wich , S.A., Meijaard, E., & Fredriksson, G. (2024). Pongo tapanuliensis (amended version of 2023 assessment). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024: e.T120588639A259042400. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2024-1.RLTS.T120588639A259042400.en (Accessed on December 19, 2025)
Petrenko, C., Paltseva, J., & Searle, S. (2016). Ecological impacts of palm oil expansion in Indonesia. International Council on Clean Transportation. https://theicct.org/publication/ecological-impacts-of-palm-oil-expansion-in-indonesia/ (Accessed on December 19, 2025)
Putra, I. M. K. A. (2019). Pengendalian pembukaan lahan perkebunan kelapa sawit sebagai upaya pelestarian habitat orangutan di Indonesia. Jurist-Diction, 2 (2): 459-474. DOI: https://doi.org/10.20473/jd.v2i2.14228
Republik Indonesia. (1990). Undang-Undang Republik Indonesia Nomor 5 Tahun 1990 tentang Konservasi Sumber Daya Alam Hayati dan Ekosistemnya. https://peraturan.bpk.go.id/Details/46710/uu-no-5-tahun-1990 (Accessed on January 15, 2026)
Republik Indonesia. (2009). Undang-Undang Republik Indonesia Nomor 32 Tahun 2009 tentang Perlindungan dan Pengelolaan Lingkungan Hidup. https://peraturan.bpk.go.id/details/38771/uu-no-32-tahun-2009 (Accessed on December 19, 2025)
Republik Indonesia. (2014). Undang-Undang Republik Indonesia Nomor 39 Tahun 2014 tentang Perkebunan. https://peraturan.bpk.go.id/Details/38807/uu-no-39-tahun-2014 (Accessed on December 19, 2025)
Republik Indonesia. (2016). Peraturan Pemerintah (PP) Nomor 57 Tahun 2016 tentang Perubahan atas Peraturan Pemerintah Nomor 71 Tahun 2014 tentang Perlindungan dan Pengelolaan Ekosistem Gambut. https://peraturan.bpk.go.id/Details/5778/pp-no-57-tahun-2016 (Accessed on December 19, 2025)
Republik Indonesia. (2024). Undang-Undang Republik Indonesia Nomor 32 Tahun 2024 tentang Perubahan atas Undang-Undang Nomor 5 Tahun 1990 tentang Konservasi Sumber Daya Alam Hayati dan Ekosistemnya. https://peraturan.bpk.go.id/Details/295135/uu-no-32-tahun-2024 (Accessed on January 15, 2026)
Setiawan, A. (2022). Keanekaragaman hayati Indonesia: Masalah dan upaya konservasinya. Indonesian Journal of Conservation, 11 (1): 13-21. DOI: https://doi.org/10.15294/ijc.v11i1.34532 https://journal.unnes.ac.id/nju/ijc/article/view/34532
Singleton, I., Wich , S.A., Nowak, M., Usher, G., & Utami-Atmoko, S.S. (2024). Pongo abelii (amended version of 2023 assessment). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024: e.T121097935A259045437. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2024-1.RLTS.T121097935A259045437.en (Accessed on December 19, 2025)
Sugianto, Y., Budiwijaya, R., Aipassa, M. I., Sukartiningsih, Kustiawan, W., & Rayadin, Y. (2023). Sebaran dan karakteristik konflik orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus) dengan manusia di Kalimantan Timur. Agrifor: Jurnal Ilmu Pertanian dan Kehutanan, 22 (2): 345-360. DOI: https://doi.org/10.31293/agrifor.v22i2.6828
Trade Map. (2024). List of exporters for the selected product in 2024 Product: 1511 Palm oil and its fractions, whether or not refined (excl. chemically modified). International Trade Centre. https://www.trademap.org/Country_SelProduct.aspx?nvpm=1%7c%7c%7c%7c%7c1511%7c%7c%7c4%7c1%7c1%7c2%7c1%7c1%7c2%7c1%7c1%7c1 (Accessed on December 19, 2025)
Utami-Atmoko, S. Traylor-Holzer, K. Rifqi, M.A., Siregar, P.G., Achmad, B., Priadjati, A., Husson, S., Wich, S., Hadisiswoyo, P., Saputra, F., Campbell-Smith, G., Kuncoro, P., Russon, A., Voigt, M., Santika, T., Nowak, M., Singleton, I., Sapari, I., Meididit, A., Chandradewi, D.S., Ripoll Capilla, B., Ermayanti, & Lees, C.M. (eds.). (2017). Orangutan population and habitat viability assessment: Final report. IUCN/SSC Conservation Breeding Specialist Group, Apple Valley, MN. https://www.orangutanindonesia.org/phva-2016 (Accessed on December 19, 2025)
Vijay, V., Pimm, S. L., Jenkins, C. N., & Smith, S. J. (2016). The impacts of oil palm on recent deforestation and biodiversity loss. PLoS ONE, 11 (7): 1-19. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0159668
Widiono, S. (2024). Oil palm plantation expansion and population problems: An explanatory factor for deforestation in Indonesia. Dynamics of Rural Society Journal, 2 (2): 76-88. DOI: https://doi.org/10.37905/drsj.v2i2.50
Wulandari, E. & Kusuma, A. F. (2023). Kelapa sawit Indonesia: Dilema dan solusi yang tidak kunjung usai. Khatulistiwa Profesional: Jurnal Pengembangan SDM dan Kebijakan Publik, 4 (2): 57-68. DOI: https://doi.org/10.62099/khapro.v4i2.70
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Carissa Altaf, Suranto Suranto
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Jurnal Biologi Tropis is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
The copyright of the received article shall be assigned to the author as the owner of the paper. The intended copyright includes the right to publish the article in various forms (including reprints). The journal maintains the publishing rights to the published articles.
Authors are permitted to disseminate published articles by sharing the link/DOI of the article at the journal. Authors are allowed to use their articles for any legal purposes deemed necessary without written permission from the journal with an acknowledgment of initial publication to this journal.
