Habitat & Biodiversity
By: Georges Hattab
Tags: Environment, Mapping, Design, Nature, Data Visualization

This enabled the DRC to map the optimal areas suitable to cultivate the African oil palm. It was possible thanks to tracking and finding an array of suitable measures: Temperature ranges (24–28°C), rainfall per year (2000–2500mm), soil types (high clay content, or loam and silt dominated soils), and soil constraints (flat areas to lessen the effects of erosion and fertilizer runoff).

Created map showing the pilot REDD+ projects (yellow) that aim at Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation; created among protected areas and indigenous lands while taking into account palm oil cultivation suitability.

However, these optimal or highly suitable areas also cover large intact forests, home to a rich biodiversity and many indigenous groups. Indeed, the question of finding suitable areas for cultivation becomes a multi-faceted problem where many other factors determine which parts should be cleared for palm oil cultivation.

Mathieu Shamavu poses for a photo with the orphaned gorillas Nkakazi and Ndeze. Photograph: Mathieu Shamavu/AP

Many mammal species would no longer find their homes. Apart from humans, the Gorilla, the Pan, and even the Okapi. Naturally, the ecological diversity doesn’t stop at mammals and efforts for conservation are much needed as poaching, illegal forest clearance loom over an ever decreasing natural habitat. The palm oil cultivation story can be found as a scrolly report with interactive maps and notes.

It is alarming that the human use of many ecosystems is too great a burden for the forces of nature to be able to heal itself. As a consequence, the previously described habitats will change fundamentally. This ranges from change in the diversity of organisms to changes in their interactions. Forests are being converted into agricultural land, oil palm plantations are displacing tropical rainforests, and the fate of more soil is being sealed.

This leads to stress on the invisible threads that connect each organism in an environment. When organisms are deprived of survival conditions, their ability to adapt to different conditions is overtaxed. The effects of the changing global and regional climate contribute to this phenomenon.

Although about 11 million species have been described by biologists, it is likely there are many more unknown species, particularly in the oceans and the large rainforest areas. This is even more so the case for microbes that live out of sight. Scientists estimate that we’ve only discovered one tenth of all species on Earth. A question comes to mind: How many unknown species have already been affected by the effects of global and regional climate? In the oceans, research is difficult as everything is naturally dynamic and ocean exploration is challenging.

Learning about the deep sea and the large rainforests is today made easier by technology. Years ago, people could only marvel and wonder at the secrets of these habitats. While rainforest exploration has been limited by the challenges of hot and humid conditions, the dense canopy cover, the remoteness, and the sheer diversity of species; in the oceans, underwater diving has been limiting human exploration. However, unmanned vehicles could enable long term exploration of the depths to gather and collect data to better understand living organisms that contribute to the exchange of matter.

The example of mapping data that pertain to finding suitable palm oil cultivation areas and their visualization helped bring forth a greater understanding for conservation and land use planning. On a larger scale, this train of thought could help unravel the world’s critical ecosystems. Indeed, every data point matters, from part to whole on the threads of a much larger spiderweb.