Potential plant species for sustainable livelihood in peatland: Lesson learned from demo plot establishment in Central Kalimantan.

The utilization of peatland in many villages in Indonesia has become a concern due to various constraints such as inundation, soil acidity, low soil fertility, fire, and relatively limited choice of plant species. Moreover, the efforts of peatland restoration with 3R activities (rewetting, revegetation, and revitalization of local livelihood) will create even wetter peat in the future. The community used to plant mineral species that require peat drainage. In the transition from drained peat to fully-rewetted peat, it is necessary to anticipate the future due to changes in land-based livelihood options. Several demo plots in Central Kalimantan have been developed to produce a strategic model for the transition from the low water table to fully rewetted peat using agroforestry to manage incomes and cashflows, ranging from agricultural species to peat swamp forest species. This paper aims to determine the potential plant species for sustainable livelihood in peatland. Various plant species such as Shorea balangeran, Dyera polyphylla, Alstonia pneumatophore, and Ananas comosus showed good growth and production. However, more potential local peatland species needs to be further explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]