Water-logged: The nature of mangrove swamps makes them unsuitable for oil palm cultivation, because its high water table would kill the crop. Filepic
Local palm oil producers and soil scientists disagree with the findings of a recent study done by researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS), which claims that oil palm plantations is a major driver of mangrove deforestation in South-East Asia from 2000 to 2012.
The study, Rates and drivers of mangrove deforestation in South-East Asia, 2000-2012, by Daniel R. Richards and Daniel Friess from the department of geography, finds oil palm expansion to be “a key but unrecognised threat in Malaysia and Indonesia”, contributing about 16% of the total area of mangrove deforestation during the study period.
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