Ujung Kulon on alert for forest fires<\/p>\n
UJUNG KULON, West Java (JP): "Command Post I, Command Post I
\n-- a fire is breaking out around the protected forest. Please
\ndispatch the fire brigade to extinguish it," said an Ujung Kulon
\nNational Park ranger into his communications radio, asking for
\nhelp.<\/p>\n
Moments later, a fire brigade of forest rangers carrying fire-
\nfighting equipment rushed into the area to extinguish the fire,
\nnow beginning to rage in the forest.<\/p>\n
This was part of a forest fire-fighting exercise for the
\nnational park's rangers, in which they were learning to operate
\nfire-fighting instruments donated by the World Wide Fund for
\nNature (WWF) Japan to WWF Indonesia.<\/p>\n
"Prevention is better than cure, as the old adage goes. This
\nis what we adhere to in guarding the forest and everything inside
\nit," said Tri Wibowo, head of the Ujung Kulon National Park, who
\naccompanied the forest rangers in the exercise.<\/p>\n
"I really did not know what to do when there was a fire here
\nin the dry season in late 1997 because I was a newcomer. As we
\nknow, when there is something strange with Ujung Kulon, it
\nbecomes the focus of the world's attention because Ujung Kulon is
\nassociated with its single-horned Javanese rhinos (rhinoceros
\nsondaicus). Hopefully this dry season will not be like previous
\nones," he said.<\/p>\n
Ujung Kulon National Park, home to a thick forest and a great
\nvariety of beautiful wildlife, is one of Indonesia's most
\nimportant national parks. It measures 120,551 hectares,
\ncomprising 76,214 hectares of land area and 44,337 hectares of
\nwater. During the dry season of 1997, the forest sustained
\nseveral fires, which raged in the Honje mountain area, Cinini
\nCape and on Panaitan island. However, these forest fires were a
\nlong way from the habitat of the Javan rhino.<\/p>\n
"Forest fires at Ujung Kulon National Park are not
\nattributable to natural factors, but rather to human factors --
\nnamely, a lack of attention to the beauty of the forest," said
\nArief Tongkagie, head of the park's conservation section.<\/p>\n
"Sometimes the forest rangers find traces of fires. Some
\npeople may have grilled fish which they have caught on a small
\nopen fire, and then just left without ensuring that the fire has
\nbeen extinguished. Things like this may cause a forest fire," he
\nadded.<\/p>\n
To ensure that there will be no repeat of the forest fires
\nthat broke out in the dry season of 1997, the management of Ujung
\nKulon National Park has established the Rhino Monitoring and
\nProtection Unit (RMPU). The unit is managed by the Directorate
\nGeneral of Nature Protection and Conservation and the
\nInternational Rhino Foundation, which is financially supported by
\nthe Mitra Rhino Foundation and WWF Indonesia.<\/p>\n
In this way, forest fires can be handled early enough to
\nensure that the Javan rhinos will not be disturbed. The RMPU
\ngroup monitors the movement of Javan rhinos in Ujung Kulon
\nNational Park. Members of RMPU stay in the forest for weeks at a
\ntime to monitor the rhinos.<\/p>\n
"I follow rhinos wherever they go. I measure their foot prints
\nand collect their dung, which is later examined by our medical
\nteam," said RMPU member Ridwan S.<\/p>\n
According to a survey conducted between 1967 and 1997, only
\nsome 50 to 60 rhinos remain in Ujung Kulon National Park. Other
\nsources quote the total number as 80.<\/p>\n
A team of researchers from the Bogor Institute of Agriculture
\nclaims there are only 50 to 60 Javan rhinos left because of the
\nArenga Palm (arenga obtusifolia), which damages the plant usually
\neaten by Javan rhinos.<\/p>\n
Therefore, it is difficult for the rhinos to find food, and as
\na result they cannot multiply easily. In addition, the rhinos may
\nhave to fight for food with the parks numerous bulls (bos
\njavanicus), estimated to number 800 according to a 1997 survey by
\nthe institute.<\/p>\n
The national park's management strives to maintain the
\nhabitat of the Javan rhinos, which are now rare animals. The
\npeople living in the surrounding areas of the national park are
\nprovided with counseling to promote their active participation in
\nkeeping the forest and its contents sustainable and intact.<\/p>\n
Ujung Kulon National Park and WWF Ujung Kulon, the national
\npark's working partner, has devised a program called Rhino Care.
\nThis program, which is intended to preserve the rhinos and
\npromote the welfare of Ujung Kulon's community, has produced
\nsouvenirs in the form of rhino statues, unique to Ujung Kulon.<\/p>\n
Warca Dinata, a resident of Ujung Jaya village, Ujung Kulon,
\njoined the Rhino Care program in 1995.<\/p>\n
"My family and I enjoy a better life now as a result of
\nselling rhino statues," said Dinata, who belongs to the Rhino
\nManunggal Engravers' Group. (PJ Leo)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ujung-kulon-on-alert-for-forest-fires-1447893297",
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