Protected areas slow down tropical rainforest disturbance in the Leuser Ecosystem, Indonesia

Tropical rainforest ecosystems that function as biodiversity pools had been undermined because of anthropogenic activities. Research has shown that protected areas (PAs) have become the first safeguard for biodiversity. However, how to measure the effectiveness of PAs remains unclear. We present spatiotemporal changes within the PAs and non-PAs in the Leuser Ecosystem, which is one of the significant global landscapes, using intensity analysis during two time periods and propensity score matching to investigate the effectiveness of PAs. We classified land cover using machine learning based on remotely sensed data. Our results revealed the effectiveness of PAs compared with non-PAs. The new conservation intervention after 2008 resulted in the deacceleration of deforestation from 2000–2010 to 2010–2020. In addition, PAs can reduce deforestation two times more effectively than non-PAs. Therefore, PAs and good governance within the Leuser Ecosystem are crucial in maintaining the natural ecosystem to address global conservation targets.