How to cite:
Siti Azizah, Irfan H. Djunaidi, Jaisy Aghniarahim Putritamara,
Achadiah Rachmawati, Rositawati Indrati, Zazin Fahresi Alamanda
and Deby Okta Pradana (2021). Wild Grazing of Beef Cattle in the
Buffer Village of SPTN Region II Sumberwaru Baluran National Park.
Journal Eduvest. 1(12): 1443-1450
E-ISSN:
2775-3727
Published by:
https://greenpublisher.id/
Eduvest – Journal of Universal Studies
Volume 1 Number 12, December 2021
p- ISSN 2775-3735 e-ISSN 2775-3727
WILD GRAZING OF BEEF CATTLE IN THE BUFFER VILLAGE OF SPTN
REGION II SUMBERWARU BALURAN NATIONAL PARK
Siti Azizah, Irfan H. Djunaidi, Jaisy Aghniarahim Putritamara, Achadiah
Rachmawati, Rositawati Indrati, Zazin Fahresi Alamanda and Deby Okta
Pradana
Faculty of Animal Science, Brawijaya University, Indonesia
ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT
Received:
November, 26
th
2021
Revised:
December, 17
th
2021
Approved:
December, 19
th
2021
Baluran National Park faces public pressure in the form of
illegal grazing, which threatens the preservation of flora and
fauna in it. This study aims to analyze illegal grazing activities
that threaten the conservation efforts of Baluran National Park
in Sumberwaru Village, Asembagus district, Situbondo. Data
collection was carried out from April to June 2021 with a
qualitative approach. The data were taken from several key
informants, namely 3 Baluran National Park officers, the Village
Head of Sumberwaru, the Head of Loka Pasuruan, the
Situbondo Livestock Service, and 12 extensive semi-intensive
beef cattle breeders. The results showed that the behavior of
illegal grazing was caused by cultural factors that did not
prioritize profit but only as an investment and indicator of
social status. As a result, maintenance management is very
efficient and depends on feed that can be obtained for free by
grazing wildly in the Baluran National Park conservation area.
The solution required is a participatory Collaborative Forest
Management that benefits all stakeholders.
KEYWORDS
Wild Grazing, Livestock Business Behavior, Community
Pressure On Forests, Collaborative Forest Management
Siti Azizah, Irfan H. Djunaidi, Jaisy Aghniarahim Putritamara, Achadiah
Rachmawati, Rositawati Indrati, Zazin Fahresi Alamanda and Deby Okta
Pradana
Wild Grazing of Beef Cattle in the Buffer Village of SPTN Region II Sumberwaru Baluran
National Park 1444
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International
INTRODUCTION
The people of Sumberwaru Village, a buffer zone for Baluran National Park for
several generations, have integrated and utilized the area around Baluran National Park. It
impacts regional management as a conservation area adjacent to community settlements
easily accessible from various directions, both land and sea routes. Most of the people
around the area still depend on the potential of Baluran National Park in various ways, for
example, by looking for firewood, grazing in the wild, harvesting (tamarind, honey, grass,
etc.), and poaching (Ridwan, Azizah, & Kusumastuti, 2018). It includes the community
of beef cattle breeders who graze their livestock extensively to enter the conservation
area. The impact of this extensive grazing is socially and ecologically disastrous.
According to (Nurrani, Bismark, & Tabba, 2014) and (Adnan, Berliani, & Hardiyanto,
n.d.), economic conditions and social factors (such as status, income, power, customs) of
forest communities can be a problem and conflict between various interests.
Developing areas bordering protected areas, especially land use planning, can
lead to a shift in utilization towards the operation of national parks. Therefore, it is
necessary to restructure the function of the area, increase the value and opportunities of
the site, support the preservation of the National Park and contribute to regional
development. On the other hand, by offering the possibility of increasing the legal use of
local resources, it can serve the interests of terrestrial communities and improve their
economic capacity. It combines the economic benefits of the community with the
preservation of biodiversity and ecosystems in the national park area, including the
construction of a buffer zone outside the national park (Bismark, Sawitri, & Eman, 2007).
Illegal grazing in Baluran National Park carried out by buffer village
communities can have a negative impact on conservation carried out by National Park
managers. (Azizah & Kawedar, n.d.) explain that some of the negative effects caused by
illegal grazing are as follows:
1. Social impacts caused by conflicts arise between herders and Baluran National
Park managers.
2. Economic impacts: The community gets more benefits because they do not have
to think about the cost of feed for their livestock grazing in conservation areas.
3. Ecological impacts, the impacts caused by these activities such as fragmentation
of wild animal habitats, the soil turns into compaction, threatens the originality of
wild cattle as germplasm and threatens natural vegetation.
Communities around the forest are very dependent on forest resources. However,
forest use often leads to forest destruction because the community tries to get the
maximum benefit without thinking about the sustainability aspect of the forest (Basir,
Dassir, & Makkarennu, 2020). This study aims to analyze the illegal grazing activities
that threaten the conservation efforts of Baluran National Park in Sumberwaru Village,
Asembagus district, Situbondo.
RESEARCH METHOD
The research location is in Sumberwaru Village, Banyuputih District, Situbondo
Regency. The selection of the research location was carried out purposively
(deliberately), namely the farmers in the hamlet, by considering that the site is directly
Eduvest – Journal of Universal Studies
Volume 1 Number 12, December 2021
1445 http://eduvest.greenvest.co.id
adjacent to a conservation forest. The research took place from April to June 2021.
Data collection uses a qualitative approach by conducting in-depth interviews
with 12 key informants or key respondents based on a questionnaire. Another method
used is through field observations conducted at the research location to see the actual
phenomena. The key informants of this research were three officers of the Baluran
National Park, the Village Head of Sumberwaru, the Head of the Pasuruan Loka, the
Head of the Situbondo Livestock Service, and 12 extensive and semi-intensive beef cattle
breeders.
The data analysis is descriptive qualitative by analyzing, describing, and
summarizing several conditions from the data collected in interviews and observation of
problems. Data analysis was carried out by data reduction, presentation, conclusion
drawing/verification (Miles, Huberman, & Saldana, 2014).
RESULT AND DISCUSSION
1. Overview of Research Sites
Figure 1. The 2018 Zoning Boundary Map of Baluran National Park, Situbondo
Regency - East Java Province
According to data from the Central Statistics Agency in Situbondo Regency
(2020), the area of Sumberwaru Village is 111,270 km2. Sumberwaru Village is located
at an altitude of 258 meters above sea level with a tropical climate and temperatures
ranging from 27-30 degrees Celsius, as well as being considered an agricultural area with
sugarcane as the main crop. In 2019, the population in Sumberwaru Village was 8,252
people with a livelihood as farmers, ranchers, and factory workers.
Siti Azizah, Irfan H. Djunaidi, Jaisy Aghniarahim Putritamara, Achadiah
Rachmawati, Rositawati Indrati, Zazin Fahresi Alamanda and Deby Okta
Pradana
Wild Grazing of Beef Cattle in the Buffer Village of SPTN Region II Sumberwaru Baluran
National Park 1446
2 Beef Cattle Wild Herding Behavior
The people of Sumberwaru Village (or often referred to as Karangtekok Village),
occupying the buffer zone of Baluran National Park for several generations, have
integrated and utilized the area around Baluran National Park. Most people are farmers,
farm laborers, and NTFP users, for example, honey, candlenut, etc. On the other hand,
they are beef cattle breeders who graze their livestock extensively. The farmers
themselves own a small number of beef cattle, and most of them are noise from the
investors. (Azizah & Kawedar, n.d.) research show that Sumberwaru beef cattle breeders
have been herding their livestock for years to increase their income. The majority of
Sumberwaru people work as farmers as farm laborers and earn less than Rp. 500,000/per
month. Low education and economy force people to herd cattle to the Baluran National
Park conservation area to meet their livestock needs. The concept of noise has been
passed down from generation to generation and passed down to the next generation. The
cattle investors who are accused are mainly from the area around Sumberwaru Village so
that the turnover of buying and selling cows only occurs in that village.
Like the culture of beef cattle farming in general in Indonesia, farmers in
Sumberwaru Village also position their livestock as investment and social status. The
increasing cattle population is due to the high interest of community members who work
outside the city and save on cattle. High social status awards are given to farmers by the
number of cows owned or given to farmers. It shows the trustworthiness of the rower and
his ability as a keeper/breeder. At the same time, the quality of livestock is not an
indicator of success as a breeder. Breeders prefer to have many beef cattle with a small
profit compared to a relatively small number but provide a large profit.
Herding activities in conservation forest areas have been carried out for
generations; even the regulation's prohibition has triggered conflicts between the
community and the management of the National Park. The conflict becomes sensitive
because there are often misunderstandings and prejudices between the two parties, such
as the issue of acacia plants deliberately spread by certain parties. Rights to the forest
sometimes overlap, some being claimed by groups that do not even live in the area
surrounding the forest. Granting clear land titles under these conditions may be difficult
to implement. It may subsequently be unable to resolve some of the problems and
conflicts associated with customary rights and resources on the land (Contreras-
Hermosilla, Fay, & Effendi, 2005).
The emergence of the cow row system in the Sumberwaru Village community is
due to several factors. The main factor is the area's proximity where you can find green
fodder for cattle, which is easily accessible by villagers, located on the border with the
forest of the Baluran National Park-Conservation Area. The close distance encourages
farmers to herd cows owned by residents. Second, there is an emotional closeness
between community members such as close friends, relatives, neighbors between
investors and rowers. There is a high sense of empathy for the intimacy caused by seeing
relatives, neighbors, and close relatives experiencing unfavorable economic conditions.
The rowdy pattern gave rise to the initiative to assist in the form of cattle entrusted to
their partners, agreeing that the business results were divided between the owners and the
cattle breeders. This assistance aims to assist close relatives or relatives in helping
increase the family's economic income, which is based on mutual relation and
cooperation.
The rowdy system between investors and breeders also significantly affects
conservation efforts in Baluran National Park. Fighting rules are very lax, and there is no
explicit black-and-white agreement. The distribution of the results is carried out
according to the following rules:
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Volume 1 Number 12, December 2021
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1. The division is carried out in odd years (first, third, fifth, and so on)
2. The first calf of the cattle belongs to the farmer, then alternates with that of the
investor
It is very attractive for farmers who do not have to pay for feed, although it is not
profitable. The best way to reduce costs is to graze livestock by utilizing conservation
land that provides free forage. Thus farmers do not need to pay for feed. Feed is a
production factor with the largest expenditure for beef cattle business where feed has a
high contribution of around 75% in production costs.
If there is a risk of noisy cows, the unwritten rule states that the investor is the one
who bears the cost of the loss. There is no charge for the cow rower because the risk
posed is not due to an element of intent. But in fact, this is not the case; for example,
cows are lost in the forest due to being eaten by forest predators or injured leg fractures
due to cows walking tiredly over steep rocks so that cows are forced to be sold at low
prices. In these cases, the complainant must replace because at the beginning of the
agreement, the investor did not ask the rower to maintain and breed intensively and not be
released into the wild or grazed into the forest. Although in fact, this illegal grazing is
already known by investors.
The resolution of problems that arise is carried out by way of family deliberation
between the two parties. Both breeders and investors believe that there is a law of karma,
namely that God will repay bad deeds to livestock keepers if they play cheating. The
kinship and emotional closeness also cause great compassion and do not have the heart to
take legal action, given their excellent relationship so far.
Figure 2. Beef cattle herding in Sumberwaru Village
Illegal grazing is caused by farmers not prioritizing the quality of their cows. They
choose to have a large number of cows even though they are in poor condition. Farmers
also believe in the rights of living things to natural resources freely. This belief makes
cattle farmers feel entitled to enter freely grazing their livestock in the core zone.
Government Regulation No. 68 of 1998 states that the core zone functions for ecosystem
protection, preservation of unique flora and fauna, and their habitats that are sensitive to
disturbances and changes. It has germplasm sources from wild plant and animal species
to benefit research and development of science, education, supporting cultivation. Based
on government regulations, the core zone is a protected zone, and illegal grazing violates
Siti Azizah, Irfan H. Djunaidi, Jaisy Aghniarahim Putritamara, Achadiah
Rachmawati, Rositawati Indrati, Zazin Fahresi Alamanda and Deby Okta
Pradana
Wild Grazing of Beef Cattle in the Buffer Village of SPTN Region II Sumberwaru Baluran
National Park 1448
the zoning rules that the Baluran National Park has socialized.
Figure 3. Condition of forage during the dry season
Regarding illegal grazing in protected National Park areas, farmers do not feel they
are destroying forests due to their wild grazing. In fact, during the dry season, the home
range for cattle grazing will be further into the conservation zone due to the lack of
available forage feed. As a result, besides the livestock getting thinner, the damage to the
conservation zone is also getting worse. Suppose this illegal grazing activity is allowed to
continue. In that case, it will damage the National Park area and enable a livestock
business pattern that does not provide profit to business actors.
3. Efforts to Reduce Public Pressure on Baluran National Park
Sumberwaru Village is a buffer zone for the Baluran National Park conservation
agency. There is more than 4,000 head of cattle kept by the community, of which around
1,600 are grazed to the core zone of Baluran National Park. Various parties have been
working together to reduce public pressure on the Baluran National Park conservation
area. The following are the efforts made to minimize the damage caused by grazing beef
cattle owned by farmers:
1. The introduction of sorghum was piloted in the Labuhan Merak area by the
Situbondo Livestock Service in collaboration with the Pasuruan Beef Cattle Research
Workshop. The results obtained are still not as expected because farmers then sell
sorghum at low prices.
2. Formation of livestock groups which then received assistance from Beef Cattle
Lolit, for example, the provision of 25 cows. Constraints to the development of livestock
groups and the diffusion of technology mostly lie in the social aspect.
3. Making communal cages as well as introducing concentrates by academics. This
activity was also not successful because it contained elements of the concentrate sales
business and, in the end, led to conflicts between several parties.
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Volume 1 Number 12, December 2021
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Based on the experience of efforts that have been made previously, the approach in
solving this problem is most appropriate to do with a socio-cultural system before
physical development. The program should bring all stakeholders together to have the
same vision, mission, and activity objectives. A participatory community development
approach is needed so that all parties feel that they contribute to the program that will be
carried out. A high sense of ownership of all parties to a program will increase
cooperation in achieving physical development success. (Christian, 2019) stated that
based on three categories of sustainable forest management by CIFOR, collaborative
management should include:
1. Social processes, indicating the extent to which the quality of articulation and
communication and the degree of integration and collaborative action.
2. Adaptive natural resource management shows the level of planning,
implementation, monitoring, and adjustments made in the management of forest
resources. It includes personal, ecological, technical, and financial capacities to
implement sustainable management.
3. Impact/conditions of collaboration and adaptive resource management show the
expected impacts of collaborative and adaptive management are and how collaborative
and adaptive management are implemented.
Proponents of CFM (for example, see Borrini-Feyerabend 1997 and Ghate 2003)
argue that CFM benefits local communities because it can conserve forest resources.
Since it has socio-economic problems due to the impact of infrastructure, ecology,
institutions, and policies on the forestry sector and local communities, ecological effects
can affect patterns of resource use and better forest conditions. Economic impacts include
a marked increase in local livelihoods from the sale/consumption of forest products or
access to forest-based employment opportunities (Turyahabwe, Tumusiime, Byakagaba,
& Tumwebaze, 2013).
CONCLUSION
Wild grazing is a problem that has existed for years in the Baluran National Park
area. It is mainly caused by cultural factors that position cattle as an investment that does
not pay attention to livestock business profits and prioritizes the amount of livestock
rearing as an indicator of social status. This situation causes farmers not to pay attention
to maintenance management and is the most profitable feeding by grazing wildly in the
Baluran National Park area. Several attempts have been made to reduce public pressure
on Baluran National Park. Still, they have not brought good results, so that in the future,
participatory Collaborative Forest Management is needed from all stakeholders.
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