Elephants attack Aceh fruit plantations
Elephants attack Aceh fruit plantations
Nani Afrida, The Jakarta Post, Aceh Besar
It has been almost a month since Sakdani had a good night's
sleep; before he began staying up into the early hours of the
morning to protect his banana plantation from rampaging
elephants.
"If I fall asleep my entire banana plantation will be
destroyed by the elephants," a weary Sakdani told The Jakarta
Post on Wednesday.
Sakdani said areas of the plantation had already been ruined
by the elephants, and we would do everything in his power to
protect the rest of his land.
Other residents are facing the same problem of how to protect
their watermelon and papaya plantations from the elephants, whose
habitat has shrunk drastically over the past several years.
The area around Sakdani's plantation is prone to elephant
attacks, being situated on the edge of the animals' natural
habitat. Sakdani recalls that when he was a child, he would see
hundreds of elephants wandering through the forest near Teuladan
subdistrict, Aceh Besar regency, some 35 kilometers south of
Banda Aceh.
However, the number of elephants in the area has plunged in
recent years and Sakdani estimates there are no more than dozens
of elephants left in the area.
Despite their small numbers, the number of conflicts between
elephants and residents has risen. This is probably because the
elephants' habitat has been drastically reduced by illegal
logging, leaving the animals to roam through the plantations
near Teuladan subdistrict in search of food.
The animals not only take fruit from the plantations, but they
also fell trees and electricity poles.
Sakdani worried that it was only a matter of time before the
elephants began attacking the residential areas located about two
kilometers from the plantations.
"When night falls the elephants come from all different
directions and begin to steal fruit," said Sakdani.
The threat is real and if something is not done the farmers
will suffer crippling losses, Sakdani said, pointing out that
since the elephant attacks began in earnest a couple of years ago
papaya and banana production in the area had dropped by about 40
percent.
A group of plantation owners have gotten together to protect
their land, using anything at their disposal to stop the
animals.
Residents have notified the local government several times
about the problem, but has so far received no assistance.
According to a government estimate, the number of elephants in
the area is about 400. The animals are on the brink of
disappearing entirely from the area due to poaching and illegal
logging, which has destroyed the elephants' natural habitat.