Dr. Jerome L. Montemayor
Executive Director, ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity
Over a decade ago, I was working with local communities in Eastern Visayas, Philippines, as part of post-Typhoon Haiyan recovery efforts. While visiting villages, I saw a peatland used by the local community as plant nurseries—something I had only seen in books before. This initial encounter ignited my interest and has since resulted in greater involvement in peatland conservation.
Peatlands are one of the planet’s most vital ecosystems. They are a powerful natural resource and can store more carbon than all of the world’s forests combined. However, despite their valuable environmental and ecosystem services, many people may not be aware of their importance. They remain vulnerable to rapid degradation due to various human activities.
This year, the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) joins the International Peatland Society in celebrating World Peatlands Day and increasing awareness of the value of this important natural resource. This year, we focus our celebration on the important and relevant theme of “Protecting Wetlands for Our Common Future,” which resonates deeply with the people of Southeast Asia.
The ASEAN region holds a significant amount of the world’s peatlands—approximately 25 to 30 million hectares. This represents 6 per cent of all global peatlands and about 40 per cent of tropical peatlands. This unique type of wetlands can be found in the vast peat swamp forests of Indonesia and Malaysia and in smaller but equally significant peatlands across Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, and Viet Nam. These ecosystems are not simply wastelands but are integral parts of our landscape. They are home to unique flora and fauna, provide us with water sources, a great source of livelihood for our people, and ensure our survival. They serve as our silent yet formidable ally in the fight against climate change. Well-managed peatlands lock away thousands of years of stored carbon, preventing their release into our atmosphere and helping to regulate global temperatures.
The ASEAN has existing frameworks and regional agreements for the protection of peatlands. In 2023, the ASEAN Peatland Management Strategy (APMS) was developed to achieve healthy and resilient peatlands by 2030. This will be achieved by enhancing knowledge and awareness, addressing transboundary haze pollution and environmental degradation, and promoting sustainable development. There is also an ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution to prevent, monitor, and mitigate transboundary haze pollution resulting from land and/or forest fires, including those on peatlands, through concerted national efforts and intensified regional and international cooperation. To achieve a haze-free ASEAN by 2030, the 2nd Roadmap for ASEAN Cooperation on Transboundary Haze Pollution Control with Means of Implementation was developed in 2023, while the ASEAN Task Force on Peatlands was conceived to support the implementation of the APMS.
Recognising the critical importance of peatland ecosystems as carbon-rich natural resources, the ACB recently launched a regional project on peatlands called Enhancing Conservation and Restoration of Wetlands and Peatlands in ASEAN as Effective Sinks and Reservoirs of Greenhouse Gases (EnCORE Wetlands), in partnership with Palladium International Ltd., with support from the ASEAN-UK Green Transition Fund. This is in collaboration with its consortium partner, the Global Environment Centre.
The two pilot sites of the EnCORE Wetlands Project include the Agusan Marsh Wildlife Sanctuary’s Caimpugan Peatlands and Maludam National Park. These are considered as the largest recorded remaining intact peat swamp forests in the Philippines and in Malaysia, respectively. We believe that strategies and approaches developed from the project will significantly contribute to the local and national efforts in safeguarding our precious peatlands, and at the regional level, to contribute to the global biodiversity goals of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. More importantly, this initiative will help us work hand-in-hand with the local communities and the indigenous peoples of our land who are staunch defenders of nature, and enhance their livelihoods with sustainable practices complemented by science-based decisions and actions.
The ACB also serves as the Secretariat of the ASEAN Heritage Parks (AHP) Programme. The AHPs comprise a network of protected areas that best represent the shared natural heritage of the region. For four decades, the AHP Programme has expanded to include 63 sites that demonstrate regional cooperation and the commitment of the ASEAN Member States to preserve and restore their immense natural wealth. Another regional initiative related to wetland and peatland conservation is the ASEAN Flyway Network (AFN). Led by Singapore and the ACB, the AFN aims to enable coordinated conservation initiatives and cross-border knowledge sharing and cooperation to protect and conserve the region’s wetlands and migratory bird species.
As we look towards 2025 and beyond, I encourage everyone to come together and unite our efforts to ensure that our peatlands thrive, our wetlands are healthy, and our biodiversity flourishes. Let us recognise that safeguarding peatlands and wetlands is both an environmental concern and a matter of public health and sustainable development towards a future in harmony with nature in the ASEAN region.
Happy World Peatlands Day!
About World Peatlands Day
World Peatlands Day is an annual global event celebrated every 2nd June to raise awareness about the significance of peatlands and the need for its sustainable management.
It was initiated by the International Peatland Society (IPS) in 2019, coinciding with the date the IPS constitution was adopted in 1967.
