WWF - WWF Bhutan office

Countries facing fiercest climate impacts call on conscience of the wealthy world

2009-11-10

Leaders of countries vulnerable to climate change have called for a redoubling of efforts to reach an ambitious outcome of the Climate Summit in Copenhagen in December and for world leaders to come to Copenhagen themselves.

The vulnerable countries are asking for immediate climate action in all countries and are committing themselves to green their economies as a contribution towards carbon neutrality.

The Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF) in the Maldives brought together delegates from Kiribati, Bangladesh, Nepal, Vietnam, Kenya and other countries. They asked rich states to acknowledge their responsibility for climate change and provide at least 1.5 percent of their GDP annually by 2015 to assist developing countries in their transition to a low-carbon economy.

In a joint declaration after their meeting today, the forum expressed concern about downgrading of expectations for a positive outcome at the climate conference in Copenhagen.

“WWF shares the concerns expressed by these countries,” said Kim Carstensen, the head of WWF Global Climate Initiative. “Vulnerable developing countries have everything to lose from climate change, they are fighting for their future existence, and it is therefore very good to see them come out with a strong common voice.”

“We sincerely hope that their message will be heard by those countries that are actually responsible for climate change and who have the means to solve the climate crisis.”

“The world’s expectations for a climate treaty in Copenhagen are rising and leaders around the world need to understand that failure will come at a huge price.”

According to WWF, an ambitious climate treaty can still be achieved in Copenhagen despite most policy makers’ focus on what they cannot achieve rather than what they can do to prevent the worst consequences of climate change.

Governments at Copenhagen need to create a legally binding framework with an amended Kyoto Protocol and a new Copenhagen Protocol, which secures the survival of countries, cultures and ecosystems. They should also create a framework for immediate adaptation action, especially for vulnerable countries and ecosystems, including the provision of insurance and compensation.

“In Copenhagen, we need to listen to the voices of those who suffer from the consequences of global warming. That should already bring us on the right track,” Carstensen said.

Flying frog among hundreds of new species discovered in Eastern Himalayas

2009-08-10

Kathmandu, Nepal - Over 350 new species including the world’s smallest deer, a “flying frog” and a 100 million-year old gecko have been discovered in the Eastern Himalayas, a biological treasure trove now threatened by climate change.

A decade of research carried out by scientists in remote mountain areas endangered by rising global temperatures brought exciting discoveries such as a bright green frog (Rhacophorus suffry) which uses its red and long webbed feet to glide in the air.

One of the most significant findings was not exactly “new” in the classic sense. A 100-million year-old gecko, the oldest fossil gecko species known to science, was discovered in an amber mine in the Hukawng Valley in Himalayan regions of far northern Myanmar.

The WWF report The Eastern Himalayas – Where Worlds Collide details discoveries made by scientists from various organizations between 1998 and 2008 in a region reaching across Bhutan and north-east India to the far north of Myanmar as well as Nepal and southern parts of Tibet Autonomus Region (China).

“This enormous cultural and biological diversity underscores the fragile nature of an environment which risks being lost forever unless the impacts of climate change are reversed,” said Tariq Aziz, the leader of WWF's Living Himalayas Initiative.

“People and wildlife form a rich mosaic of life across this rugged and remarkable landscape, making it among the biologically richest areas on Earth. But the Himalayas are also among the most vulnerable to global climate change.”

In December world leaders will gather in Copenhagen to reach an agreement on a new climate deal, which will replace the existing Kyoto Protocol.

“Only an ambitious and fair deal based on an agreement between rich and poor countries can save the planet and its treasures such as the Himalayas from devastating climate change,” said Kim Carstensen, the Leader of the WWF’s Global Climate Initiative.

The Eastern Himalayas report also mentions the miniature muntjac, also called the “leaf deer” (Muntiacus putaoensis) which is one of the world’s oldest and smallest deer species.

Scientists initially believed the small creature found in the world’s largest mountain range was a juvenile of another species but DNA tests confirmed the light brown animal with innocent dark eyes was a distinct and new species.

The Eastern Himalayas are now known to harbour a staggering 10,000 plant species, 300 mammal species, 977 bird species, 176 reptiles, 105 amphibians and 269 types of freshwater fish. The region also has the highest density of the Bengal tiger and is the last bastion of the charismatic greater one-horned rhino.

WWF aims to conserve the habitat of endangered species such as the majestic snow leopard, Bengal tigers, Asian elephants, red pandas, takins, golden langurs, rare Gangetic dolphins and one-horned rhinos as well as thousands of plant and animal species left to discover in the Eastern Himalayas region.

Eastern Himalayas- Where Worlds Collide describes more than 350 new species discovered - including 244 plants, 16 amphibians, 16 reptiles, 14 fish, 2 birds, 2 mammals and at least 60 new invertebrates.

Historically, the rugged and largely inaccessible landscape of the Eastern Himalayas has made biological surveys in the region extremely difficult. As a result, wildlife has remained poorly surveyed and there are large areas that are still biologically unexplored.

Today further species continue to be unearthed and many more species of amphibians, reptiles and fish are currently in the process of being officially named by scientists. The Eastern Himalayas is certainly one of the last biological frontiers of Asia with many new discoveries waiting to be made.

New Species Discoveries - Eastern Himalayas

2009-08-10

The Eastern Himalayas is at the crossroads of 2 continental plates represented by 2 biogeographical realms: the lowland Indo-Malayan Realm and to the north, the elevated Palearctic Realm.

The meeting of these worlds has created one of the biologically richest areas on Earth.

Spanning Bhutan, the north-eastern Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, North Bengaland Sikkim, the far north of Myanmar (Burma), Nepal and southern parts of Tibet, the regionincludes 4 Global 200 ecoregions with their critical landscapes of international biologicalimportance.

The Himalayas are home to an estimated 10,000 plant species, 300 mammalspecies, 977 bird species, 176 reptiles, 105 amphibians and 269 freshwater fish.

The region supports a high density of the Bengal tiger and is the last bastion for the charismatic greaterone-horned rhinoceros.

Even today the rugged, and largely inaccessible landscape of the Eastern Himalayas, hides the real extent of the region’s biodiversity, with extraordinary new species continuing to bediscovered year-on-year.

Between 1998 and 2008, at least 353 new species have beendiscovered in the Eastern Himalayas.

That's 35 new species finds on average every year for the last 10 years.The extent of the new species finds place the Eastern Himalayas on a par with more well knownbiological hotspots such as Borneo.

What's in the report

This report celebrates these unique and fascinating species discoveries.

It also highlights growing pressures on the ecosystems and species as a consequence of unsustainabledevelopment in the region.

Despite protection efforts, in the last half-century, this area of South Asia has faced a wave of pressures as a result of population growth and the increasingdemand for commodities by global and regional markets.

The host of threats include

forest destruction as a result of unsustainable and illegal logging,
agriculture,
unsustainable fuelwood collection,
overgrazing by domestic livestock,
illegal poaching and wildlife trade,
mining,
pollution,
hydropower development, and
poorly planned infrastructure.

Under threat from climate change
The region is also among the most vulnerable to global climate change, which will amplify the impacts of these threats.

Only 25% of the original habitats in the region remain intact and 163 species that live in theEastern Himalayas are considered globally threatened.

Many of WWF’s established priority conservation landscapes are being impacted by the current unsustainable development in the Eastern Himalayas, and so we consider that a newlayer of strategic action is needed to augment our long standing field projects.

This includes asking the governments of Bhutan, India and Nepal to commit to a shared tripartite vision that recognises the global significance of the region and supports the implementation of a unified conservation and sustainable development plan that ensures the landscapes within the Eastern Himalayas are connected.

By promoting a shared sustainable development vision, WWF believes that real progress can be made in tackling huge poverty-impacting issues in the Eastern Himalayas such as climate change, deforestation, the illegal wildlife and timber trade, poor infrastructure development, and thereby secure the livelihoods, subsistence and fresh water essential to millions of peoplethroughout the region.

Only a concerted focus and a shared vision can maintain a living Himalayas, for people and nature, whether discovered or yet to be discovered.

Poaching gangs blamed for tiger density tumble in Nepal park

2008-07-02

A Nepal wildlife reserve that boasted the highest density of tigers in the world is just half a decade later struggling to hold a few remaining tigers.

Conservationists were highly gratified when the first systematic sampling of the Shuklaphanta Wildlife Reserve in border areas of western Nepal in 2004/05 revealed a tiger density of 17 per 100 km2, an estimated 27 tigers for the 305 km2 reserve.

But the joy was shortlived as the 2006/07 sampling showed tiger density declining almost two thirds to six per 100km2.

“We were perhaps too cautious in not ringing an alarm bell when the density declined in
2005/06,” said Anil Manandhar, Country Representative, WWF Nepal. “In the absence of any reported tiger poaching case [by the park authorities during 2004-06], we felt that reduced sampling could have been a reason for this observed decline and wanted to confirm it with another year of monitoring.”

However, a scientific monitoring program using camera traps in 93 locations carried out between December 2007 and March 2008 was able to identify only five tigers - two male and three female - in the Shuklaphanta core area.

The monitoring program is run by WWF in conjunction with the National Trust for Nature Conservation and the Nepalese government Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation.

On WWF estimates, the park tiger population now stands at just seven, a density of just under three tigers per 100 km2. On government estimates, the total park tiger population stands between six and 14 tigers.

According to WWF two recent seizures of tiger bones inside the reserve as well as skin and bones from adjoining Dhangadi town and photographs of people with guns taken through camera traps are all indicative of organized poaching in Shuklaphanta.

“Also there is no noticeable outbreak of disease in the region,” said Manandhar.

Other human incursions into the park such as encroachment, illegal hunting, illegal fodder and fuelwood collection, illegal rampant timber collection and high grazing pressure are considered to have played a smaller role in the decline in tiger numbers.

WWF has decided to scale up its community-based anti-poaching operation outside Shuklaphanta with 'Operation Tigris', noting that a similar program outside Nepal’s Chitwan National Park has so far been a big success with not one rhino poached outside Chitwan in the past year.

“We would like to repeat the same exercise around Shuklaphanta and will make sincere efforts to control poaching,” said Diwakar Chapagain, Wildlife Trade Manager of WWF Nepal.

“Although the tiger population in Shuklaphanta is severely depleted now, we strongly believe that it has not reached a point of no return and that with adequate protection and effective anti-poaching measures the tiger population in Shuklaphanta will bounce back.”

Indian rhinos on the move to a better future

2008-04-16

After centuries of having their range contracted to the point of extinction, India’s rhinos are on the move outwards again. In a difficult operation, two male rhinos were taken back to a national park in Assam’s Himalayan foothills last weekend.

The return was an emotional moment for local residents, who lost their last rhinos a decade ago during a 20 year period of civil disturbance that wrecked infrastructure in the famed Manas National Park and allowed poachers free reign.

A 55-year old local woman said, “The arrival of gainda (rhino) is like a Bihu (a local festival) gift to us”. She added, “My son is one of the volunteers who will be monitoring the rhinos in Manas. It is a great moment for all of us”.

It was an emotional moment too, for translocation organizers from WWF India and the government of the State of Assam, who saw the successful translocation as a successful launch to Indian Rhino Vision 2020, an ambitious plan to give India a population of 3000 rhinos, spread over seven Assam protected areas by 2020.

The release was not without its dramas, either. Elephants were used to help round up the rhinos in Pobitora Wildlife sanctuary. But tranquillisers used to sedate the rhinos were well worn off after the difficult and slow 240 km transport convoy to Manas.

In his first hand account of the operation, Sujoy Banerjee, WWF India’s Director of Species Conservation said the second rhino “came full charge out of its crate, turned a full circle and banged the side of the truck that had been carrying it for the last 14 hours”.

“Then it galloped and vanished into the thickets, to loud applause from the crowd.”

“As we drove back, covered in a mix of sweat and dirt from head to toe, the significance of this episode dawned on me. It was not merely a shifting of some rhinos into a place where rhinos once existed, we were bringing back the lost glory of this world heritage site, which the local people were once proud of.”

From a low point in 1905, when just 10-20 of the greater one-horned rhinoceroses survived, the long struggle by Indian conservationists to save rhino habitat and deter poachers has seen the population grow to 1800 individuals – nearly all in Assam and most (86 per cent) within the confines of Kaziranga National Park.

Nearby Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary had accumulated the world’s highest density of rhinos, over 80 Rhinos in less than 18 sq. km of rhino habitat.

Translocation proved its worth in the successful recovery of Africa’s black and white rhino populations, and not surprisingly, it is also at the core of the IRV 2020 strategy.

“It may be risky to do the translocation but it will be riskier not to do anything,” said Tariq Aziz, Associate Director with WWF-India’s Species Programme.

“These national treasures are at risk if an outbreak of disease or other calamity hits Kaziranga. The translocations will help rebuild rhino populations in Manas and a few other protected areas in Assam where the rhino population once existed”

IRV 2020 is a joint project of the Government of Assam and WWF India, and is supported by the International Rhino Foundation and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – all of which were watching the first operation with some anxiety.

“Our prime concern was the safety of the people associated with the translocations as well as that of the rhinos being moved,” said Mr M C Malakar, Assam’s Chief Wildlife Warden. “We are grateful to all for the cooperation that they extended in helping us conduct the translocation.”

Under the guidance of expert veterinarians, conservationists and forest department officials, the two animals were captured and transported in accordance with IUCN’s norms for translocation using darting tranquilizers and especially designed crates that could withstand the 1.5 to 2 tonnes of body mass of these large pachyderms.

Manas National Park is a Project Tiger and a UNESCO designated World Heritage site and one of the nine biodiversity hotspots in India, and was once home to several endangered species including the Indian rhinos before local disturbances devastated the park.

As part of the IRV 2020, significant steps have been taken to improve the infrastructure of the National Park. “We have provided vehicles, wireless sets, helped built watch towers, bridges and roads,” said Banerjee. “In fact, the bulk of resources have gone into resurrecting the monitoring mechanisms of the Park.”

For more information, please contact:

Tariq Aziz, Species Conservation Programme, WWF-India
Tel: +91-11-4150 4784, E-mail: taziz@wwfindia.net

Anshuman Atroley, Communications Manager, WWF-India
Tel: +91-11-4150 4797, E-mail: aatroley@wwfindia.net

Jan Vertefeuille, Communications Manager (Asian elephants, rhinos, and tigers)
WWF International Species Programme
Tel: +1 202 861 8362, E-mail: janv@wwfus.org

Norden Pines briquette plant opens in Bhutan

2008-03-24

In a rural farming province of Bhutan, a programme is under way to provide an alternative source of energy and protect the environment.

Bumthang Province is home to two national parks: Thrumshingla and Jigme Singye Wangchuck. It stands in the middle of a corridor linking the two areas of native forest that serve as a rich biodiversity area, including several globally threatened and unique species. But, for Bhutan, the main source of domestic heating is timber. Due to its high altitude, Bhutan’s per capita use of wood in energy consumption is one of the highest in the world.

Norden Pines, a CEPF grant recipient in Bhutan, has come up with an alternative. Seeking to protect and maintain this key corridor within the Bhutan Biological Conservation Complex, it has created a factory for the manufacture of briquettes. The material comes from sawdust and other wood by-products accumulated from timber already harvested for other purposes and from agricultural waste.

The aim is for the briquettes to mitigate and ultimately replace demand for wood for fuel from the forests.

Tashi Wangdi, proprietor of Norden Pines, says the briquettes offer many advantages over firewood. The briquettes are environmentally friendlier, produce more heat and more efficiently, are cleaner and easier to handle and reduce carbon dioxide emissions, thereby helping to combat global climate change.

The plant was recently inaugurated by Bumthang Governor Karma Tshering and CEPF Executive Director Jorgen Thomsen.

Since its opening day of production, the factory is producing nearly 2,000 kilograms of briquettes a day. Demand for the product is climbing, up to 500 kilograms a day in just a matter of weeks. Wangdi says he thinks he will have to add a second shift later this year to meet the rising demand.

For more information
Tashi Wangdi
Norden Pines
nordenpine@druknet.bt.

Chophel Dayang
Country Coordinator, Bhutan
WWF Bhutan Program, Thimpu
chophel@wwfbhutan.org.bt

Sampreethi Aipanjiguly
Communications Officer
CEPF – Eastern Himalayas
WWF Nepal Programme Office, Kathmandu
sampreethi@wwfnepal.org

Notes
The grant that Norden Pines received for its plant is part of the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund's (CEPF) strategy to conserve key biodiversity areas in the Eastern Himalayas. CEPF is a joint initiative of Conservation International (CI), l’Agence Française de Développement, the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the Government of Japan, the MacArthur Foundation and the World Bank. In the Eastern Himalayas region, WWF leads the regional team responsible for facilitating, coordinating and monitoring grants for CEPF-supported conservation projects.

South Asian nations pledge cooperation on rampant wildlife trade

2008-02-06

Kathmandu, Nepal – All eight South Asian nations have agreed to step up cooperation in addressing wildlife trade problems in the area.

The region, home to such rare and prized species as tigers, Asiatic lions, snow leopards, Asian elephants and one-horned rhinoceroses, is recognized as one of the prime targets of international organized wildlife crime networks.

Wildlife trade officials from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka met in Kathmandu last week and defined a series of joint actions under the new South Asia Wildlife Trade Initiative (SAWTI).

The direction for the initiative was given by ministers from the eight nations, at the Tenth Meeting of Governing Council for the South Asia Co-operative Environment Programme (SACEP) last year.

“The agreement reached on SAWTI puts in place the foundations for a cooperative effort to crack down on illegal trade and to improve the management of wild animals and plants that can be legally traded under national laws in the region,” said SACEP Director-General Dr Arvind A. Boaz.

SAWTI is charged with developing a South Asia Regional Strategic Plan on Wildlife Trade for the period 2008-2013. The Kathmandu workshop - organised by the Nepal Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology, SACEP, WWF Nepal and TRAFFIC - also agreed on the establishment of a South Asia Experts Group on Wildlife Trade. The group will examine cooperation and coordination between countries and agencies, effective legislation, policies and law enforcement, the sustainability of the legal trade and livelihood security for those engaged in it, and improving intelligence networks and early warning systems.

“It is very encouraging to see this level of regional cooperation developing on a pernicious trade and criminal networks that harms species populations and robs communities of the benefits they could enjoy from their biodiversity," said WWF International’s Species Programme Director, Dr Sue Lieberman.

WWF Nepal’s Country Director, Anil Manandhar, said that the greatest challenge was combating the highly organised illegal trade networks between poachers, domestic traders and international traders of wildlife products, combined with highly porous borders between some countries. “No single nation can control such illegal activities alone," Manandhar said.

The Senior Officer, Anti-smuggling, fraud and organized crime, at the Secretariat for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), Mr John Sellar, also welcomed the Initiative. “We look forward to cooperating with SAWTI, which we believe offers considerable potential in combating illegal trade in wildlife, whilst also working to ensure that legal trade in wildlife is sustainable and benefits local communities in this part of the world.”

Global Programme Coordinator for the wildlife trade network TRAFFIC, Roland Melisch, said that international cooperation – and, in particular, regional cooperation – is absolutely essential in tackling the challenges of wildlife trade.

“TRAFFIC would certainly like to applaud the initiative of all the eight countries of South Asia in taking this important step of coming together as a region and seeking to jointly address the pressing issues of ensuring sustainable wildlife use and trade and eliminating the problem of illegal poaching and trade,” Melisch said.

Closing the workshop, Nepal’s Honourable Minister for Environment, Science and Technology, Farmullah Mansoor, confirmed the Government of Nepal’s commitment towards combating the illegal wildlife trade in the region. Nepal currently holds the chair position of SACEP.

"SAWTI is the first wildlife trade initiative of its kind in South Asia and SACEP is confident it will lead to further commitment in the region, and closer engagement among neighbours to effectively address wildlife trade problems," Dr Boaz concluded.

Notes:

The South Asia region is rich in biological diversity, being home to over 15% of the world’s flora and 12% of its fauna, including some of the most endangered species in the planet such as the tiger, Asiatic lion, snow leopard, Asian elephant and one-horned rhinoceros. Because of this richness in biodiversity, South Asia has been one of the prime targets of international organized wildlife crime networks. For example, poaching has reduced Nepal's rhino population by more than 30 per cent. In one of the largest ever seizure of big cat skins in India, enforcement authorities in 2000 seized 4 tiger skins, 70 leopard skins, 221 blackbuck skins, 18,000 leopard claws, 150 kgs of leopard and tiger bone, 132 tiger claws, 2 leopard teeth and one dried leopard penis from poachers in Khaga in the North Indian State of Uttar Pradesh.

TRAFFIC is a key strategic partner in a number of similar regional efforts worldwide. This includes the inter-governmental Regional Action Plan and its Wildlife Enforcement Network that has been established by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the development of the European Community Action Plan on CITES Enforcement. TRAFFIC is also a member of the Coalition Against Wildlife Trafficking (CAWT), a global initiative comprising governments and non-governmental organisations and aimed at focussing public and political attention and resources on ending the illegal trade in wildlife and wildlife products.

The decisions of this workshop will be presented for the endorsement at Ministerial level at the Eleventh Meeting of the Governing Council of SACEP taking place later this year in New Delhi, India.

For more information contact:

Sabri Zain, TRAFFIC International Tel: +44 (0) 1223 277427

Sanjib Chaudhary, Communications Officer, WWF Nepal. Tel: +977-1-4434820

Call for proposals: Small grants in Bhutan

2007-12-06

The CEPF Small Grants Program, Bhutan Implementation Team, based in WWF Bhutan, Thimphu, invites proposals from Bhutanese civil society organizations such as non government organizations, community based organizations, academic organizations as well as individual researchers for biodiversity conservation.

Applicants are required to have extensive experience in implementing biodiversity conservation projects in Bhutan.

All projects proposed should focus on conservation of the region’s flora and fauna that are in critical danger at key biodiversity sites and corridors in the Bhutan Biological Corridor Comples (B2C2). The specific species and sites of interest of this Small Grant Program can be found in The Ecosystem Profile of the Eastern Himalayas (pdf document, 3 MB).

For specific guidelines and format for writing proposals, see the background document (pdf file, 254 KB) on the Small Grants Program.

Grants will be provided in three different areas.

• To support action research for conservation of Critically Endangered and endemic species, or ongoing targeted high impact projects having the potential for immediate conservation impact .
• For conducting research to fill the information void for priority species in selected sites and corridors. Importance will be given for projects which seek to determine the population and threat status of species from the lesser known taxonomic groups including plants (defined in the background note).
• To support scholars for completion of studies on conservation biology with emphasis in the B2C2.

All completed proposals should be sent electronically directly to chophel@wwfbhutan.org.bt.

The last date for submission of proposals is 20 December 2007.

For more information
Chophel Dayang
WWF Bhutan Program
+975-2-323528 ext. 118
email: chophel1@wwfbhutan.org.bt

Note: CEPF is a joint initiative of Conservation International (CI), l’Agence Française de Développement, the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the Government of Japan, the MacArthur Foundation and the World Bank. It provides strategic assistance to non-government organizations, community groups and other civil society partners to help safeguard the earth’s biodiversity hotspots. A fundamental goal of CEPF is to engage civil society in biodiversity conservation. Out of 16 hotspots currently being funded by CEPF globally, the Eastern Himalayas region is the most recent.

Breeding tigers for trade soundly rejected at CITES

2007-06-13

The Hague, The Netherlands – In a major victory for big cat conservation, raising captive tigers for trade in their parts was rejected by members of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

Parties to the international wildlife convention also urged China to phase out its large-scale commercial tiger farms.

Three countries with wild tigers – India, Nepal and Bhutan – were joined by the United States in calling on China to phase out the country’s privately run “tiger farms” that house nearly 5,000 big cats, and are pushing the Chinese government to allow legal trade in tiger parts. With leadership from these countries, the 171 member countries of the CITES convention adopted a strong tiger trade decision by consensus.

“India spoke out strongly and courageously for their wild tigers, along with Bhutan and Nepal,” said Dr Susan Lieberman, Director of WWF’s Global Species Programme.

“China has said that it will not lift its ban without listening to scientific opinion from around the world. The world spoke today and urged China not to reopen any trade in tiger parts and to increase protection for tigers in the wild.”

Investors in massive, captive tiger breeding centres in China have been pressuring the Chinese government to lift its successful 14-year-old ban on trade in tiger parts so they can legally sell products like tiger bone wine and tiger meat. These facilities have acknowledged stockpiling tiger carcasses in the hopes that the trade ban will be lifted.

“A legal market in China for products made from farmed tigers would increase demand and allow criminals to ‘launder’ products made from tigers poached from the wild,” said Steven Broad, Executive Director of TRAFFIC International.

“Tiger numbers in the wild are so precarious that we cannot risk any actions that could jeopardize them further.”

WWF and TRAFFIC, along with a coalition of other organizations working on tigers, have offered guidance and technical support to China on shutting down its tiger farms and stepping up law enforcement efforts to stamp out illegal trade of tiger parts.

Tiger experts from WWF and other conservation groups warn that if tigers are to survive, governments must stop all trade in tiger products from wild and captive-bred sources, as well as ramp up efforts to conserve the species and their habitats.

Habitat loss and intense poaching of tigers and their prey, combined with inadequate government efforts to maintain tiger populations, have resulted in a dramatic reduction in tiger numbers. According to scientists, these big cats now occupy just 7 per cent of their historical range, and the possibility that China could reopen trade in parts harvested from farmed tigers represents a new threat.

For more information:
Jan Vertefeuille, Communications Manager
WWF Tiger Programme
Tel: +31 6 2652 9338
E-mail: janv@wwfus.org

Factsheet: Tigers

2007-05-23

The largest cat of all, the tiger is a powerful symbol among the different cultures that share its home. But this magnificent animal is being persecuted across its range. Tigers are poisoned, shot, trapped, and snared, largely as a result of conflicts with people and to meet the demands of a continuing illegal trade in tiger derivatives and parts. On top of this, both their habitat and natural prey continue to disappear. Over the past 100 years, tiger numbers have declined by 95 per cent and three sub-species have become extinct - with a fourth not seen in the wild for over 25 years.

Tigers are ‘flagship’ species for their habitats - that is, charismatic representatives of the biodiversity within the complex ecosystems they inhabit. Because these animals need a lot of space to survive, their conservation will help maintain biological diversity over extensive areas and so help many other species.

WWF has been working to conserve tigers for over four decades. In 2002, WWF developed a new and far-reaching strategy in partnership with other conservationists and authorities. The cornerstone of this Tiger Conservation Programme is a landscape-based approach to conservation supported by a strong programme to address illegal trade wherever it occurs.

Lines of defense: Elephant protection in India’s North Bank Landscape

2006-09-26

By Joanna Benn and Jan Vertefeuille*

When an elephant calf was found dead on the Sesar tea estate last year in the northeastern Indian state of Assam, workers there buried the body and erected a small temple to Ganesha over the grave. They hoped this tribute to the popular elephant-headed Hindu god would appease a nearby herd of elephants that had been wreaking havoc on their crops.

The elephants, however, trampled the temple soon after it was erected.

Even in Hindu-dominated India, where the elephant is revered as the living embodiment of Ganesha, tensions are on the rise between growing populations of humans and elephants in search of food and a more suitable habitat.

This remote part of India, known as the North Bank Landscape — north of the mighty Brahmaputra River and extending into the Indian State of Arunachal Pradesh, as well as Bhutan — is home to one of the largest populations of Asian elephants left in the world. Nearly 3,000 elephants, or about 10 per cent of the species’ population, live here. So do 75 million people.

Originally a continuous belt of rich forest cover, relatively recent and largely uncontrolled human migration has greatly impacted the North Bank Landscape region. Since 1972, nearly 14 per cent of the area’s natural forest has been lost, predominantly in Assam. Human encroachment has not only significantly reduced elephant habitat, but has also disrupted important migratory corridors.

As forests are disappearing at a rapid rate — often converted for development and cleared for farming by illegal settlers — elephants are moving into areas where people live in search of food, water and even safe places to give birth. Consequently, they have been responsible for damage to crops, infrastructure, homes and, sometimes, people. In retaliation, the elephants have been poisoned, shot, stoned and harassed.

Since 2001, growing conflict between people and elephants has resulted in the deaths of 125 humans and 70 elephants, and has caused millions of dollars worth of crop damage.

“Villagers still think elephants are okay. We even give them our fields,” says Birgit Tirki, from the Assam village of Okapanbari, whose brother-in-law was killed in an elephant attack at night on his home when the family was sleeping.

“But when they kill people and break into houses, it is no longer acceptable.”

First line of defence
The North Bank Landscape is home to some of the most biodiverse forests — from the Eastern Himalayan broadleaf forests to the Himalayan subtropical broadleaf forests, from the Brahmaputra Valley semi-evergreen forests to the Terai and Duar grasslands.

Though much of the forests are legally protected from logging, a drive through the area shows just how badly they have been affected by illegal settlement. Many villages have been erected along roads with barely a tree left in sight. Ironically, signs still remain proclaiming the area a forest reserve.

“Human activities have fragmented the forests, and with it, destroyed many of the elephants’ ancestral migration corridors,” says Tariq Aziz, head of WWF-India’s elephant and rhino programmes. “If you encroach upon those corridors, conflict is bound to happen.’’

Aziz’s team at WWF-India has come up with an innovative approach to reducing this human-elephant conflict. To address the most pressing, short-term problem of crop-raiding and resulting problems, WWF, in close collaboration with the Forest Department of Assam, has set up an early warning system to alert villagers when elephants are on their way, and has trained and equipped them to drive away the elephants using non-violent methods.

On the Sesar tea estate, for example, a small group of volunteers now camp out for a month at a time in tents and patrol the area. When elephants approach, these squads — armed only with searchlights and firecrackers — run and chase elephants away from the estate and the workers’ crops. There are over 70 such village-based squads in the North Bank Landscape serving as the first line of defence. They have proved to be highly successful in the past three years, not only in diverting elephants away from crops, but also in anticipating where and when the elephants are likely to appear at night.

“They’ve been coming for 15 years and I’ve been chasing them for that time too,” explains Suramanda Gogai, a villager dubbed the “one-man army” for the zeal he shows for chasing elephants.

“Since we have been equipped and trained, things are now better. The best way to scare elephants is to wave the searchlight into an elephant’s eyes.”

Second line of defence
Within areas identified as human-elephant “hot spots”, there is a second line of defence to deal with crop-raiding elephants. This involves rapid response squads of specially-trained domestic elephants, known as kunkies, who with their mahouts (elephant handlers), help drive off their wild brethren. Such an innovative technique has also proven highly successful.

One recent sunny afternoon during the height of the harvest season, a “flying elephant” squad went into battle at the Tarajulie tea estate to push out a herd of nearly 40 elephants, including a big angry bull that had taken refuge during the day under the plantation’s shaded trees. The event attracted a crowd of tea plantation workers and their families, as the mahouts — armed with firecrackers and guns (used only to fire in the air to scare the wild elephants) — drove their kunkies after the herd. The elephants were chased from one area of the tea estate towards the river, until they were forced back to a forest sanctuary across the river from where they came.

“Reducing conflict and raising awareness is very important,” says WWF’s Anupam Sarmah, coordinator of global conservation organization's work in the North Bank Landscape.

“By showing local communities that there is an effective, non-lethal way to protect their crops from elephants, we’re actually rebuilding goodwill towards elephants. I hope we can give the elephants a better environment than what is available now.”

Other lines of defence
In addition to volunteer squads on the ground, WWF is introducing other, less confrontational means to deter elephants from communities and their crops. This includes educating local farmers about how to make their crops less appealing and keeping their home brews away from the house (many elephants have actually developed a taste for local rice beer and moonshine!). And testing another innovative tactic that has been used with great success in Africa to deter crop-raiding: hot chillies.

Either mixed with engine oil on rope barriers around the fields or mixed with dried elephant dung and burned to make chilli "bombs”, the spicy pepper seems to work as an effective elephant repellent, especially when they are made with bhootjolakias or demon chillies — one of the world’s strongest green chilli varieties grown locally in Assam.

Currently, a WWF field team has fenced off two plots of sugar cane — another elephant favourite — with chilli-smeared ropes in India’s northeast Sonitpur District, which falls within the North Bank Landscape.

“Just standing near it for a few minutes makes the eyes water,” says Sarmah, “We hope that Asian elephants will prove to be as repelled by spicy food as their African cousins and will be unable to bear the sting of the pungent spice in the air.”

Although many of these short-term solutions have been effective in keeping elephants away from housing, crops and schools, it is long-term solutions, like land-use planning and reforestation of natural habitat, which will really help alleviate the human-wildlife conflict in this part of India. This includes securing critical elephant corridors.

Through the WWF Asian Rhino and Elephant Action Strategy (AREAS) — created in 1998 to conserve the remaining populations of these endangered large mammals and their habitats — key forest corridors in need of rehabilitation have been identified. WWF is working closely with local administrations and communities to secure such corridors across the landscape in India, including connecting large elephant habitats between the Pakke Wildlife Sanctuary and the Doimara Riverine Forest along the Kameng River, a tributary of the Brahmaputra.

“This means working outside and between protected areas to minimize threats to elephants, and to empower communities to participate in long-term conservation and management of these animals,” says WWF’s Tariq Aziz. “We are combining cutting-edge conservation biology with effective monitoring, community development and public awareness campaigns so that human-wildlife conflict can be reduced.”

“This will not only help build a new consciousness among all stakeholders involved,” Aziz adds, “but will lead to a more favourable public and political opinion towards conservation and for addressing the root causes of this conflict.”

WWF field assistant Sanjay Gogoi gets just three hours of sleep a night during peak crop-raiding season — September to December is the rice harvest — and spends his nights and days giving out spotlights, liaising with local people and organizing drives to keep marauding elephants at bay.

“The team calls me the GPS unit because I know all the roads, all the elephant routes and where all the lights are,” he says with a smile. “I hope we can achieve our goals of getting habitat back for the elephants and helping people. That would make me really happy.”

And maybe then, the elephant gods will be appeased.

*Joanna Benn is Communications Manager for WWF’s Global Species Programme. Jan Vertefeuille is the Communications Manager for WWF’s Asian Rhino and Elephant Action Strategy (AREAS) Programme.

END NOTES:

• Bordering India’s mighty Brahmaputra River in the south and the foothills of the eastern Himalayas in the north, the North Bank Landscape encompasses about 14,000km² in the northeastern Indian states of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. This area is home to as many as 3,000 Asian elephants — up to 10 per cent of the species’ total population. It is also home to significant populations of greater one-horned rhinos, tigers, and clouded leopards.

• Although revered by many Asian cultures, the Asian elephant is being pushed to extinction. There are only 25,600–32,750 thought to roam wild in the tropical forests of Asia, less than a tenth of the number of wild African elephants. These remaining populations are mostly small, isolated, and fragmented because their ancient migratory routes and habitat have been interrupted by expanding human encroachment.

• There are three sub-species of Asian elephant:
1. The Indian elephant (E. m. indicus) is the most widely distributed sub-species, found in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Borneo (Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, and Indonesia), Cambodia, China, India, Lao PDR, peninsular Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam. It also has the largest numbers, with 20,000–25,000 living in the wild. Recent investigations show that the Bornean elephant has enough genetic variation from mainland elephants to be classified a separate sub-species.

2. The Sumatran elephant (E. m. sumatrensis) is found only on the island of Sumatra (Indonesia) and numbers between 2,440 and 3,350.

3. The Sri Lankan elephant (E. m. maximus) is found in southwestern Sri Lanka and is the largest Asian elephant sub-species. There are between 3,160 and 4,400 in the wild.

Wildlife Trade in South-East Asia

2006-05-02

South-east Asia, perhaps more than any other region on the planet, encapsulates the full range of challenges facing the management of wildlife trade. World-renowned not only for its diversity of animal and plant species, but also for cultural, linguistic, political and religious diversity, South-east Asia encompasses a range of lifestyles that all rely in some way upon wildlife resources for food, medicines, clothing and other products.

Economic growth, expansion of infrastructure, free trade agendas and a general push for development are contributing to a rapidly changing socio-economic dynamic. In a liberalised trade policy environment, it is all too easy to treat wildlife as just another commodity rather than paying heed to the management needs of natural production systems. However, now that Lao PDR has joined CITES, all 10 countries in the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) are Parties to the Convention – which creates a common basis upon which to conduct legal and sustainable wildlife trade But the challenges remain daunting. While more effective law enforcement and inter-agency co-operation is needed to control illegal trade, only by reversing trends of over-harvesting can trade in legally acquired wild species, their by-products and derivatives, continue to support the sustainable development of human societies.

Sectors of Trade

Traditional Medicine
Many traditional medicines use wildlife as ingredients, for example traditional East Asian medicines use parts and derivatives from more than 1000 plant and animal species including tiger bone, bear gall bladder, pangolin scales, rhinoceros horn and Dendrobium orchids. Maintaining medicinal plant harvest and trade within sustainable levels also presents a major challenge in the region. TRAFFIC’s work has shown continued availability of rare species as ingredients without any systems in place to ensure their legality and sustainability – and medicinal vendors rarely have any knowledge on the status of the species in the wild.

The Pet Trade
Much of the pet trade is dominated by reptiles and birds, and an increasing trend exists to meet the demand of specialist collectors for some of the world’s rarest species. These ‘hobbyists’ often specialise in particular groups of species such as types of parrots and songbirds (e.g. Straw-headed Bulbul Pycnonotus zeylanicus, Palm Cockatoo Probosciger atterrimus), tortoises and freshwater turtles (e.g. Indian Star Tortoise Geochelone elegans, and the Pignosed Turtle Carretochelys insculpta), snakes or lizards, with a view to collecting the broadest, and often the rarest, range of species.

It is this global demand for rare and exotic pets that fuels much of the illegal collection and smuggling from the renowned biodiversity hotspots in South-east Asia – as well as rising demand from countries within South-east Asia for endemic species from Africa, South America and Australasia.

Food
For many people, wildlife is an important source of protein. In some countries, food harvested from nature, whether wild meat, fisheries products or edible plants, contributes to national economies and the livelihoods of local communities.

However, in recent decades, growing human populations, unsustainable harvesting and illegal activities have put additional pressure on these resources. For example, studies by TRAFFIC and other scientific assessments have shown that trade in live reef fish for food is a serious threat to the survival of wild populations of groupers and wrasses in South-east Asia, with the declining aggregations of Humphead Wrasse Cheilinus undulatus illustrative of broader trends.

In many parts of the region, wild meat from species such as deer, pangolin and snakes is consumed as delicacies or ‘tonic’ food items, rather than for subsistence needs.

In East Asia, meat from freshwater turtles (such as the South-east Asian Box Turtle Cuora amboinensis) is consumed in huge volumes despite the fact that three-quarters of the 90 species found in Asia are considered threatened, and 18 are considered critically endangered, such as the River Terrapin Batagur baska. As turtles are long-lived animals, consumers hope to attain similar longevity, and many believe that the ‘wildness’ of the meat will benefit their health.

Curios and trophies
A wide range of animal products are found in Southeast Asia's ornamental trade, including elephant ivory carvings, products made from the shell of the Hawksbill Turtle Eretmochelys imbricata, seashells, coral souvenirs, mounted insects such as butterflies and beetles. Horns, antlers and heads are hunted and traded for their value as trophies, such as those from Sambar Cervus unicolor and Serow Naemorhedus sumatraensis.

International travellers frequently have the option to purchase goods made from endangered species, such as marine turtle products and elephant ivory while abroad. Often this illegal trade is unintentional, resulting from ignorance of the laws and of which species require permits for export and or import. In many cases, these products can be legally offered for sale in popular tourist locations, but transporting them across international borders requires special permits, such as those issued by CITES authorities.

In other cases, wildlife products are sold in open violation of national or local laws – and concerted investigations and law enforcement is needed to police any continuing availability. Little or no information is available to alert buyers to the illegal nature of some purchasing options, or regarding the effect the market for these products has on wild populations. Greater awareness of the legality of wildlife souvenir trade is needed to enable travellers to buy wisely.

Skins, furs and wools
Skin, furs, wool and hair from many species of mammals, reptiles and even fish are traded in the international market to make products ranging from clothing and accessories such as footwear, shawls and wallets, to ornaments, charms, and rugs.

In many cases, this trade is bringing some of the world’s most endangered species closer to extinction, with the Tibetan Antelope or Chiru Pantholops hodgsonii and Asian wild cats such as Tiger Panthera tigris, Leopard Panthera pardus and Clouded Leopard Neofelis nebulosa being prime examples. For example, a TRAFFIC report on trade in the Sumatran Tiger revealed that at least 50 Sumatran Tigers were poached per year between 1998 and 2002. This poaching is being driven by a substantial domestic Indonesian market for Tiger skins and other parts, especially claws and teeth for trophies, charms and souvenirs.

Reptile skins, particularly crocodile, snake (like Reticulated Python Python reticulatus and Rock Python P. molurus) and monitor lizards Varanus spp., dominate the exotic leather market, while some tanneries produce muntjac and pangolin leather products.

Forest products
South-east Asia’s forests contain diverse resources that are used to generate income for many levels of society, as well as foreign currency and tax revenue when those resources are exported. Many rural communities depend on a variety of forest products for their food, medicines and livelihoods.

Unfortunately, in many cases the need to conserve forest ecosystems is being overlooked in the rush to supply global markets with timber and other forest products.

Illegal logging and timber smuggling is a growing problem, due to an inexhaustible demand, particularly for high-value species. The trade in Ramin Gonystylus spp. is a pertinent example of such a species from Southeast Asia that illustrates the full spectrum of challenges to regulate and enforce harvest, export and re-export controls.

Agarwood, the highly prized fragrant heartwood produced by several species in the Thymeleaceae family, is used primarily for medicinal, religious and aromatic purposes in Asian cultures ranging from the Middle East through to China (including Hong Kong and Taiwan) and Japan. Indonesia and Malaysia are the main producer countries and despite threats of over-harvesting and illegal trade, there are clear prospects for long-term sustainable management of this high-value forest product.

The great majority of ornamental plants in trade, including most orchids and pitcher plants, have been artificially cultivated in nurseries, but large numbers are still taken directly from the wild with specialist collectors actively seeking out rare, exotic and often endangered species to add to their collection.

The Big Issues - What is TRAFFIC doing to help?
TRAFFIC monitors wildlife trade at international, regional and national levels – researching both domestic and international chains of supply and demand to identify interventions to increase the efficiency of management.

TRAFFIC works closely with governments, providing critical information on the impacts of trade, motivating efforts to increase the ecological sustainability of trade in wild species, and helping to improve enforcement of international wildlife trade controls. The building of capacity to carry out this work, at regional and national levels, is an important step towards the goal of sustainably managed wildlife trade.

The TRAFFIC South-east Asia programme was established in 1991 and continues to work with partners to address key wildlife trade issues in the region. This work is carried out in close collaboration with TRAFFIC offices in consumer regions such as East Asia, Europe and North America. Specifically, the major objectives that require addressing in South-east Asia include:

Enhanced CITES implementation: More scientific foundations for CITES management decision making, including the establishment of robust legislative systems, regulatory guidelines and management frameworks for legal wildlife trade (e.g. setting and monitoring of quotas for harvest and trade);
Inter-agency co-operation: Both in-country and between countries, to implement and enforce regulatory systems and legislation – much of which can be accomplished by simple communication protocols and information sharing;
Information management: Database systems linked with on-ground monitoring systems to enable tracking of ‘source to market’ chains of custody and compliance, availability of resource materials for identification and procedures;
Working with the private sector and civil society: The active engagement of trade and consumer associations, the transport industry and general civil society will help raise awareness of laws and the upstream conservation effect of market drivers;
Wildlife trade and sustainable development: Well-managed wildlife trade can also be a component of sustainable development and ‘poverty reduction’, by promoting symbiotic links between human societies and their use of wild plants and animals;
Funding needs: To monitor and manage harvest and trade (export, import and re-export) more funds and more human resources need to be allocated to deal with increasingly complex wildlife trade dynamics.

Much work has been done but the challenge of effective implementation of regulations and law enforcement remains daunting. Enforcement of trade controls requires improved anti-poaching capacity, specialized units for undercover investigations and necessary deterrents and incentives to combat unsustainable harvest and trade of wildlife.

Only by countries working together, and by relevant government departments engaging with civil society can South-east Asia conserve its unique natural heritage for future generations.

TRAFFIC Southeast Asia is committed to being part of this process: by continuing efforts in research, capacity building and facilitation of dialogue between the multiple stakeholders involved in wildlife trade, TRAFFIC aims to create opportunities to develop practical solutions, and to integrate well-managed wildlife trade as a more prominent component of sustainable development planning.

Factsheet: Asian Rhinoceros

2006-03-08

Historically hunted for their horn, a prized ingredient in traditional Asian medicines, and devastated by the destruction of their lowland forest habitat, Asian rhino populations are now distressingly small.

These animals are among the world's most endangered, with one species numbering only around 60 individuals. Throughout their range, their habitat continues to dwindle fast due to illegal logging and other human pressures, and the threat of poaching is ever-present.

WWF considers the three Asian rhino species as 'flagships' - that is, charismatic representatives of the biodiversity of the complex ecosystems they inhabit. Conserving the rhinos and their habitat will also help many other species.

WWF has been working on rhino conservation for over four decades. In 1998, WWF created the Asian Rhino and Elephant Action Strategy (AREAS) out of recognition that conservation success will only be possible through a wide-ranging approach that goes beyond protecting isolated areas and addresses issues of land-use practices.

Factsheet: Asian Elephant

2006-03-08

Although revered by many Asian cultures, the Asian elephant is being pushed to extinction. While there are over 15,000 Asian elephants in captivity, only 25,600-32,750 are thought to roam wild in the tropical forests of Asia, less than a tenth of the number of wild African elephants. These remaining populations are mostly small, isolated, and fragmented because their ancient migratory routes and habitat have been interrupted by expanding human encroachment.

Asian elephants are 'flagship' species for their habitats - that is, charismatic representatives of the biodiversity within the complex ecosystems they inhabit. Because these large animals need a lot of space to survive, their conservation will help maintain biological diversity and ecological integrity over extensive areas and so help many other species.

WWF created the Asian Rhino and Elephant Action Strategy (AREAS) in 1998 to conserve the remaining populations of these endangered large mammals and their habitats. Drawing on 40 years of experience in elephant and rhino conservation, the strategy recognizes that conservation success will only be possible through a wide-ranging approach that goes beyond protecting isolated areas and addresses issues of land-use practices.

Asia Pacific Ecoregion Big Wins Update

2005-03-11

Nepalese crocodiles head for Bhutan

2004-04-26

Kathmandu, Nepal - Bhutan today received two captive-bred gharial crocodiles from Nepal for the country's Gharial Conservation Center, which only has four female gharials. The two crocodiles will help with Bhutan's captive breeding programme for this endangered species.

The gharial (Gavialis gangeticus) is one of the largest living crocodilians, and also one of the most endangered. The species is restricted to northern parts of the Indian sub-continent, where it inhabits deep, fast-flowing rivers.

Pressure from hunting drove the gharial crocodile nearly to extinction by the 1970s. However, populations have increased over the past 30 years, largely because of conservation programmes which have included captive breeding programmes.

The species remains threatened by habitat loss due to human encroachment. In addition, the animals are sometimes snared and killed in fishing nets, and suffer from a general decline in fish stocks. On top of this, eggs are collected for medicinal purposes, and males are still hunted for the aphrodisiac properties associated with the snout.

The two reptiles bound for the Bhutan were bred and reared at Kashara Gharial Breeding Centre in Royal Chitwan National Park, which has been very successful in breeding the species. The crocodiles were handed over by Nepal's Secretary of the Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation, Mr Chandi Prasad Shrestha, to the Honorable Dasho Sangay Thinlay, Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture of the Royal Government of Bhutan, amid a function held in Kathmandu.

This is the first such cooperation for the conservation of endangered species of wildlife between Nepal and Bhutan. As both countries fall in the Eastern Himalayan Ecoregion, they both have a similar approach for biodiversity conservation, including landscape level conservation.

WWF-Bhutan and WWF-Nepal have been working together for the past two years to facilitate and promote ecoregion conservation in the two countries.

"The exchange of gharials is a gesture of good friendship between Nepal and Bhutan,"says Dr Chandra P Gurung, Country Representative of WWF Nepal.

For further information:
Sangita Shrestha Singh
Communication Officer, WWF-Nepal
Tel: +977 1 4434820
E-mail: sangita.shrestha@wwfnepal.org

Tashi Tshering
Assistant Communication Officer, WWF-Bhutan
E-mail: ttshering@wwfbhutan.org.bt

WWF and UNDP join forces in Bhutan to conserve nature and reduce poverty

2003-04-30

Thimphu, Bhutan - WWF, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the Government of Bhutan today agreed to manage a protected green corridor through the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan, one of the first projects in a new UNDP-WWF global partnership designed to combat poverty and environmental degradation.

The management of forest corridors in Bhutan will ensure the long-term conservation of the country's forest and mountain ecosystems, home to the endangered Bengal tiger and other species threatened by overgrazing, poaching, illegal trading, deforestation, and destructive agricultural practices. It will also provide ecologically friendly development opportunities for Bhutanese people through alternative energy sources, improved health services, and cottage industries such as cheese-making, honey production, and non-timber forest products.

The Global Environment Facility (GEF), the world's main funding mechanism for dealing with global environmental threats, will provide US$792,000 for the US$1.8 million project. The rest of the funding will be provided by WWF and the Government of Bhutan. The project will be carried out jointly by the Government of Bhutan, WWF, and UNDP.

"Conserving biodiversity and improving people's livelihoods are inextricably linked and neither can succeed without the other," said UNDP Administrator Mark Malloch Brown. "The opportunity to work with WWF in places such as Bhutan and Nepal is an exciting prospect that will help us achieve the Millennium Development Goal of cutting extreme poverty in half by 2015."

"This partnership is an exciting opportunity for the WWF to work beside our United Nations colleagues on critical issues that affect the health and well-being of billions of people, plants and animals," said Dr Claude Martin, the Director General of WWF.

"As we begin working in Bhutan, and plan joint projects on every continent, we realize that this is a huge responsibility that will leave a lasting legacy for our children." By joining together, UNDP and WWF combine their global networks to help the world'spoorest countries tackle pressing environmental problems, such as deforestation, desertification, climate change, and the spread of toxic chemicals.

The 2 organizations are jointly working on many other projects around the world, including:

Nepal: A US$13.1 million biodiversity conservation project in Nepal's Western Terai region aims at linking protected areas with green forest corridors and empowering local communities in managing the forests. A UNDP, WWF, and government partnership establishes habitats/homes for wildlife such as tigers and builds capacity for local communities to fight poverty through alternative livelihood initiatives.
Mongolia, Russia, and Kazakhstan: Conservation and sustainable use of biological resources in the Altai Sayan Ecoregion — an area of pristine mountains and forest ecosystems, surrounded by steppes in the north and east and by deserts and semi-deserts in the south and west. Based on a partnership among WWF, UNDP, and regional governments and communities, each participating country is working on a GEF project to conserve its highly important biological resources at a regional scale. The WWF and UNDP offices in each country are collaborating not only at the national level but also at the regional level for the development of the project. In addition to conserving species such as the endangered snow leopard and argali sheep (the world largest sheep), the project will also work with regional governments on a long-term regional development plan to balance development and conservation needs of local populations, particularly the indigenous people in the region.
Uganda: Conservation of biodiversity in the Albertine Rift Valley Forest.
Philippines: Conservation of the Tubbataha Reef National Park.
A wetland project in Pakistan.
A mountain ecosystem conservation in Turkey.
A green corridor for the lower Danube in Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova, and Ukraine.
A dry forest conservation in Cambodia.
A coastal management project in Vietnam.
Coastal forest management in Tanzania.
Forest conservation in Cameroon.

For further information:

Trygve Olfarnes, UNDP, New York
Tel: +1 212 906 6606
E-mail: trygve.olfarnes@undp.org

Cherie Hart, UNDP, Bangkok
Tel: +66 2 288 2133
E-mail: cherie.hart@undp.org

Sita Giri, UNDP, Thimpu
Tel: +975 2 322424
E-mail: seeta.giri@undp.org

Lee Poston, WWF US
Tel: +1 202 778 9536
E-mail: lee.poston@wwfus.org

Editor's note:

UNDP is the UN’s global development network, advocating for change, and connecting countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life. It operates in 166 countries, working with them on their own solutions to global and national development challenges. As they develop local capacity, they draw on the people of UNDP and its wide range of partners.

RAPPAM - Bhutan Case Study

2003-03-14

WWF to support livelihoods projects in Bhutan

2002-03-25

WWF has signed agreements with the Royal Government of Bhutan to support two projects in the country.

Under the first project aimed at reducing fuelwood consumption, around US$28,000 worth of electric cookers will be installed in seven "dekha mess" of the Royal Bhutan Police. The electric cookers will replace the existing wood stoves used in the Royal Bhutan Police kitchens.

The second project, known as Mushroom Community Development, will be implemented by the National Mushroom Center in Semtokha. The project activities include procurement of training equipment, training and demonstration to farmers on sustainable harvesting of Matsutake, formation of a mushroom growers group, and distribution of mycorrhized seedlings to the growers. The estimated budget for the project is about US$38,500.

The project agreements were signed between the WWF Bhutan country representative and the Director General of the Department of Aid and Debt Management.

For further information:
Pema Norbu
Asst. Communications Officer, WWF Bhutan
E-mail: pnorbu@wwfbhutan.org.bt