Forest Carbon and EUDR in North Maluku

Updated 2026-11-02 · 3 min read · By the akar.earth specialist team

Forest carbon in North Maluku: Halmahera rainforest, Aketajawe-Lolobata, nickel mining pressure, clove and nutmeg agroforestry, mangroves and low EUDR exposure.

North Maluku still has large rainforest on Halmahera, but nickel mining is clearing it fast, so forest protection is both its biggest opportunity and its biggest challenge. Clove and nutmeg agroforestry and mangrove conservation also fit. EUDR exposure is low because its main crops are not covered.

Geography and forest types

North Maluku centres on Halmahera, a large, K-shaped island, with Ternate, Tidore, Bacan, Obi, Morotai and the Sula Islands around it. Ternate and Tidore were the original clove sultanates that drew European traders.

Halmahera holds lowland and hill rainforest, forest on ultramafic soils, and montane forest on its peaks. Aketajawe-Lolobata National Park protects two blocks of forest in central and northern Halmahera. The island has endemic birds, including Wallace’s standardwing, a bird of paradise.

Peat and mangroves

Peat is limited. Mangroves line many bays and coasts of Halmahera, Bacan, Obi and Morotai. Sediment from mining and coastal industrial development affects some areas. Mangrove conservation is a realistic option. See blue carbon.

Nickel and forest loss

Halmahera and Obi hold large nickel laterite deposits. Mining and processing operations in central and eastern Halmahera and on Obi have expanded quickly, bringing smelters, coal power plants, ports and worker settlements.

Effects include:

• direct forest clearing for open-pit mines and industrial sites,
• new roads opening forest to further clearing,
• sediment in rivers and bays,
• pressure on forest-dependent communities.

Some Hongana Manyawa (also called Togutil) groups live in Halmahera’s forest with little outside contact. Mining expansion into their territory raises serious human rights and FPIC concerns.

Main commodities

• Clove: grown widely, especially on Ternate, Tidore and Halmahera’s coasts. See clove.
• Nutmeg: grown across the islands. See nutmeg.
• Coconut: copra is a major smallholder product.
• Cocoa: smaller volumes.
• Fisheries: important coastal livelihood.

Which carbon project types fit

REDD+ near an expanding mining frontier faces leakage: protecting one area may push clearing elsewhere. Permanence also depends on whether mining permits could later be issued over the project area. See leakage accounting and the REDD+ hub.

Post-mining restoration on ultramafic soils is difficult, and mining companies have legal reclamation duties that limit additionality.

EUDR exposure

EUDR exposure is low. Clove, nutmeg, coconut and nickel are not covered. Cocoa and wood are covered in small volumes. Exporters of these need plot geolocation, evidence of no deforestation since 31 December 2020 and legality evidence.

Nickel products and their supply chains are scrutinised under other frameworks, such as battery and critical minerals due diligence, not EUDR.

Customary land and social forestry

The sultanates of Ternate, Tidore, Bacan and Jailolo retain cultural authority. Many communities hold customary land claims, including the Tobelo, Galela, Sawai and Hongana Manyawa. Customary forest recognition is limited so far.

Permenhut 6/2026 names customary communities and social forestry groups as legitimate carbon participants. For groups with limited outside contact, any engagement must follow strict safeguards, and the default should be to protect their territory without imposing projects. See customary forest carbon.

Measurement on small islands and mining frontiers

Monitoring forest in North Maluku needs two speeds. Mining expansion moves fast, so frequent satellite imagery and deforestation alerts are needed to detect new clearing within weeks. Biomass estimation needs ground plots, because forest on ultramafic soils is often shorter and less dense than typical lowland forest, and generic biomass maps may overestimate it. Using pantropical allometric equations with local wood density data and plot measurements gives more reliable carbon estimates. For agroforestry, clove and nutmeg trees need their own measurement approach, since they are managed for crops rather than wood. Logistics across the islands raise field costs, so careful sampling design matters. See deforestation alerts and plot sampling design.

Community monitoring helps too. Villagers who know the forest can report new clearing, illegal roads or mining test pits long before they show up clearly on imagery, and their reports can be checked against satellite data. Paying and training local monitors also gives forest-edge communities a direct stake in the project.

Practical next steps

Map mining permits, forest estate status and customary claims first. Compare with Maluku and North Sulawesi, and see the forest carbon hub.