Southeast Sulawesi’s remote mountain ranges hold the largest expanse of intact forest of an island often compared to the Galapagos and Madagascar for the uniqueness of its fauna and flora. On the eastern coast of Sulawesi lies the Banda Sea, the second most biodiverse marine area of the Coral Triangle. Relatively spared until now compared to Sumatra and Borneo, Sulawesi’s unique ecosystems are now facing a growing range of threats.
These pictures are part of the work I did with the conservation organization Naturevolution and its local partners in Southeast Sulawesi.
Left to right, 1st row: Bajau children play in a dugout in Labengki island’s Teluk Cinta or ‘Love bay’; Pulau Burung or ‘Bird island’, a speck of tree-covered rock right behind Labengki village; A lone house on Kokoh island in the Sombori archipelago to the north of Labengki, Central Sulawesi. 2nd row: Stick insect (Pylaemenes sp.) in the Matarombeo massif, North Konawe regency; Anemone and clownfish, Labengki island; Uninhabited islet near Labengki island. 3rd row: Villager from Padalere village driving a katingting pirogue up the Lasolo river into the Matarombeo karst, North Konawe; The forested karst islets and coastline of southern Morowali regency, Central Sulawesi; Ambokitta village in the Sombori achipelago, Morowali, Central Sulawesi.
Island and coastal communities
The coast of Southeast Sulawesi is dotted with Bajau communities – former sea nomads now largely settled – and other villages relying almost exclusively on fishing for their livelihoods.
Left to right, 1st row: Passengers getting ready for the 4-hour boat ride from Labengki village to Kendari, the capital of the province; The main street of Labengki village, a 400-people Bajau community, located within the Teluk Lasolo protected area off the coast of Southeast Sulawesi; Donkala village, Sombori archipelago, Central Sulawesi. 2nd row: Labengki village; Bajau fisherman from the Labengki community leading his boat into the mangrove of the Lasolo delta; Fishing huts in the Lasolo mangrove where upstream villagers come to catch mangrove crabs for 2-week periods each month. 3rd row: Fisherman from Labengki village unloads and weighs his catch with the help of his son; An ecovolunteer from the NGO Naturevolution walks into Ambokitta village in the Sombori archipelago; Young woman from Donkalan village. 4th row: The village of Labengki at night; The village of Donkalan is home to several hundred people living in rows of houses built on stilts around the rocky island itself; Larger fishing vessels, Labengki island.
Ecotourism
The Matarape bay, also known locally as Labengki-Sombori after its most visited islands, has been nicknamed the ‘mini Rajat Ampat’, as much for its likeliness with the famous archipelago of West Papua as for promoting local tourism development.
The NGO Naturevolution involves ecovolunteers in its local projects, from left to right: Basecamp on Pasir Panjang ‘long beach’ on Labengki island; Ecovolunteers in the boat rented for the duration of the mission; Kayaking down the Lasolo river on the edge of the Matarombeo karstic range.
Nickel mining and deforestation
Sulawesi’s Morowali and North Konawe regencies hold some of the biggest untapped resources of nickel ore, leading to a mining boom and an influx of both local and foreign companies. Environmental regulation are rarely respected, leading to a loss of the original topsoil, sediment run-off into river and coastal ecosystems, along with insufficient post-mining restoration efforts. Many instances of ties between decision-makers and mining companies have been reported. Though exploitation has so far mainly been limited to the coast (as of 2019), new roads are opening inland into areas once out of reach and free of large scale human impact.
Left to right, 1st row: Superficial nickel mining generates sediment run-off into rivers, aggravated by the lack of sediment ponds, normally required by the mining code. Morowali, Central Sulawesi; Nickel mining exploitation on the coast of the Matarape bay, North Konawe, Sulawesi. Coastal coral reefs covered by sediment generated by mining activities. 2nd row: Coastal coral reefs in mining areas; Post-exploitation mining site, where some reforestation efforts have been done, as required by law. Most sites are not regenerated after exploitation. Post-mining sites are the most difficult type of terrain to reforest; Boenaga village in North Konawe, on the edge of Teluk Lasolo marine protected area. Nickel mining generates many comparatively well-paid local jobs, but the best positions go to expatriates. 3rd row: Nickel mining exploitation, North Konawe, Sulawesi.
With low-lying forests across Indonesia now largely cleared, the deforestation front is reaching into areas harder to access to create new plantations of crops like oil palm and pepper.
Deforested hillsides and new small-scale plantations of pepper and other crops in a mountainous area at the junction of the Central and Southeast Sulawesi provinces.
