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Tropical peat ecosystem are found in three regions: Central America, Africa and South East Asia. [2] About 62% of the world's tropical peat lands occur in the Indomalayan realm (80% in Indonesia, 11% in Malaysia, 6% in Papua New Guinea, and pockets in Brunei, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Thailand).
Peat swamp forests occur where waterlogged soils prevent dead leaves and wood from fully decomposing, which over time creates thick layer of acidic peat.The peat swamp forests on Borneo occur in the Indonesian state of Kalimantan, the Malaysian state of Sarawak and in the Belait District of Brunei on coastal lowlands, built up behind the brackish mangrove forests and bounded by the Borneo ...
The ecoregion covers an area of 3,600 square kilometers (1,400 sq mi) on both the eastern and western sides of the peninsula. The peat swamp forests have formed over hundreds of years, as sediment and organic debris deposited by rivers are trapped behind mangroves, gradually building up a layer of waterlogged, acidic, nutrient-poor soil.
Tropical peat is a type of histosol that is found in tropical latitudes, including South East Asia, Africa, and Central and South America. [2] Tropical peat mostly consists of dead organic matter from trees instead of spaghnum which are commonly found in temperate peat. [ 3 ]
Borneo peat swamp forests; Peninsular Malaysian montane rain forests [1] [2] Peninsular Malaysian peat swamp forests [3] Peninsular Malaysian rain forests [4] [5] Southwest Borneo freshwater swamp forests; Tenasserim-South Thailand semi-evergreen rain forests [6]
Malaysia also has significant peatland in the Peninsular and Borneo, at 26,685 km 2, covering 8.1% of its land area. [ 22 ] Although originally a wetland ecosystem, much of the peatland in Southeast Asia have been drained for human activities such as agriculture, forestry and urban development.
The peat swamp forest is a dual ecosystem, with diverse tropical trees standing on a 10 to 12 m layer of peat - partly decayed and waterlogged plant material – which in turn covers relatively infertile soil. Peat is a major store of carbon. If broken down and burned it contributes to CO 2 emissions, considered a source of global warming. [10]
They cover most of the island below 1000 meters elevation. Borneo is divided between Indonesia, Malaysia, and Brunei, and the lowland rainforests extend into all three countries. [3] Other ecoregions cover portions of lowland Borneo, including the Borneo peat swamp forests, Southwest Borneo freshwater swamp forests, and Sundaland heath forests ...