According to a study, improving health care access and affordability in rural Borneo is associated with a 70% reduction in deforestation in a national park, preserving key forest carbon stores. Isabel Jones, Susan Sokolow, and colleagues assessed the 10-year impact of healthcare exchange programs designed to offset healthcare costs in Borneo, Indonesia. Community focus groups identified lack of access to affordable healthcare as a potential driver of illegal logging, whereby logging profits helped meet basic health needs. In response, a new health clinic was established outside a national park in 2007, and 21 of 23 districts bordering the park signed agreements to receive clinic discounts based on community-wide reductions in illegal logging activity. Using 10 years of patient records, the authors found that clinic access was high regionally, but usage was highest in nearby districts that signed the agreement. Over the same time period, remote sensing data showed that forest loss rates decreased by 70%, compared with other national parks in Indonesia. According to the authors, healthcare conservation exchanges could prove beneficial in areas where access to health care is limited, but the success of such exchanges depends on community engagement.
ARTICLE #20-09240: "Improving rural health care reduces illegal logging and conserves carbon in a tropical forest," by Isabel J. Jones et al.
MEDIA CONTACT: Susanne H. Sokolow, Stanford University, CA; tel: 831-247-4271; e-mail: ssokolow@stanford.edu
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Journal
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences