The Destruction Of Palm Oil

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The Destruction of Palm Oil

Introduction

In this paper, I will explore the environmental effects caused by the expansion of

palm oil plantations across Latin America. Presently, palm oil is the most widely traded

and consumed vegetable oil on the planet. “Pan-tropical cultivation of the African oil

palm (Elaeis guineensis)—an oilseed commodity crop—has flourished under the

globalized model of production, and has become a highly publicized, controversial issue

between conservationists and the private sector (Furumo, 2017).” Palm oil is a leading

ingredient in a wide array of products, from processed foods and cosmetics, to

lubricants and detergents. “Palm oil accounts for nearly 60% of global oilseed exports

and this trade volume is generated from approximately half of its globally harvested

area (Furumo, 2017).” The globalization of commodity production systems interweaves

across worldwide socio-ecological structures and is the driving force behind the

exponential boom of the agricultural industry. Moreover, globalization has fundamentally

changed the foundations of land use and the way crops are grown. Global market

forces and demand are controlled by cash crops harvested on vast mono-cropped

farms, exporting crops for consumption abroad while wreaking havoc on the localized

environment. As a result, the palm oil industry has expanded to the tropics reflecting the

ever-growing demand of oilseed crops and biofuel markets.

Unfortunately, much of this expansion has caused large-scale deforestation,

especially in Asia. “Growth of the oil palm sector may be driven by global factors, but

environmental and economic outcomes vary between regions (i.e. Asia and Latin

America), within regions (i.e. Colombia and Peru), and within single countries (i.e.

Guatemala), suggesting that local conditions are influential (Furumo, 2017).” Sadly,

environmental degradation in the tropical zones of Latin America goes hand-in-hand

with agricultural modernization. I will focus on a variety of countries throughout Latin

America, and I will compare the environmental implications of 1) biodiversity, 2)

unhealthy ecosystem functions and 3) evidence of environmental destruction.

The rising use of palm oil and the deforestation in Asia has apprehensively

opened up new frontiers in Latin America and has led to an aggressive growth of oil

output. “Today, the region contains three of the top ten producing nations in the world

(i.e. Colombia, Ecuador, and Honduras). It also has the largest reserves of forest

suitable for oil palm expansion, notably Brazil (2 283 000 km2), Peru (458 000 km2), and

Colombia (417 000 km2), forests, which harbor much of the planet’s biodiversity and

carbon stocks (Furumo, 2017).” Further development into these zones will threaten

biodiversity-rich ecosystems and increase global greenhouse gas emissions. Many of

these critical forests and jungles contain immense amounts of mammal and bird species

at risk of extinction. “Because the oil palm’s range is limited to the humid tropics, much

of the current expansion has come at the expense of species-rich and carbon-rich

tropical forests (Vijay, 2016).” Interventions and conservation efforts must push toward

sustainable and deforestation-free sources of palm oil. How can this sector continue

down a more sustainable pathway?, the future must avoid deforestation and find a

balance between economic and environmental concerns. As a whole, this research is

important because it will aid toward the change needed to preserve the vital life force

surrounding the balance of biodiversity.

Background

Large‐scale palm oil cultivation has excessively transformed biodiversity-rich

tropics all for the rising profits of palm oil companies. “High output, easy establishment,

and low costs make the crop very profitable, and the most efficient oil crop economically

(Paterson, 2018).” Palm oil use is immense and expanding at an accelerated pace

globally, developing rapidly in countries such as Latin America and China. Massive oil

yields and high adaptability drives the global industry, worth billions of dollars annually.

“Most crude palm oil is used in food and biodiesel production, while palm kernel oil is

employed in detergents, cosmetics, plastics, and chemicals (Paterson, 2018).” All these

products are then produced, processed, packaged, and transported before becoming

the ideal good, releasing greenhouse gas emissions all along the way. Scientific data

supports the development of climate change as being caused by the human industry.

“Palm oil plantations have reduced ecosystem functioning generally compared to forests

(the predominant ecosystem replaced by palm oil) and contribute to climate change

(Paterson, 2018).” Destruction of ecological functions will lead to erratic climate

deregulation and irreversible global impacts. “The most serious impacts occur when the

forest is cleared to establish plantations immediately after removal, and especially on

peat soils (Paterson, 2018).”

“Palm Oil plantations are structurally less complex than natural forests, with a

uniform tree age structure, lower canopy, sparse undergrowth, less stable microclimate

and greater human disturbance and are cleared and replanted on a 25–30 year rotation

(Fitzherbert, 2008).” Plantations restructure large areas of forest that support fewer

species, contributing to habitat fragmentation, tropical deforestation and pollution.

Converting forests into plantations greatly affects species richness, species composition

and the balance of ecosystems. “Palm Oil consistently held fewer than half as many

vertebrate species as primary forests, whereas invertebrate taxa showed more variation

effects (Fitzherbert, 2008).” Plantations are inadequate and poor habitats for most forest

species, disrupting the landscape complexity, plant species diversity and developing

barriers to animal movements. Another environmental impact from plantations and mills

is water pollution, pollutants consist of herbicides, fertilizers, insecticides, rodenticides

and palm oil mill effluents, all affecting both land and aquatic biodiversity.

“Between 1980 and 2014, global palm oil production increased by a factor of 15,

from 4.5 million tons to 70 million tons. Industrial-scale oil palm plantations now occupy

an area of 18.7 million hectares worldwide (as of October 2017), with smallholder oil