Elaeis guineensis standing unplanted in Indonesia, tropical hardwood forests are being cleared for palm oil plantations. Furthermore, as the remaining unprotected lowland forest dwindles, developers are looking to plant peat swamp land, using drainage that begins an oxidation process of the peat which can release 5,000 to 10,000 years worth of stored carbon. Drained peat is also at very high risk of forest fire. There is a clear record of fire being used to clear vegetation for oil palm development in Indonesia, where in recent years drought and man-made clearances have led to massive uncontrolled forest fires, covering parts of Southeast Asia
Elaeis guineensis point is damaged, sometimes by "Oryctes" beetles. Small, distorted leaves resembling a boron deficiency emerge. This is often followed by secondary pathogenic infections in the spear that can lead to spear rot and palm death. "Elaeis guineensis" originated in Guinea, Africa and was first illustrated by Nicholaas Jacquin in 1763. Oil palms were introduced to Java by the Dutch in 1848, and to Malaysia (then the British colony of Malaya) in 1910 by Scotsman William Sime and English banker Henry Darby. The species of palm tree "Elaeis guineensis" was taken to Malaysia from Eastern Nigeria in 1961. As noted it