WWF upbeat on future of Lorentz National Park<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The World Wild Fund (WWF) expressed on Tuesday
\nits confidence that the government would not exploit the Lorentz
\nNational Park in Irian Jaya, which is rich in gold and copper
\ndeposits in addition to biodiversity.<\/p>\n
Frank Momberg, a WWF executive, said the government had shown
\nits strong commitment to conserving the 2.5-million-hectare park.
\nThe commitment was reflected in existing rulings on the park, he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
\"The government and UNESCO have agreed to declare the national
\npark a World Heritage Site and the agreement was cosigned last
\nSaturday by President B.J. Habibie and four ministers,\" he said
\nin a media briefing here.<\/p>\n
Momberg said the national park's protection was also
\nguaranteed by the 1990 national resources conservation law and
\nthe joint ministerial decree on national park protection, signed
\nby the minister of forestry and minister of mines and energy in
\n1989.<\/p>\n
Lorentz is the third national park in Indonesia which UNESCO
\n(the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
\nOrganization) has declared a World Heritage Site. The first two
\nwere the Ujung Kulon National Park in West Java and the Komodo
\nNational Park in East Nusa Tenggara.<\/p>\n
WWF explained the park was Southeast Asia's most outstanding
\nnatural treasure trove. It goes from near-impenetrable swamps on
\nthe Arafura Sea through lush tropical rainforest to the tropical
\nglacier of the 5,039-meter-high Puncak Jaya mountain.<\/p>\n
Between the extremes of this tropical glacier and mangrove
\nforests in the swampy areas lies a complete ecological spectrum
\nof alpine, subalpine, lowland and wetland vegetation provides
\nhabitats for approximately 70 percent of birds and mammals in the
\nprovince.<\/p>\n
Besides an abundance of gold and copper deposits, as many as
\n34 species of endemic flora and fauna and 45 species of rare
\nbirds have been found in the park.<\/p>\n
Momberg said that WWF had also helped the government conduct a
\nspatial zoning for the park and reached an agreement on border
\nlines with gold and copper mining company PT Freeport which
\noperates on the western boundary of the park.<\/p>\n
\"As an international company, Freeport will face international
\npressures if it breaches the agreement by expanding its
\noperations inside the national park,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He added the company would also have to face tribespeople
\nliving in the park if it was found guilty of damaging the
\nenvironment.<\/p>\n
Benja Mambai, the head of the WWF conservation project in the
\nnational park, said that his organization was developing a
\nsustainable development program with tribes living in the area.<\/p>\n
\"The program will be based on the tribes' environmentally
\nfriendly traditional practices and beliefs,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He said that UNESCO would provide US$3 million in assistance
\nin the next three years while WWF has pledged $250,000 annually
\nto finance the conservation project in the national park. (rms)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/wwf-upbeat-on-future-of-lorentz-national-park-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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