Impacts of natural resource exploitation and its implications for the environment, society, and the economy
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61511/bioculture.v4i1.2026.3902Keywords:
economy, environment, exploitation, implications, natural resources, societyAbstract
Background: Indonesia is widely recognized as a country with abundant natural resources and high biodiversity, consisting of wide variety of flora and fauna that play an important role in maintaining environmental ecosystems. However, the increasing intensity of natural resource exploitation has exceeded sustainable limits, particularly through practices such as illegal logging and deforestation, which contribute to ecosystem degradation and biodiversity loss. This deforestation is carried out for land clearing that is subsequently used for plantations, mining activities, and the expansion for residential areas. Furthermore, their loss has had negative impacts on conservation efforts and the environmental sustainability of surrounding communities. Methods: This study aims to examine and analyze the impacts of natural resource exploitation on environmental, social, and economic aspects in Indonesia. The method used in this study is a qualitative method through a literature review, utilizing a range of national and international scholarly articles as well as relevant policy documents concerning natural resource exploitation in Indonesia. Findings: The results reveal that intensive exploitation of natural resources produces multidimensional impacts encompassing environmental, social, and economic aspects, which are interconnected within a dynamic system. Based on these three aspects, a cyclical feedback relationship emerges in which environmental degradation contributes to reduced economic performance and worsens social conditions, while economic and social pressures, in turn, encourage more intensive exploitation of natural resources. Therefore, natural resource exploitation should not be understood in a fragmented way, but rather as part of an interconnected and integrated system. Conclusion: Addressing deforestation and exploitation requires shifting from fragmented interventions toward holistic, system-based environmental policy. Novelty/Originality of this article: This study introduces an integrated systems framework that conceptualizes natural resource exploitation in Indonesia not as isolated sectoral damages, but as a dynamic, cyclical feedback system interlinking environmental degradation, economic decline, and social pressure.
References
Abdillah, M. D. (2025). Krisis Ekologi di Indonesia: Dampak Eksploitasi Sumber Daya Alam dan Upaya Pemanfaatan Berkelanjutan. Maliki Interdiciplinary Journal (MIJ), 3(6), 1203-1210. https://urj.uin-malang.ac.id/index.php/mij/article/view/17167
Ahakwa, I. & Tackie, E., A. (2024). Natural Resources as a Double-Edged Sword Towards Ecological Quality: Can Environmental Regulations and Green Human Capital Rectify the Adverse Impacts? Journal of Cleaner Production, 457. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2024.142436
Amalia, F. & Emalia, Z. (2022). Fenomena Kelimpahan Sumber Daya Alam dan Natural Resource Curse dalam Perspektif Ekonomi di Pulau Sumatera. Bullet: Jurnal Multidisiplin Ilmu, 1(5), 737-750. https://journal.mediapublikasi.id/index.php/bullet/article/view/1010
Amer, E. A. A. A., Meyad, E. M. A., Meyad, A. M., & Mohsin, A. K. M. (2024). The impact of natural resources on environmental degradation: a review of ecological footprint and CO2 emissions as indicators. Frontiers in Environmental Science, 12). https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2024.1368125
Badan Pusat Statistik. (2023). Angka Deforestasi (Netto) Indonesia di Dalam dan di Luar Kawasan Hutan Tahun 2013-2022 (Ha/Th). BPS.
Bahari & Faizin. (2026). Deforestasi dan Krisis Ekologis Kalimantan: Dampak Regulasi Pembukaan Lahan terhadap Kesejarhteraan dan Konflik Sosial Masyarakat. Custodia: Journal of Legal, Political, and Humanistic Inquiry, 1(3), 318-330. https://doi.org/10.65310/8wv3fd08
Damiti, R. A., Pakaya, P., Prasetyo, M. W., Baderan, D. W. K., & Utina, R. (2025). Stabilitas Ekosistem Hutan Indonesia dalam Menghadapi Deforestasi dan Kerusakan Lingkungan: Tinjauan Literatur. Botani: Publikasi Ilmu Tanaman dan Agribisnis, 2(2), 176-188. https://doi.org/10.62951/botani.v2i2.343
Foteinis, S. (2026). Falling forests, rising emissions: Does the road to economic development pass through protected rainforests? Resources, Conservation & Recycling, 228, 108819. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2026.108819
Global Forest Watch. (2025). Indonesia forest data: Tree cover loss and emissions. World Resources Institute. https://www.globalforestwatch.org/dashboards/country/IDN/
Halimatussa’idah, Listari, M., & Anisa, S. (2025). Dampak Eksploitasi Sumber Daya Alam terhadap Ekonomi Lokal dan Lingkungan: Studi Kasus Pertambangan Migas di Kabupaten Siak, Riau. Jurnal Pendidikan Sosial Dan Humaniora, 4(3), 5384–5387. https://publisherqu.com/index.php/pediaqu/article/view/2439
He, H. (2024). Nexus of natural resources exploitation, social protection, and sustainable environmental: COP27 is a sufficient solution? Resources Policy, 96, 105190. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resourpol.2024.105190
Hermanto & Rosidi, A. (2026). Green Economy sebagai Paradigma Baru Pembangunan Ekonomi Nasional. Primary: Journal of Multidiciplinary Research, 2(1), 24-48. https://doi.org/10.70716/pjmr.v2i1.405
Hidayat, F., Baroka, R. T., Ananta, P. K., & Pramasha, R. R. (2025). Pengaruh Eksploitasi Sumber Daya Alam Terhadap Pertumbuhan Ekonomi Dan Kelestarian Lingkungan. Ijen: Indonesian Journal of Economy and Education Economy, 3(1), 1–5. [Unpublished Article]
Huang, Z. & Ren, X. (2024). Impact of natural resources, resilient economic growth, and energy consumption on CO2 emissions. Resources Policy, 90, 104714. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resourpol.2024.104714
Khaliza, A., Hamidah, H., & Ramania, R. (2026). Deforestasi Sebagai Faktor Perubahan Iklim Dan Peran Negara Dalam Pengendaliannya. Jurnal Transformasi Pendidikan Modern, 7(2), 411–432. https://ejurnals.com/ojs/index.php/jtpm
Kinda, H. & Thiombiano, N. (2021). The effects of extractive industries rent on deforestation in developing countries. Resources Policy, 73, 102203. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resourpol.2021.102203
Maulana & Ferdian. (2025). Konflik Sosial dan Sumber Daya Alam: Analisis Hubungan antara Akses, Pemanfaatan, dan Ketimpangan Ekologi. Seikat: Jurnal Ilmu Sosial, Politik, dan Hukum, 4(4), 459-465. https://doi.org/10.55681/seikat.v4i4.1651
Mubarok, I., Pujiati, A., Nihayah, D., M. (2025). Dinamika Pengelolaan Sumber Daya Alam: Regulasi, Partisipasi, dan Teknologi Ramah Lingkungan. Jurnal Ilmu Ekonomi dan Sosial, 16(1), 8-15. https://doi.org/10.35724jies.v16i1.6946
Naila, S., D., Grimonia, Y., V., Taryono. (2025). Dampak Eksploitasi Sumber Daya Alam terhadapPertumbuhan Ekonomi dan Kelestarian Lingkungan. Ijen: Indonesian Journal of Economic and Education Economy, 3(3), 339-344. https://doi.org/10.61214/ijen.v3i3
Nguyen, T. T. H., Tu, Y. Te, Diep, G. L., Tran, T. K., Tien, N. H., & Chien, F. S. (2023). Impact of natural resources extraction and energy consumption on the environmental sustainability in ASEAN countries. Resources Policy, 85. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resourpol.2023.103713
One Planet Network. Natural resources use and environmental impacts. One Planet Network. https://www.oneplanetnetwork.org/SDG-12/natural-resource-use-environmental-impacts
Petavratzi, E., Sanchez-Lopez, D., Hughes, A., Stacey, J., Ford, J., & Butcher, A. (2022). The impacts of environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues in achieving sustainable lithium supply in the Lithium Triangle. Mineral Economics, 35(3), 673–699. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13563-022-00332-4
Prasetyo, M., H., Baderan, D., W., K., & Hamidu, M., H. (2025). Dampak Kerusakan Lingkungan Akibat Eksploitasi Sumber Daya Mineral dari Kegiatan Pertambangan. Hidroponik: Jurnal Illmu Pertanian dan Teknologi dalam Ilmu Tanaman, 2(2), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.62951/hidroponik.v2i2.328
Rinjani, A. C., Shadewi, E. R., Natia, K. R., & Pramasha, R. R. (2024). Dampak Eksploitasi Hutan Terhadap Ekonomi Dan Lingkungan. Ijen: Indonesian Journal of Economy and Education, 02(2), 419–424. https://doi.org/10.61214/ijen.v2i2
Rusetuka, M. E. (2023). An Investigation of Cutting Down of Trees as Human Rights Abuse in the Global World. International Journal of Environmental Sciences, 6(4), 50–66. https://doi.org/10.47604/ijes.1959
Saeedian, M., Tu, C., Menegazzo, F., D’Odorico, P., Azaele, S., & Suweis, S. (2024). Modelling co-evolution of resource feedback and social network dynamics in human-environmental systems. New Journal of Physics, 26(8), 083004. https://doi.org/10.1088/1367-2630/ad67fe
Sinta, D., Wahyudi, E. G. P., & Kamal, U. (2024). Pengaturan Hukum Lingkungan Terhadap Eksploitasi Sumber Daya Alam di Lingkungan Hutan Tropis Indonesia. Jurnal Ilmiah Wahana Pendidikan, 10(24.2), 170–183. https://jurnal.peneliti.net/index.php/JIWP/article/view/9186
Socio.Health. (2024, May 26). The impact of resource exploitation: How Development Activities Stress Natural Systems. Socio.Health. https://socio.health/population-and-development-issues-challenges/resource-exploitation-impact-on-natural-systems/
Sun, Y., Li, Y., Yu, T., Zhang, X., Liu, L., & Zhang, P. (2021). Resource extraction, environmental pollution and economic development: Evidence from prefecture-level cities in China. Resources Policy, 74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resourpol.2021.102330
Tahir, M., Albahouth, A., A., Jaboob, M., Osama, A., J., & Burki, U. (2024). The consumption on natural resources and its effects on environmental quality: Evidence from OECD countries. Sustainable Futures, 8, 100248. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sftr.2024.100248
Tasya, A. (2025). The Impact of Deforestation on Wildlife and Forest Ecosystems. Horizon Forest Science, 2(1), 25-33. https://doi.org/10.62872/40dvfw67
Tarigan, N., M., R., Budihartini, D., Suprayitno, E., & Gusmiati, Y. (2024). Analysis of Natural Resource Management in Langkat Regency: Impact on the Local Economy. Regress: Journal of Economics & Management, 3(3), 180–186. https://jurnal.medanresourcecenter.org/index.php/REG/article/view/1523
Touati, K., & Ben-Salha, O. (2024). Are Natural Resources Harmful to the Ecology? Fresh Insights from Middle East and North African Resource-Abundant Countries. Sustainability,16(11), 4435. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16114435
United Nations Environment Programme. (2016). Understanding the long-term impacts of natural resource extraction. UNEP. https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/understanding-long-term-impacts-natural-resource-extraction
Wahyuni, H. & Suranto. (2021). Dampak Deforestasi Hutan Skala Besar terhadap Pemanasan Global di Indonesia. JIIP: Jurnal Ilmiah Ilmu Pemerintahan, 6(1). https://doi.org/10.14710/jiip.v6i1.10083
Wang, Y., & Yuan, G. (2026). Natural resource exploitation and productive capacity as drivers of ecological footprint: The roles of technology and economic policy uncertainty. Geoscience Frontiers, 17(2), 102247. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gsf.2026.102247
Wiyatmi, Liliani, E., Sari, E. S., & Safei, M. (2022). Deforestation in Indonesian and Malaysian Novels: When Wild Forests are Destroyed by Anthropocentrism. K@ta: A Biannual Publication on the Study of Language and Literature, 24(1), 29-39. https://doi.org/10.9744/kata.24.1.29-39
Wolff, N. H., Zeppetello, L. R. V., Parsons, L. A., Aggraeni, I., Battisti, D. S., Ebi, K. L., Game, E. T., Kroeger, T., Masuda, Y. J., & Spector, J. T. (2021). The effect of deforestation and climate change on all-cause mortality and unsafe work conditions due to heat exposure in Berau, Indonesia: a modelling study. The Lancet Planetary Health, 5(12), e882–e892. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2542-5196(21)00279-5
Xiong, Y., Guo, H., Nor, D. D. M. M., Song, A., & Dai, L. (2023). Mineral resources depletion, environmental degradation, and exploitation of natural resources: COVID-19 aftereffects. Resources Policy, 85. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resourpol.2023.103907
Zaehringer, J. G., Michelotti, M., Andriambalohary, M., Rajerison, F., Rakotoarinosy, A., Eckert, S., Ramamonjisoa, B., & Andriamihaja, O. R. (2024). How are large-scale extractive industries affecting progress toward the sustainable development goals in Madagascar? Perceived social-ecological impacts of mining investments. Current Research in Environmental Sustainability, 8, 100257. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crsust.2024.100257
Zeng, P., Liang, L., Duan, Z. (2023). Ecological and Environmental Impacts of Mineral Exploitation in Urban Agglomerations. Ecological Indicators, 148. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2023.110035
Zhu, Z., Jia, Q., Xie, S., Song, K., Zhang, T., Cai, R., & Wang, H. (2024). Estimating the impacts of economic globalization and natural resources on ecological footprints within the N-shaped EKC in the Next 11 economies. Scientific Reports, 14(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-78461-9
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
Citation Check
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Vadila Hanin
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
