WWF - WWF Cambodia office

Managing tourism for the benefit of nature

2009-11-18

Pichreada district, Mondulkiri province November 19th – Attended by around 100 people from government authorities, communities, private sector and WWF, the today’s inauguration of the community homestay within the Mondulkiri Protected Forest is celebrated to promote wildlife ecotourism in the dry forests of North-eastern Cambodia. The aim being to co-finance the protected area and help communities protect their wildlife while developing sustainable livelihoods.

In his speech at the inauguration, his Excellency Svay Sam Eang, deputy-governor of Mondulkiri province, said that ecotourism helps the community members generate additional income and hopefully reduce the community’s dependence on forest-based livelihoods.

“The establishment of this community homestay project increases the understanding of local communities about the importance of ecotourism to their environment and livelihoods and therefore promotes their participation in natural resource protection,” he added.

In the long term, the future of Cambodia’s protected areas depends on their ability to be financially self-sustaining. Funds are needed for the management of the habitats of plant and animal species, as well as for ensuring the well-being of the communities living around the protected areas. In 2007, the Forestry Administration, provincial government and WWF embarked on a strategy to develop ecotourism projects to serve as a financial mechanism to support on-site management of protected areas and provide incentives for landscape level conservation.

According to Mr Seng Teak, Country Director of WWF Cambodia, population growth puts an increased pressure on the natural resources adjacent to and within the protected areas; these natural resources support the livelihoods of local people and are also vital in maintaining the integrity of protected areas.

“The community-based ecotourism is believed as a strategy to provide incentives for local communities to support conservation, and therefore help reduce pressure on natural resources,” he said.

The community homestay is a pilot project involving 13 community members from Dei Ey of Chong Phang village and serves as a start to establish an ecotourism mosaic within the country’s Eastern Plains dry forests landscape. This project will provide accommodation, traditional food and a diversity of entertaining activities, including forest and elephant trekking, animal observation from hides, mountain biking and gaining insight into local culture and traditions in nearby villages.

“While this is a WWF-supported project, it is very important, for the long-term aim, to promote community ownership over the development and management of ecotourism,” said Mr Craig Bruce, WWF’s Eastern Plains Landscape Project Manager.

The WWF ecotourism team is now training the community ecotourism group for tourism planning skills and assisting them in developing a business plan that respects the principle of environmentally-friendly tourism.

First rattan association of Cambodia, a step to sustainable rattan industry

2009-10-01

Phnom Penh, Cambodia – Eleven rattan small and medium enterprise owners and other community rattan processors from Phnom Penh and provinces meet on September 28th to officially form Cambodia’s first rattan association. The agenda will focus on election of a management committee and discussion over conditions and roles of current and future memberships.

"While the association is perceived by members as creating space and opportunity for key actors in the rattan production chain to meet and work together, this institutional initiative is described as a fundamental first step to achieve the goal of maintaining sustainable rattan production and supply. We are delighted to support this project and this activity in particular," said the representative of the European Commission's Delegation in Phnom Penh.

“The formation of the rattan association is critical to ensure understanding of community suppliers, processors and traders about the need to maintain sustainable supply of rattan for clean and better production,” said Mr Lip Cheang, a founder of the rattan association and owner of Kampuchea Samay Thmei rattan factory.

Fast growing economies elsewhere in the region are motivating rapid expansion of processing activities leading to demand for rattan resource at an unsustainable level. There is urgent need to establish a model of sustainable production that can support continuous growth of rattan in forests, while maintaining seasonal harvesting and sustainable supply.

“This is the right time for moving forward with concrete actions that help the development of rattan industry of Cambodia if the country is to export clean and high quality products into international markets, while continuing to sustainably manage rattan resource in forest,” said Mr Ou Ratanak, Rattan Project Manager from WWF.

The rattan association will first of all put a legal identity to a group of rattan suppliers and processors. Such an identity is important for the recognition of their action and goal by national and international societies.

“As a legally established entity, we can make our voice heard when we need support from the Government, for instance, with coordination from WWF and NGO partners, we will meet and dialogue with relevant ministries to obtain licence for our business so that we can legally export our products in the future,” Mr Lip Cheang said.

One of the operational objectives of the association is to also provide Cambodian processors with new knowledge and experience related to rattan, processing techniques, trade and markets. This will be the key learning platform and guide for them to improve their processing and product quality.

“The project identified that processors and exporters are not familiar with using the environmentally-friendly production techniques and that there is lack of understanding about international market requirements,” Mr Ratanak said.

“Limited skill to creatively diversify design and style also refrain Cambodian products from being competitive in the international market,” he added.

WWF is working with Institute for Environmental Science and Technology based in Hanoi and Artisans Association of Cambodia to improve the current non environmentally friendly production practices of rattan as such: wasteful use of rattan during processing, poor grading and storing as well as chemical use, which has negative impacts on the environment and therefore affects the product quality.

“One of the project’s major objectives, funded by European Union, is to engage small and medium enterprises in Cleaner Production, which aim at introducing proper techniques for processing activities to ensure a system of quality assurance,” said Mr Thibault Ledecq, Rattan Programme Manager from WWF.

For more information, contact:
asnarith.tep@wwfgreatermekong.org

Close Encounters: new species discoveries in the Greater Mekong

2009-09-16

A bird eating fanged frog, a gecko that looks like it’s from another planet and bird which would rather walk than fly, are among the 163 new species discovered in the Greater Mekong region last year that are now at risk of extinction due to climate change, says a new report launched by WWF ahead of UN climate talks in Bangkok.

During 2008 alone, scientists identified these rare and unique species within the jungles and rivers of the Greater Mekong, including a bird eating fanged frog that lies in streams waiting for prey, one of only four new species of musk shrew to be described in recent times, and a leopard gecko whose “other world” appearance – orange eyes, spindly limbs and technicolour skin – inspired the report’s title Close Encounters.

Such is the immense biodiversity of this region that some discoveries such as the tiger-striped pitviper were made by accident.

“We were engrossed in trying to catch a new species of gecko when my son pointed out that my hand was on a rock mere inches away from the head of a pitviper! We caught the snake and the gecko and they both proved to be new species,” said Dr Lee Grismer of La Sierra University in California.

Close Encounters spotlights species newly identified by science including 100 plants, 28 fish, 18 reptiles, 14 amphibians, 2 mammals and a bird, all discovered in 2008 within the Greater Mekong region of Southeast Asia that spans Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and the south-western Chinese province of Yunnan.

The reluctant flyer, Nonggang babbler, was observed walking longer distances than flying. It would only use its wings when frightened.

But no sooner are these new species discovered than their survival is threatened by the devastating impacts of climate change, the report warns.

Recent studies show the climate of the Greater Mekong region is already changing. Models suggest continued warming, increased variability and more frequent and damaging extreme climate events.

Rising seas and saltwater intrusion will cause major coastal impacts especially in the Mekong River delta, which is one of the three most vulnerable deltas on Earth, according to the most recent International Panel on Climate Change report.

“Some species will be able to adapt to climate change, many will not, potentially resulting in massive extinctions,” said Stuart Chapman, Director of the WWF Greater Mekong Programme.

“Rare, endangered and endemic species like those newly discovered are especially vulnerable because climate change will further shrink their already restricted habitats,” said Chapman.

Often new species are highly dependent on a limited number of species for their survival. If they respond to climate change in a way that disrupts this closely evolved relationship then they are at a greater risk of extinction.

Over the next two weeks, government delegates will meet in Bangkok, Thailand, for the next round of UN climate change talks in the lead up to the Copenhagen Climate Summit this December, where the world is scheduled to agree on a new global climate treaty.

“The treasures of nature are in trouble if governments fail to agree a fair, ambitious and binding treaty that will prevent runaway climate change,” said Kathrin Gutmann, Head of Policy and Advocacy at the WWF Global Climate Initiative.

“Protecting endangered species and vulnerable communities in the Greater Mekong and elsewhere around the world depends on fast progress at the UN talks in Bangkok - a hugely important conference that can lay the groundwork for success at the Copenhagen Climate Summit this December.”

Greater Mekong Climate Change Adaptation agreement: a world’s first in the making…

2009-08-07

Asia’s first climate change adaptation agreement was the focus of a recent meeting held in Bangkok, convened on July 22 by WWF Greater Mekong Programme, the United Nations Environment Programme and the Swedish Environmental Secretariat for Asia.

Enhancing Regional Integration in the Greater Mekong – the opportunity for Asia’s first Regional Climate Change Adaptation agreement, brought together 32 senior representatives from the leading regional organizations to explore ways to secure government commitment for a regional climate change adaptation agreement, the first of its kind in the world.

“Climate change should be considered a symptom of unsustainable development,” said the Swedish Environmental Secretariat for Asia (SENSA) in their opening statement to the meeting.

The Greater Mekong subregion is one of the fastest growing economic regions in the world. It is also one of the richest in terms of biodiversity. The region’s relative wealth of natural resources has powered its rapid economic and social development. But the uncertainties of climate change place this development under increasing threat.

Participants to the meeting included representatives from the Asian Development Bank, the Secretariat of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), the ASEAN Biodiversity Centre, AusAID, the European Union, the FAO, IUCN, the Mekong River Commission, Southeast Asia Global Change System for Analysis, Research and Training (START), Stockholm Environment Institute and US-AID.

During the meeting the participants identified several benefits of a regional agreement such as; improved regional coordination and cooperation, providing a platform to discuss trans-boundary issues, and strengthened management of trans-boundary or shared natural resources.

Peter King from the Institute for Global Environment Strategies emphasised the urgent need for regional cooperation within a formal agreement. He said ‘business as usual’ in the absence of any agreement was no longer an option. However, some participants questioned the need for a regional agreement saying that sufficient national legislation already exists, and that the problem is with implementation and enforcement.

A significant opportunity identified was the engagement of China in the region. China’s “Going Global” policy, which includes guidelines on outward investments, and their interest in working with ASEAN, were seen as possibilities to actively engage China in a regional climate change adaptation agreement.

During the day, WWF presented the lessons learned from five global initiatives developing regional environmental agreements. The United Nations Environment Programme likewise gave an overview of its programme supporting regional environmental agreements, and highlighted how agreements can support national governments to meet global commitments.

Overall perspectives on a regional climate change adaptation agreement varied from supporters, through neutral, to a few opponents. At the day’s end, all participants agreed that regional cooperation would be a positive step and affirmed that the issue needs to be explored further. WWF said discussions with key partners will continue.

Toothless laws encourage rising demand for pangolin

2009-07-14

Singapore - Rising demand for pangolins, mostly from mainland China, compounded by lax laws is wiping out the unique toothless anteaters from their native habitats in Southeast Asia, according to a group of leading pangolin experts.

Illegal trade in Asian pangolin meat and scales has caused the scaly anteaters to disappear from large swathes of Cambodia, Viet Nam and Lao PDR, concluded a panel of experts whose findings were announced today by the wildlife trade monitoring network, TRAFFIC.

China has a long history of consuming pangolin as meat and in traditional medicine, the report states. Due to continual demand and the decreasing Chinese wild population, in the past few years pangolin smuggling from Southeast Asia has resulted in great declines in these producing countries wild populations, as well.

Although the animals are protected under national legislation in all Asian range states, and have been prohibited from international trade through the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) since 2002, this legislation is having little impact on the illicit trade.

Pangolins are the most frequently encountered mammals seized from illegal traders in Asia, and are highly unusual in not possessing teeth.

Pangolins, like the laws designed to protect them, lack bite, commented Chris R. Shepherd, Acting Director for TRAFFIC Southeast Asia.

Pangolin populations clearly cannot stand the incessant poaching pressure, which can only be stopped by decisive government-backed enforcement action in the region.

According to pangolin hunters and traders, there are so few pangolins left in forests throughout Cambodia, Viet Nam and Lao PDR, they are now sourcing animals from their last remaining strongholds in Southeast Asia and beyond.

Recent large seizures back up these reports. They include 24 tonnes of frozen pangolins from Sumatra, Indonesia, seized in Viet Nam, and 14 tonnes of frozen animals seized in Sumatra in 2008. There have also been recent instances of African pangolins seized in Asia.

Pangolins save us millions of dollars a year in pest destruction, says Dr Simon Stuart, Chair of the IUCN Species Survival Commission. These shy creatures provide a vital service and we cannot afford to overlook their ecological role as natural controllers of termites and ants.

The key to tackling the pangolin crisis is better enforcement of existing national and international laws designed to protect pangolins, better monitoring of the illegal trade, and basic research to find where viable pangolin populations still exist and whether ravaged populations can recover given adequate protection, according to the report.

The experts on pangolins included scientific researchers, government law enforcement officers from most Asian pangolin range States, CITES Management and Scientific Authorities and animal rescue centres, who convened at a workshop hosted by Wildlife Reserves Singapore at the Singapore National Zoo.

TRAFFIC's work on pangolins was supported by National Geographic and Sea World Bucsh Gardens.

Mekong dolphins on the brink of extinction

2009-06-18

The Mekong River Irrawaddy dolphin (Orcaella brevirostris) population inhabits a 190km stretch of the Mekong River between Cambodia and Lao PDR. Since 2003, the population has suffered 88 deaths of which over 60% were calves under 2 weeks old. The current population is estimated to be between 64 and 76. This estimate does not include calves and juveniles.

“Necropsy analysis identified a bacterial disease as the cause of the calf deaths. This disease would not be fatal unless the dolphin’s immune systems were suppressed, as they were in these cases, by environmental contaminants,” said Dr Verné Dove, report author and veterinarian with WWF Cambodia.

Researchers found toxic levels of pesticides such as DDT and environmental contaminants such as PCBs during analysis of the dead dolphin calves. These pollutants may also pose a health risk to human populations living along the Mekong that consume the same fish and water as the dolphins.

“These pollutants are widely distributed in the environment and so the source of this pollution may involve several countries through which the Mekong River flows. WWF Cambodia is currently investigating the source of the environmental contaminants,” said Dr Dove.

High levels of mercury were also found in some of the dead dolphins. Mercury, suspected to be from gold mining activities, directly affects the immune system making the animals more susceptible to infectious disease.

“A trans-boundary preventative health programme is urgently needed to manage the disease affected animals in order to reduce the number of deaths each year,” said Seng Teak, Country Director of WWF Cambodia.

Limited genetic diversity due to inbreeding was another factor in the dolphin deaths.

“The Mekong River dolphins are isolated from other members of their species and they need our help. Science has shown that if the habitat of cetaceans is protected then populations can show remarkable resilience,” said Mr Teak.

The Mekong River Irrawaddy dolphin has been listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species since 2004.

For more information, contact:
asnarith.tep@wwfgreatermekong.org

U.S. dogs to sniff out Cambodian tigers

2009-06-12

The camera traps and dogs ultimately will help conservationists to better protect tigers in the Mondulkiri Protected Forest in Eastern Cambodia, one of Southeast Asia’s largest remaining tropical dry forests.

WWF has set up more than 165 camera traps in the area, and in a few months two US-trained dogs, will begin scouring the undergrowth and sniffing for tiger scent.

The two dogs will be re-trained to locate the scat of tiger and other carnivores. Using dogs to sniff out the scats from large carnivores has been widely used in other parts of the world with great success, such as tiger monitoring projects in the Russian Far East.

“We know tigers are there. With more concentrated monitoring we have a better chance of spotting them – and this will enable us to put more protective measures in play,” said Nicholas Cox, WWF’s Dry Forests Ecoregion Leader.

Despite many years of poaching, there now are signs that the dry forest is recovering as a habitat for tigers. Leopards now are relatively common and other wildlife returning to the area include wild banteng, Asian jackal, Eld’s deer and primates such as silvered langur. In addition Vultures, Great Hornbills and Giant Ibis have now been frequently spotted in the forest.

The tiger population is estimated to be between 10 and 25 animals in the Eastern Plains Landscape. Camera traps have been used in some parts of the Protected Forest previously, but they will now be concentrated to a core area frequented by tigers. A tiger was last photographed in the area in 2007, and scats (droppings) have been found more recently in the area.

“It’s now or never, we must act if the trend of increasing tiger prey species is to be made permanent,” said Seng Teak, WWF Cambodia Country Director.

“Stronger protection measures and a rigorous management plan are being implemented by the local government in Mondulkiri and WWF. When prey returns to the area the tiger population will have a chance to bounce back in a few years,” he says.

WWF has been involved in conservation work in the Eastern Plains since early 2001. That commitment was increased a few years ago to cover an area spanning more than 20,000 square kilometers.

Strict protection measures have been enforced in the Mondulkiri Protected Forest and the Phnom Prich Wildlife Sanctuary. In core protection zones, villagers are not allowed to hunt or cut timber, and more than 70 trained rangers patrol the protected areas.

Lean Kha, a 48-year-old ranger working for WWF, was a poacher in the 70s.

“As a 13-year-old boy I was forced by the Khmer Rouge to go into the forest and kill wild animals,” Kha said. “I quickly learned to shoot and lay snares. During a period of 5-6 years I shot 16 elephants, 14 leopards and two tigers. At the time, I was ignorant and did not think of the consequences when I shot those tigers.”

“Today I’m really proud to work for WWF, and to use my skills to combat wildlife crime so that there will still be tigers and other wildlife in the forest when my children grow up,” he says.

For more information, please contact:
Marie von Zeipel at Marie.vonZeipel@wwf.se

Mondulkiri Wild Honey symbolises the community’s commitment to sustainable use and management of forest resources

2009-04-07

Sen Monorom, Mondulkiri province, April 7th 2009 – Joined by many ministry level government officials, representatives of international and local NGOs, journalists, local villagers and Sen Monorom citizens, today minority ethnic Phnong communities of Krang Teh and Pou Chrey and the local government of Mondulkiri celebrate the launch of their fresh Mondulkiri Wild Honey product to mark the commitment to protecting forest resources and promoting livelihoods development based on non-timber forest products.

The Mondulkiri Wild Honey is the result of a forest based livelihoods project the two communities began in 2007 to respectively operate enterprises of Krang Raton and Prey Rodang raising the value of forest resource as an important means for improving their living standard. Such an achievement is also motivated by community’s understanding of their role and participation in natural resource management being key to successfully protecting the surrounding plains and wildlife.

“WWF, Government and NGO partners are actively working with local communities in the Eastern Plains Landscape to encourage their involvement in forest conservation while promoting livelihood opportunities,” said Mr Seng Teak, WWF Country Director.

Honey is one of the important forest based livelihoods that communities living in and around the protected areas of Mondulkiri are dependent upon. By motivating the communities with processing of wild honey, the intimate relations between people, forests and non-timber forest products are promoted.

“WWF works with NTFP-EP to promote and support NTFP based community processing activities by organising them in groups, providing capacity building, inviting them in processes of forest management and helping them promote their achievement among the public,” said Mrs Amy Maling, WWF Community Extension Technical Advisor.

Forest honey from the wild bee species living in protected areas and community forests has the potential to attract domestic and international markets if honey products meet standard requirements with regard to quality, quantity, price, packaging and product use. To ensure that forest honey collection is a sustainable community livelihood, honey collectors handle harvesting following proper methods, adopt hygienic and standardized practices in honey processing and product packaging with attractive labeling.

“Although the honey market is wide in Cambodia, the Mondulkiri Wild Honey is not yet widely promoted. It can achieve competitive advantage if it is a sustainably harvested, quality product.” said Ms Femy Pinto, Country Facilitator of NTFP-EP Cambodia.

“Our efforts are also strengthened by good working relationships among the supporting organizations, the communities and our government partners,” she continued.

The launch of the honey product of Mondulkiri is organised to coincide with celebrations of community networking and marketing campaigns as we promote NTFP based community enterprises in other parts of the country including Phnom Penh, Ratanakiri as part of the April Festival on Forests, People & NTFPs and later in the year in Siem Reap and Koh Kong provinces.

For more information, contact Asnarith.
asnarith.tep@wwfgreatermekong.org

Rattan program protects Greater Mekong forests, boosts local economies

2009-03-23

A new sustainable rattan program recently launched by WWF will help save the remaining forests of the Greater Mekong Region – while benefiting communities and pumping up local economies.

Rattan is widely used for food, furniture and other products and traded extensively across the region, in the European Union and worldwide markets.

Tonginn Keomany, a 70-year-old Lao woman who lives in the village of Sopphouan on the Vietnamese border is already counting the benefits from the first trial phase of the innovative program.

Like other farmers in the area, she depends mainly on family-based rice production and other small-scale crops to feed her family.

“Rattan is good for food and handicrafts,” said Tonginn, who added that she hopes the project will continue to be a success. “I weave lots of useful things for the household.”

The program, A switch to sustainable harvest rattan production and supply launched on 5 March in Hanoi, Vietnam, and will benefit many more villagers.

The program aims to achieve cleaner and more efficient production of rattan by reducing the use of pollutants in its production, making the supply chain of rattan more efficient so less is wasted, and encouraging its sustainable use in Greater Mekong forests.

This in turn will improve the production of rattan and give communities, governments and industries an economic incentive to conserve forests.

By 2010 it is expected that up to 100 villages in Cambodia, Lao PDR and Vietnam will be working towards a greener and sustainable management of rattan production.

The sustainable rattan program is part of ongoing WWF efforts during the last three years to establish a community based network for sustainable rattan harvesting in six villages in Laos and Cambodia.

Many villages in the Greater Mekong Region rely on the rattan trade which accounts for 50 percent of their total cash income, making this a major contributor to poverty alleviation in rural areas.
“We have successfully identified key species of rattan and are now in the process of developing a viable model for sustainable rattan management,” said Bouaphet Bounsourath, the rattan project manager in Laos. “This model includes the creation of seedling nurseries, plantations, pilot research plots as well as hands-on training in handicraft manufacture

“We have helped the villagers to organise themselves and also established protected areas in the forest.

“This makes a big difference. Previously there was no control and poorly implemented forest management.”

Under the new program, 70 percent of rattan sales go to a village fund which contributes to improving the local school and health services. Thirty percent goes to the individual villagers, who also can take out micro loans at a 2 percent interest rate from the fund.

“Last year our village earned 8,500,000 kip (approximately 1,000 USD) in additional income from rattan seedlings and rattan cane,” said 43-year-old Sonephet Keomany, the head of Sopphouan village.

Over the last three years, the pilot WWF-IKEA Sustainable Rattan Harvesting and Production Project (2006-2009) has worked in two countries and among six villages, demonstrating that community management can result in sustainable production and marketing of rattan.

The second phase of the program is being funded by the European Union with co-financing from the international furnishings company IKEA and the German development finance institution DEG.

“Another big win will be that an increased number of rattan processing companies will deliver environmentally friendly products to Europe and other worldwide markets,” said Thibault Ledecq, regional rattan program manager.

Stronger push for sustainable rattan production in the Greater Mekong region gives new hope to the forests

2009-03-05

Hanoi, Vietnam: A new program for sustainable production of rattan in the Greater Mekong region was launched today. It aims to achieve cleaner and more efficient production and give communities, governments and industries an economic incentive to conserve forests. By 2010 up to 100 villages in Cambodia, Lao PDR and Vietnam will be working towards a greener and sustainable management of rattan production.

“We are delighted to support this project which will benefit consumers, industry and the environment alike. It aims to mitigate negative impact of rattan production on humans and the local environment, but if we are to succeed all stakeholders in Lao PDR, Cambodia and Vietnam must work together transparently,” says the representative of the European Commission's delegation in Hanoi.

The European Union finances 80 percent of the programme’s total budget of 2.4 million euros, with co-financing from the international home-products retailer IKEA and the German development finance institution DEG.

The global rattan trade is estimated at USD 4 billion. More than 50 species of rattan in Cambodia, Lao PDR and Vietnam form the basis of an extensive rattan-processing industry. Vietnam exports almost 60 percent of all finished rattan products to the European Union. However, much of the pre-processing taking place in Cambodia and Lao PDR poses serious health risks to the workers, and the methods used cannot compete in the global market. Many villages rely on the rattan trade which accounts for 50 percent of their total cash income, making this a major contributor to poverty alleviation in rural areas.

“At the moment rattan resources are decreasing because of overexploitation. The implementation of sustainable harvesting and cleaner production will provide long-term livelihood security to local people. It makes them good stewards and guardians of the forest,” says Thibault Ledecq, rattan programme manager at WWF´s Greater Mekong Programme.

By the end of the project at least 40 percent of targeted small and medium enterprises in the supply chain will be actively engaged in clean and safe manufacture of rattan products, and 15 percent will export sustainable and environmental friendly products to Europe and worldwide markets.

Media Contacts:

- Thibault Ledecq, WWF rattan program manager
   Mobile Vietnam: + 84 122 862 887

- Hoang Thi Minh Hong, WWF Greater Mekong, Communications Manager
   Mobile in Vietnam: +84 90 3403686

- Marie von Zeipel, Senior Press Officer, WWF Sweden
   Mobile in Lao PDR: +856 0207424166

More information:

Over the last three years, WWF-IKEA Sustainable Rattan Harvesting and Production Project (2006-2009) worked in two countries and with six villages. This pilot project demonstrated, through a community based model, that sustainable rattan resource management can go along with sustainable production and marketing.

Around 800 hectares of forest are under sustainable management with more than 60 households gaining economic benefit from the project. Increased knowledge of rattan and strengthened research capacity at national university level has been reached during the first phase of the project.

Based on the good results during the pilot project, the second phase is now being initiated. The programme is funded by the European Union with co-financing from the international home-products retailer IKEA and the German development finance institution DEG.

Elephants under threat as illegal ivory price soars in Viet Nam

2009-02-16

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Indochina’s few surviving elephants are under increasing threat from booming illegal ivory prices in Viet Nam, according to a new market analysis released today by TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network.

An assessment of the illegal ivory trade in Viet Nam said Vietnamese illegal ivory prices could be the highest in the world, with reports of tusks selling for up to USD1500/kg and small, cut pieces selling for up to USD1863/kg.

Most of the raw ivory was said to originate from the Lao Peoples’ Democratic Republic, with small amounts from Viet Nam and Cambodia.

“This is a worrying trend that indicates even more pressure is being put on already fragile Asian Elephant populations,” said Azrina Abdullah. Director of TRAFFIC Southeast Asia.

According to IUCN figures, no more than 1,000 elephants are believed to survive in Lao PDR, while in Viet Nam, fewer than 150 are believed to exist. In December 2008, TRAFFIC released a report that found evidence of widespread smuggling of live Asian Elephants and their ivory from Myanmar.

Mammoth ivory from Russia was also used in small quantities, but no African raw ivory was found, although it was still being illegally imported into Viet Nam up to at least 2004.

Trade in ivory was outlawed in Viet Nam in 1992, but a major loophole in the legislation exists because shops can still sell ivory in stock dating from the prohibition. This allows some shop owners to restock illegally with recently-made carved ivory.

In 2008, TRAFFIC surveyed 669 retail outlets across Viet Nam and found 73 (11%) selling a total of 2,444 ivory items. Whilst the scale of the ivory market was smaller than in previous surveys, there were signs of increasing demand and overall numbers of craftsmen had increased since 2001. Ho Chi Minh City had the most retail outlets (49) and ivory items (1,776), but Ha Noi, with only 10 outlets, had the highest number of craftsmen.

“Although fewer ivory items were seen in 2008 than in 2001, worked ivory is increasingly being sold directly to buyers through middlemen or on the Internet, bypassing retail outlets,” said Abdullah,

“Continued demand for illegal ivory is driving the prices so high,” explained Abdullah.

Recent seizures in and outside Viet Nam also suggest that most raw ivory is being supplied to China.

The main buyers of ivory were from China (including Hong Kong and Taiwan) and Thailand, local Vietnamese, American-Vietnamese and Europeans, in that order.

“This insidious illegal trade is further threatening the highly endangered elephants of Asia and must be stopped,” said Dr. Susan Lieberman, Director of the Species Programme for WWF-International.

The report recommends that Viet Nam should comply with its obligations under CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora), particularly regarding the reporting of ivory seizures, that national regulations and their enforcement should be tightened and offenders prosecuted, and that ivory for sale in retail outlets should be confiscated by the government and destroyed.

The report also recommends better training for wildlife law enforcement officers and continued participation in the ASEAN Wildlife Enforcement Network (ASEAN-WEN) and similar initiatives that aim to control the illicit trafficking of ivory and other wildlife products in the region.

The investigation into ivory trade in Viet Nam was supported by WWF-Netherlands, and the publication of the report, An assessment of the illegal ivory trade in Viet Nam, was supported by the Rufford Maurice Laing Foundation.

New Species hotspot in remote Cambodian Mekong

2009-01-15

Cantor’s Giant softshell turtle, thought to be extinct in Cambodia since 2003 has been rediscovered in a section of the Mekong River almost untouched by humans.

The discovery was one of a raft of species new to the region, 24 in all, and a previously unknown “corpse plant” notable for emitting an odour of decaying flesh.

The study area is home to a near-pristine region of tall riverine forests, waterways and island archipaelagos, and is described by scientists as including one of the last suitable freshwater habitat for the critically endangered Irrawaddy Dolphin.

The findings are the result of a series of surveys jointly conducted by WWF Cambodia, the Fisheries Administration (FiA) and Forestry Administration (FA) of the Ministry of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) in 2006/7.

The most exciting area surveyed was a 55 kilometre stretch of river located in north-eastern Cambodia, referred to as the “Central Section”, which is a sanctuary for many vulnerable fauna populations, 36 of which are listed as threatened under the IUCN Red List.

“Unlike many other mainstream sections of the Mekong in Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Vietnam, this particular part of the river remains relatively untouched by human activities,” said Richard Zanre, WWF Freshwater Program Manager. This region, he added, used to be one of the last strongholds of the Khmer Rouge and was off-limits to local and foreign agencies until as late as 1998.

However, the “Central Section” is rapidly shrinking. Cambodia’s new era of peace is leading to migration of communities to areas previously off-limits due to security concerns.

Unregulated hunting, fishing and logging are the greatest threats to the area as the number of settlers to the region has increased rapidly in the previous decade. Local communities are already reporting that catches of fish, turtles, large mammals and lizards are already declining.

Future threats may arise from further infrastructural development of the region, such as dam and road construction. Two dams have been proposed in the study area, just outside the Central Section, and would massively disrupt the delicately balanced ecosystems in the area.

Like many developing countries, Cambodia must balance the needs of a growing population with conservation. Fortunately, the government is sympathetic to these concerns;

“The Royal Government of Cambodia recognises the importance of maintaining the Mekong’s resources for biodiversity, national food security and development, and reflect this need in the targets of the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan of 2002 and Cambodia’s Millennium Development Goals,” said Seng Teak, WWF Country Director.

“Documenting Mekong’s biodiversity and natural resources is a critical first step is to preserving them.”

Having worked with the government closely on these surveys, WWF Cambodia has sought to get the “Central Section” designated as a special management site, ensuring that the region’s plant and animal life are integrated into the governments national biodiversity strategy and afforded adequate protection.

WWF would like to see all lands in the central section divided into two zones – one a protective zone, and the other a multiple use zone that would help to support livelihoods of local communities.

Coming so shortly after the discovery of over one thousand new species in the Mekong River basin from 1997 to 2007, this study has proved the value of protecting the region, while also serving as an important contribution to the mapping of Cambodia’s biological diversity, key to the formulating of effective management programs in the area.

Globally important site for endangered species discovered on the Mekong in Northern Cambodia

2009-01-15

Between Kratie and Stung Treng towns, in northeast Cambodia, a remote 55km section of the Mekong River, that scientists have termed the ‘Central Section’, has been discovered to be of high biodiversity value both nationally and globally. Discoveries included one new species to science, 24 new species records for Cambodia and 36 fauna species that are globally threatened and listed under the “IUCN Red List”, including breeding populations of birds, primates and turtles.

The findings are the result of a series of surveys jointly conducted by WWF, Fisheries Administration (FiA) and Forestry Administration (FA) of the Ministry of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) in 2006/7. Among many exciting discoveries, the survey team recorded a new plant species (Amorphophallus sp., known as ‘corpse plants’) for science, as well as new national records of rare plants, fish and one reptile. The largest global populations of two bird species, White-shoulder Ibis and Mekong Wagtail, were found, as well as some of the largest breeding colonies in Southeast Asia of Plain Martin and nests of an endangered giant turtle. Of equal significance was the discovery of a near pristine region of tall riverine forest, waterways and island archipelagos, and a remarkable uninhabited section of river 40-50 km long.

FiA, FA and WWF compiled this fascinating research information and produced in late 2008 their first detailed scientific report titled ‘Biological surveys of the Mekong River between Kratie and Steung Treng towns, northeast Cambodia’. This report makes a significant contribution to scientists’ knowledge and understanding of biodiversity of the Mekong River. The information collected during the surveys provides a scientific basis for management of this ‘Central Section’.

“The Royal Government of Cambodia recognises the importance of maintaining the Mekong’s resources for biodiversity, national food security and development, and reflect this need in the targets of the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan 2002 and Cambodia’s Millennium Development Goals,” said Seng Teak, WWF Country Director. To achieve these goals, he continued, a critical first step is to document the Mekong’s biodiversity and natural resources.

The study area is described by scientists as including probably the last suitable freshwater habitat for the critically endangered Irrawaddy Dolphin; the Indochinese region’s last remaining Hog Deer population; and the rare Cantor’s Giant Softshell Turtle once thought to be extinct in the region.

“Unlike many other mainstream sections of the Mekong in Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Vietnam, this particular part of the river remains relatively untouched by human activities,” said Richard Zanre, WWF Freshwater Program Manager. This region, he added, used to be one of the last strongholds of the Khmer Rouge and was off-limits to local and foreign agencies until as late as 1998.

This situation is changing rapidly: The survey team observed extensive human in-migration to the site, typically by poor and landless people. New settlements are being created, and established villages are expanding. Timber logging, clearance of riverbanks to create homes and rice fields, intensive fishing and wildlife trade are increasing daily. Also new economic development, especially water-based infrastructure, is placing new pressures on wetland resources. Extractive projects including gold mining, sand and gravel extraction, road building, and granting of concessions in seasonally inundated forest areas were also identified as major problems of local concern. Without proper control, these activities will soon degrade the local ecology, exhaust natural resources and result in severe long-term impacts for local livelihoods as well as biodiversity.

At a workshop in Kratie in 2008 to present the research findings to Government stakeholders, participants agreed that the “Central Section” should be proposed as a special management area. Phay Somany, WWF Senior Officer, said that such a designation for conservation and sustainable livelihood development would be an intelligent and timely responsive measure by MAFF and provincial authorities.

“Chances are good to safeguard these unique wetland values for the benefits of biodiversity as well as local people whose livelihoods depend mainly upon Mekong fisheries,” Somany said.

WWF and partners are now developing a programme to assist national and provincial agencies in effective management of the site, including capacity building, awareness raising among local communities adjacent to the site, a rapid socio-economic survey of target communities, and sustainable livelihoods development to ensure that critical resources, especially fish and timber, are secured for local communities.

For more information, please email to:
asnarith.tep@wwfgreatermekong.org

Saving the country’s population of Yellow-cheeked Crested Gibbon in the Eastern Plains Landscape

2009-01-09

Recent WWF field surveys in Mondulkiri’s Phnom Prich Wildlife Sanctuary confirmed an estimated population of 275 groups, or possibly more than 1000 individuals, of Yellow-cheeked Crested Gibbon. Suitable habitats of Phnom Prich WS represent the northern limit of typical yellow-cheeked gibbon distribution within the Landscape, as its northern neighbour, Lumphat Wildlife Sanctuary in Ratanakiri province, proved unoccupied by the species.

Lack of accurate estimate of the gibbon population in northern Mondulkiri had led the Eastern Plains Landscape Project to carry out surveys between January and April 2008. According to scientists, the study confirms the 2nd largest protected area population of gibbon, compared to more than 800 groups within Seima Biodiversity Conservation Area, adjacent to PPWS to the south, and the only other site in the landscape harbouring the same species.

“The survey indicated the global significance of the Phnom Prich Wildlife Sanctuary for this endangered primate and suggests that more conservation efforts must be focused in this last dry forest wilderness of the country,” said Seng Teak, Country Director.

“The findings give conservationists a better perspective on how to preserve this gibbon population at landscape scale,” he added.

In the recently updated IUCN Red List, the Yellow-cheeked Gibbon has been up-listed to ‘Endangered’ due to its declining numbers and increased pressures from exploitation. Less than eight years ago, the species was classified as Globally threatened-Vulnerable. The primate population is decimated mainly by habitat loss and fragmentation, caused by illegal logging, shifting cultivation and land encroachment; and by hunting for food, use in traditional medicine and trade. The new classification makes the species one of sixteen IUCN globally endangered mammal species within Cambodia and it must be regarded as of high conservation significance within the country.

“This is the unique chance for conservationists with the Cambodian government and NGO sector to mobilise concerted efforts into protecting the primate and its habitat,” said Craig Bruce, Eastern Plains Landscape Project Manager.

The survey method was designed using 60 listening posts distributed randomly across Phnom Prich WS. During data collection six survey teams, each comprising two Ministry of the Environment rangers trained in the beginning of the year by WWF’s Field Research Team Leader Mr Phan Channa, navigated to pre-designated listening posts using hand-help GPS, and camped over 1000 meters away from the listening posts to avoid disturbing the gibbons.

Thomas Gray, Landscape Biodiversity Monitoring Advisor, describes that listening post surveys involve the rangers describing all gibbon song bouts over 3 consecutive mornings between 05:00 am and 12:00 noon. “For each song bout, the teams described compass bearing direction and estimated distance to the group, time of starting and ending of all song bouts, and type of song,” he said.

The range of the Yellow-cheeked Gibbon has been described as encompassing northeastern Cambodia, southern Vietnam and southern Laos. However, recent studies have suggested that gibbon populations in Ratanakiri and Stung Treng provinces, and southern Laos, may not belong to the typical Yellow-cheeked Gibbon type. This could make the populations of PPWS and Seima Biodiversity Conservation Area especially important, as the last refuges in Cambodia of this type of gibbon.

According to Mr Seng Teak, WWF and the government partner plan to repeat the surveys every 2-3 years to be able to observe changes in population and distribution of the species and to focus protection activities.

For more information, please email to:
asnarith.tep@wwfgreatermekong.org

Communities take Non-timber Forest Products (NTFPs) to trade fair to draw nationwide attraction

2008-12-15

From today (15) until 18 of December 2008, forest based communities and their supporters will be participating in the annual ‘One Village One Product’ exhibition organized by the Ministry of Commerce in Phnom Penh’s Mondial Trade Centre.

The Cambodia NTFP Working Group, an informal network of NTFP livelihood supporters, including WWF, NTFP Exchange Programme, CFI and CaNDO are joining the fair with communities from Mondulkiri, Kampot, Ratanakiri and other provinces to promote sustainably harvested and community processed NTFPs. This includes forest products such as wild honey, resins and rattan.

From Mondulkiri province, Prey Rodang and Krung Ratuon community based enterprises of Bunong indigenous communities are proud to promote Mondulkiri Wild Honey, a community-owned brand for Mondulkiri forest foods, as its first product to enter the market. From Kampot province, Prek Thnot community display bookshelves and chairs made from rattan harvested in community-managed rattan collection areas.

Since the community-owned production of honey and rattan handicrafts became operational last year, their work motivated by the commitment to sustainably use natural resources they depend on, is yet to reach awareness and recognition nationwide. This year’s Cambodian products exhibition provides an opportunity to promote indigenous and forest-based community products – as also truly Cambodian made.

“What they bring to the trade fair are the achievements of their self-managed enterprises. Therefore we are very excited to help them gather greater public attention on the products as part of such an important event,” said Amy Maling, WWF’s Community Extension Technical Advisor.

“I hope this helps grow bigger market for Mondulkiri Wild honey,” she continued.

“This represents an excellent opportunity not only for the Prek Thnot community to present their rattan handicrafts, but also for Cambodia to promote its rattan industry sector that is growing so fast and has great potential to enter regional and international market if Cambodia’s rattan resources are sustainable managed,” said Ou Ratanak, WWF’s Rattan Project Manager.

In partnership with communities, government and the NTFP Working Group, WWF is implementing forest-based livelihood projects in the Mondulkiri’s Eastern Plains Landscape and Kampot province with the goals to maintain the forests ecosystem and reinforce the sustainable use of natural resources for Cambodia’s next generations.

“The Cambodia NTFP Working Group and communities’ participation in the trade fair promotes conservation and enterprise with a community perspective. Our efforts go importantly with a good working relationship among the supporting organizations with the communities and our government partners,” said Femy Pinto, NTFP-EP Cambodia Facilitator and acting coordinator of the Working Group.

For more information, please email to:
asnarith.tep@wwfgreatermekong.org

Greater Mekong a biological treasure trove: more than 1000 new species discovered in a decade

2008-12-15

Over a thousand new species have been discovered in the Greater Mekong Region of Southeast Asia in just the last decade, according to a new report launched by WWF.

First Contact in the Greater Mekong reports that among the 1068 species newly identified by science, between 1997 and 2007, were the world’s largest huntsman spider, with a leg span of 30 centimetres, and the startlingly hot pink coloured cyanide-producing “dragon millipede”.

While most species were discovered in the largely unexplored jungles and wetlands, some were first found in the most surprising places. The Laotian rock rat, for example, thought to be extinct 11 million years ago, was first encountered by scientists in a local food market, while the Siamese Peninsula pitviper was found slithering through the rafters of a restaurant in Khao Yai National Park in Thailand.

“This region is like what I read about as a child in the stories of Charles Darwin,” said Dr Thomas Ziegler, Curator at the Cologne Zoo. “It is a great feeling being in an unexplored area and to document its biodiversity for the first time… both enigmatic and beautiful,” he said.

The findings, highlighted in this report, include 519 plants, 279 fish, 88 frogs, 88 spiders, 46 lizards, 22 snakes, 15 mammals, 4 birds, 4 turtles, 2 salamanders and a toad. The region comprises the six countries through which the Mekong River flows including Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and the southern Chinese province of Yunnan. It is estimated thousands of new invertebrate species were also discovered during this period, further highlighting the region’s immense biodiversity.

“It doesn’t get any better than this,” said Stuart Chapman, Director of WWF’s Greater Mekong Programme. “We thought discoveries of this scale were confined to the history books. This reaffirms the Greater Mekong’s place on the world map of conservation priorities.”

The report stresses economic development and environmental protection must go hand-in-hand to provide for livelihoods and alleviate poverty, and ensure the survival of the Greater Mekong's astonishing array of species and natural habitats.

“This poorly understood biodiversity is facing unprecedented pressure… for scientists, this means that almost every field survey yields new diversity, but documenting it is a race against time,” said Raoul Bain, Biodiversity Specialist from the American Museum of Natural History.

The report recommends what is urgently needed to protect the biodiversity of the region is a formal, cross-border agreement by the governments of the Greater Mekong.

“Who knows what else is out there waiting to be discovered, but what is clear is that there is plenty more where this came from,” said Chapman. “The scientific world is only just realizing what people here have known for centuries.”

Living Planet analysis shows looming ecological credit crunch

2008-10-29

The world is heading for an ecological credit crunch as human demands on the world's natural capital reach nearly a third more than earth can sustain. That is the stark warning contained in the latest edition of WWF’s Living Planet Report, the leading statement of the planet’s health. In addition, global natural wealth and diversity continues to decline, and more and more countries are slipping into a state of permanent or seasonal water stress.

“The world is currently struggling with the consequences of over-valuing its financial assets,” said WWF International Director-General James Leape, “but a more fundamental crisis looms ahead -- an ecological credit crunch caused by under-valuing the environmental assets that are the basis of all life and prosperity.”

The report, produced with the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and the Global Footprint Network (GFN), shows more than three quarters of the world’s people are now living in nations that are ecological debtors, where national consumption has outstripped their country’s biological capacity.

“Most of us are propping up our current lifestyles, and our economic growth, by drawing - and increasingly overdrawing - on the ecological capital of other parts of the world,” Leape said. “If our demands on the planet continue to increase at the same rate, by the mid 2030s we would need the equivalent of two planets to maintain our lifestyles.”

The report, published every two years, has since 1998 become widely accepted as a statement of earth's ability to remain a “living planet”. In 2008, it adds for the first time new measures of global, national and individual water footprint to existing measures of the Ecological Footprint of human demand on natural resources and the Living Planet Index, a measure of the state of nature.

The Living Planet Index (LPI), compiled by ZSL, shows a nearly 30 per cent decline since 1970 in nearly 5,000 measured populations of 1,686 species. These dramatic losses in our natural wealth are being driven by deforestation and land conversion in the tropics (50% decline in Tropical LPI) and the impact of dams, diversions and climate change on freshwater species (35% decline). Pollution, over-fishing and destructive fishing in marine and coastal environments are also taking a considerable toll.

The effects of this loss can be seen very vividly in the Greater Mekong. Although this region is a veritable bounty of biodiversity, “the pace of development is moving much faster than the capacity of its shock absorbers – consumption is growing everywhere and the demand for resources and land is almost insatiable, particularly in places like the Greater Mekong,” says WWF Greater Mekong Programme Representative Eric Coull.

“We are acting ecologically in the same way as financial institutions have been behaving economically - seeking immediate gratification without due regard for the consequences,” said ZSL co-editor Jonathan Loh. “The consequences of a global ecological crisis are even graver than the current economic meltdown.”

Carbon emissions from fossil fuel use and land disturbance are the greatest component of humanity’s footprint, underlining the key threat of climate change. The ecological footprint analysis, produced by GFN, shows that while global biocapacity – the area available to produce our resources and capture our emissions – is 2.1 average or “global” hectares per person, the per person footprint is 2.7 global ha.

The USA and China have the largest national footprints, each in total about 21 per cent of global biocapacity, but US citizens each require an average of 9.4 global ha (or nearly 4.5 Planet Earths if the global population had US consumption patterns) while Chinese citizens use on average 2.1 global ha per person (one Planet Earth).
Biocapacity is unevenly distributed, with eight nations – the United States, Brazil, Russia, China, India, Canada, Argentina and Australia - containing more than half the world total. Population and consumption patterns make three of these countries ecological debtors, with footprints greater than their national biocapacity - the United States (footprint 1.8 times national biocapacity), China (2.3 times) and India ( 2.2 times). In the Greater Mekong, Lao PDR is the only country with a per person biocapacity greater than its ecological footprint.

“The huge stock of natural resources in the Greater Mekong region has not gone unnoticed by the rest of the world,” said Coull. “These resources underpin local livelihoods and regional sustainable development and puts this region on the world map of conservation priorities. These resources are also what could help the countries of this region buffer against the effects of climate change, which we now know have great potential to be economically substantial and dramatic.”

A recent World Bank study puts Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam at the top of the list of countries to be affected by rising sea levels.

The new water footprint measures show up the significance of water traded in the form of commodities with, for example, a cotton T-shirt requiring 2,900 litres of water in its production. On average, each person consumes 1.24 million litres (about half an Olympic swimming pool) of water a year, but this varies from 2.48 million litres per person a year (USA) to 619,000 litres per capita annually (Yemen).

“Around 50 countries are currently facing moderate or severe water stress and the number of people suffering from year-round or seasonal water shortages is expected to increase as a result of climate change,” the report finds.

“These Living Planet measures serve as clear and robust signposts to what needs to be done,” said Leape. “It is our hope that in years to come we will be reporting increases in the Living Planet Index, an ecological footprint coming down in shoe sizes and water becoming more rather than less available in more places.”

“If humanity has the will, it has the ways to live within the means of the planet, but we must recognize that the ecological credit crunch will require even bolder action than that now being mustered for the financial crisis,” Leape said.

Notes:

The 2008 Living Planet Report can also be downloaded from www.panda.org/lpr/08

The report and additional multimedia materials including broadcast quality video can be found at wwf.extranet.largeblue.net, using the password mA1aGb73

The global ecological footprint is worsening at an increasing rate. The 2006 WWF Living Planet Report revealed an excess ecological footprint of 25 per cent in 2003 (2008 LPR - 30 per cent on global data for 2005), with a projection that the two planet requirement would be reached around 2050 (2008 LPR – 2030s).

For further information, please contact:

WWF Greater Mekong: Hoang Thi Minh Hong, Communications Manager, +84 4 3719 3111 - ext 126, hong.hoangminh@wwfgreatermekong.org
GFN: Nicole Freeling, + 415 577 9282, nicole@footprintnetwork.org
ZSL: Alice Henchley, Senior Press Officer, +44 7790 301596, alice.henchley@zsl.org

About ZSL
Founded in 1826, the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) is an international scientific, conservation and educational charity: our key role is the conservation of animals and their habitats. ZSL runs ZSL London Zoo and ZSL Whipsnade Zoo, carries out scientific research in the Institute of Zoology and is actively involved in field conservation in over forty countries worldwide. www.zsl.org

About GFN
The Global Footprint Network promotes a sustainable economy by advancing the Ecological Footprint, a tool that makes sustainability measurable. Together with its partners, the network coordinates research, develops methodological standards, and provides decision makers with robust resource accounts to help the human economy operate within the Earth’s ecological limits. www.footprintnetwork.org

Go to www.panda.org/media for latest news and media resources.

Mekong dolphin population is in danger!

2008-05-23

WWF’s dolphin population surveys* conducted in April-May 2007 in partnership with the Cambodian government’s Fisheries Administration and World Conservation Society resulted in an estimated abundance of 71 dolphins with a range of 66 to 86 dolphins (at the 95% CI). Alarmingly, the mortality rate of calves has continued to increase since 2005 where 9 young died from a total recorded dead of 14, 16 from 19 in 2006 and 11 from 13 in 2007. According to Richard Zanre, WWF’s Freshwater Conservation Programme Manager, this is a serious problem threatening the survival of this critically endangered species.

“We need to urgently identify what is killing the calves,” he said adding that once the cause of death is identified and measures will be taken to reduce it, the chances are good for this freshwater species to survive.

To find out what kills calves, WWF’s Cambodian Mekong Dolphin Conservation Project (CMDCP)* team has been conducting necropsies and collecting tissue samples from dead dolphins to send to laboratories in Canada and the United-states of America for scientific analysis. The results from these laboratories are expected by the end of May. Mr Zanre described other threats to the Mekong dolphins as including gillnets, disease, dams, badly managed tourism and pollution, but that only gillnets have so far been proven to kill dolphins (aside from the historical deliberate killing).

Conservation measures, including education and alternative livelihood provision by CMDCP and partner CRDT; and a ban of gillnets in the dolphin habitat by the Cambodian Government, have helped reduce adult dolphin mortality.

“If we compare the number of 10 dead adults recorded in 2003, with the 2 in 2007 you can see how the adult mortality has decreased,” Zanre said.

“However, it is not always certain that a dolphin dies because of gillnet entanglement as sometimes there is no clear evidence. We need therefore to work together with the government to identify what the threats are, especially what is killing calves, and then together with local communities develop a conservation management plan to mitigate these threats,” he added.

An additional worry for 2008 is the unusually low birth rate, with just two young observed during CMDCP surveys in the first three months of this year and only 3 mortalities recovered. It is during these first months of the year that calving is normally highest. The project will be conducting regular surveys to monitor whether the number of new calves increases later in the year to identify whether a new threat has occurred to Mekong Irrawaddy dolphin.

*Each year, CMDCP conducts a population survey of the Irrawaddy dolphin in Cambodia’s Mekong river. This is done in April and May when the Mekong river is at its lowest and the dolphins are concentrated in and around nine deep pools, making them easier to locate.
*CMDCP is a collaborative project between WWF, World Conservation Society (WCS), Fisheries Administration and Cambodian Rural Development Team (CRDT).

For more information, please email:
Tep Asnarith, senior communications officer
asnarith.tep@wwfgreatermekong.org

US Ambassador visits Eastern Plains of Cambodia

2008-05-23

For the first time since the US government began its support of conservation work in the Cambodian Eastern Plains Dry Forest, a senior US government delegation saw for themselves how their investments have been used to support a wide range of conservation activities. US Ambassador Joseph A. Mussomeli, US Embassy staff, together with a group of Cambodian journalists, spent three days in March with WWF’s project staff and field rangers in the heart of the Dry Forests in Mondulkiri province.

“I was very impressed with WWF’s efforts to protect Cambodia’s forests and wildlife while working to improve the livelihoods of the local people through the sustainable use of natural resources,” said Joseph A. Mussomeli in a letter of appreciation to WWF.

Significant investments through WWF in wildlife monitoring, law enforcement, community-based natural resource management and infrastructure development have built a foundation for effective protected area management in the Eastern Plains’ Mondulkiri Protected Forest (MPF) and Phnom Prich Wildlife Sanctuary. These have resulted in reduced pressure on wild animals and their natural habitats, improved understanding by the local community about sustainable use of natural resources, and strengthened land tenure and rights. Some of the approaches and lessons learned are now being replicated elsewhere in Cambodia and the region.

Ambassador Mussomeli was also interested by the ecotourism planning inside MPF as a critical element for sustainable financing for protected area management, and as a way to reduce local community dependence on natural resources.

On this exciting component of the project’s work, Craig Bruce, Eastern Plains Landscape Project Manager, explained that “WWF involves community members living in the areas around MPF in ecotourism planning and in the hope that this will create future income opportunities through the provision of guide services, food, home stays, and sales of souvenirs to tourists.”

This recent visit indicates a healthy relationship between the Cambodian and US governments, showing that there is support being given to conservation activities in the area.

“The Ambassador’s visit not only encourages our project staff and government counterparts, but also helps spread wider awareness of the important conservation work that WWF and the Cambodian government are working hard to achieve,” he said, “including a greater realization that there are significant challenges to overcome, such as poorly planned infrastructure development and resource extraction, illegal hunting, uncontrolled logging, and potentially harmful hydropower dam development plans.”

WWF is working together with the Cambodian government and other NGO partners to find sustainable solutions for development plans with the aim of minimizing environmental impacts. Other initiatives, such as ecotourism development, are aimed at improving local livelihoods and generating much needed revenue for overall development of the local economy. One of the next steps will be to generate political support for transboundary collaboration between Cambodian and Vietnamese authorities in order to safeguard the biodiversity of this globally important Dry Forests landscape.

For more information, please email:
Tep Asnarith, senior communications officer
asnarith.tep@wwfgreatermekong.org

Another area in the Cambodian Mekong region under environmental protection

2008-05-23

A 55-km section of the Mekong River in Kratie and Stung Treng provinces, northeast Cambodia, has been proposed as a ‘special management site’ because of its high biodiversity values. The site was nominated by agencies from provinces and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF). This result came from a two-day meeting in February 2008 in Kratie, attended by many government representatives from MAFF’s Fisheries and Forestry Administrations, Environment, Tourism, Land Management, and the Kratie and Stung Treng Governor’s offices, and supported by WWF. In the same meeting, official support was also given for a protected area in Prek Prasob district, Kratie Province, to save an endangered animal, the Hog Deer. The Fisheries and Forestry Administrations and WWF are working closely to follow up these positive results.

From 2006-2007, MAFF and WWF, with international specialists, conducted biodiversity surveys along the Mekong River between Kratie and Stung Treng towns (a distance of 125 km). This region is already known to support the critically endangered Irrawaddy Dolphin, and many new exciting discoveries for science and Cambodia were made, of which the most important was locating a section of Mekong about 55 km long with very high biodiversity values, including threatened fish, birds, mammals and reptiles and intact riverine forest. At least 8 endangered mammals, including the region’s last remaining Hog Deer, Silvered Leaf-monkey, Long-tailed Macaque and Otters, were documented. Unlike many other mainstream sections of the Mekong in Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Vietnam, this particular part of the river, which the scientists called the “central section”, remains relatively untouched by human activities and is home to endangered White-shouldered Ibis, River Tern, Woolly-necked Stork, Lesser and Greater Adjutant, and the rare Cantor’s Giant Soft-shell Turtle, which may already be extinct in many other parts of the Mekong Basin.

According to Phay Somany, Senior Project Officer with WWF’s Cambodian Mekong Dolphin Conservation Project, the designation of this part of the Mekong as a ‘special management site’ shows the commitment of the Cambodian Government to maintaining the natural ecological function for the benefit of biodiversity conservation and local communities, whose livelihoods and food security particularly depends on fisheries for many generations.

“We still have chance to preserve the values which are left because the area is small, most impacts and threatening activities have only begun recently, and human densities are low,” Somany said.

“Without immediate management and protection, the amazing and globally significant biodiversity values of this site may disappear within the next 10 years,” he added.

Threats to biodiversity and natural resources in the ‘central section’ include agricultural land conversion, forest degradation, burning of natural vegetation, increasing fishing pressure, and wildlife hunting. These threats are increasing due to un-control in-migration, rapid human population growth and new settlement in the ‘central section’. New communities are arriving in the ‘central section’ every day, and clearing forest to grow crops. The last forests and wildlife habitats in this part of the Mekong are disappearing very rapidly and in less than 10 years, most will be gone. This will also cause the loss of many threatened species of plants and animals.

*Actions taken
Without immediate action, the last intact forests and many threatened species in the ‘central section’ may disappear in the next 5-10 years. The Cambodian Government and WWF have identified the following actions as the most important to save these unique values:

As soon as possible, designate the ’central section’ as a ‘special management site’ and divide all lands and water in this site under two zones: a ‘protection zone’, to protect the highest biodiversity values, and a ‘multiple-use zone’, to support the livelihoods of local communities.
Support provincial government agencies and local communities to manage the natural resources of this site, especially to protect the sites of highest biodiversity value, and to ensure that critical resources, especially fish and timber, are secured for local communities.

For more information, please email:
Tep Asnarith, senior communications officer
asnarith.tep@wwfgreatermekong.org