The dried-out peat ignites easily and also burns underground, travelling unseen beneath the surface to break out in unexpected locations.

Therefore, after drainage, fires ravaged the area, destroying remaining forest and large numbers of birds, animals, reptiles and other wildlife along with new agriculture, even damaging nature reserves such as Muara Kaman[3] and filling the air above Borneo and beyond with dense smoke and haze and releasing enormous quantities of CO2 into the atmosphere.

Indonesia is currently the world's third largest carbon emitter, to a large extent due to the destruction of its ancient peat swamp forests (Pearce 2007).

About 62% of the world's tropical peat lands occur in the Indo-Malayan region (80% in Indonesia, 11% in Malaysia, 6% in Papua New Guinea, with small pockets and remnants in Brunei, Vietnam, the Philippines and Thailand).

[6][7] They are unusual ecosystems, with trees up to 70 m high - vastly different from the peat lands of the north temperate and boreal zones (which are dominated by Sphagnum mosses, grasses, sedges and shrubs).

Although the cellular contents quickly leach out of the leaves when they fall, the physical structure is resistant to both bacterial and fungal decomposition and so remains intact, slowly breaking down to form peat (Yule and Gomez 2008).

It was previously assumed that the low pH and anaerobic conditions of the tropical peat swamps meant that bacteria and fungi could not survive, but recent studies have shown diverse and abundant communities (albeit not nearly as diverse as dry land tropical rainforests, or freshwater swamps) (Voglmayr and Yule 2006; Jackson, Liew and Yule 2008).

Rivers of the peat swamps are home to the rare arowana fish (Scleropages formosus), otters, waterbirds, false gharials and crocodiles.

Attempts at conservation have been minimal in comparison to recent devastation while commercial logging of peat swamp forest in Sarawak is ongoing and planned to intensify in Brunei.

One plan by the environmental NGO Borneo Orangutan Survival is to preserve the peat swamp forest of Mawas using a combination of carbon finance and debt-for-nature-swap.

They also include Belait Peat Swamp (Ulu Mendaram Conservation Forest Reserve) and portions of Rajang Mangrove, Lambir Hills, Loagan Bunut, Bruit, Maludam, Gunung Palung, Danau Sentarum, Ulu Sebuyau, Sedilu, Kuching Wetland, and Gunung Lesong national parks.