New Capital Provides Space for Wildlife and Rebuilds Kalimantan's Endemic Forests

The Nusantara Capital City (IKN), spanning parts of North Penajam Paser and Kutai Kartanegara regencies in East Kalimantan, is providing space for wildlife protection and rebuilding Kalimantan’s endemic forests.

“IKN continues to provide space for the protection of wild animals,” said Edgar Diponegoro, Special Staff to the Head of the IKN Authority for Public Safety and Security, on Friday, when asked about the balance between development and the environment at IKN in Sepaku, North Penajam Paser.

The IKN development accommodates wildlife movement, including through the construction of animal corridor bridges over the toll road.

“The corridor bridge structures are proof that IKN’s development model provides protection for wildlife,” he said.

“The wildlife corridors were built to ensure the safety of wild animals that cross and inhabit the area,” Edgar Diponegoro added.

The wildlife corridors take the form of pathways provided so that wild animals can continue to move freely without being disrupted by the IKN Toll Road.

The IKN Authority’s commitment to realising a forest city in Indonesia’s new capital includes policies to protect local wildlife, whilst adhering to the legislative mandate that development may not exceed 25 per cent of the total area, with approximately 65 per cent required to remain as forest.

“We are rebuilding Kalimantan’s endemic forests with local plant and animal species to create a microclimate,” said Onesimus Patiung, Director of Forestry and Water Resources Development and Utilisation at the IKN Authority.

Restoring tropical forests to their original condition is extremely difficult, he continued, because much of the germplasm — the genetic material of plants and animals — has already been lost due to illegal logging, land clearing, and burning.

The construction of a germplasm centre and museum to document the remaining biological wealth is currently under way at the Mentawir Nursery in Sepaku District, North Penajam Paser Regency.

Kalimantan is dominated by tropical forests with diverse and distinctive ecosystems. The endemic plants that make up Kalimantan’s forests differ from those found elsewhere, and the island also features kerangas heath forests in coastal areas and nutrient-poor sandy soils, Onesimus Patiung noted.