Garbage becoming a major problem for Mount Gede park

JAKARTA (JP): Next time you pass through the Mount Gede Pangrango National Park please heed the "do not litter signs", as garbage is becoming a serious problem which has contaminated rivers passing through the 15,196 hectare park.

The park, about a three-hour drive from Jakarta, is being overwhelmed by garbage. It has become of particular concern as the rivers passing through it are water sources for Bogor and Jakarta and also contribute to major reservoirs in West Java.

The head of the park's administration Herman J. Kuwadi said on Wednesday that every month the cleaning service staff at the park have to collect dozens of sacks of litter discarded by visitors.

"During the holiday season, it can be a lot more than that," Herman said in a meeting here to discuss the threats to the Park.

"What worries us is that garbage has started to contaminate the water here," he said.

Herman revealed that tests conducted by the park found bacteria in the water such as E. coli which is usually found in feces.

"Imagine if there's already bacteria in the water sources, what about in other places?" he said.

The litter left in the park has also produced a change in the dietary intake of some animals.

Among the actions taken by the park to overcome this problem is a bit of reverse psychology by not providing garbage cans.

"Because visitors seem to think that it is actually okay to throw garbage in the park when there are garbage cans, we decided to remove them and asked visitors to take their litter away with them," he said, adding that the move began in 1995. It apparently managed to reduce slightly the amount of litter left in the park.

Mount Gede Pangrango National Park is one of the most pristine conservation areas in West Java and is said to be the best montane and subalpine forest in the province.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) even designated it as a preserved biosphere.

Some 208 species of orchid, or more than half of the type of orchids available in Java, grow in the park. Furthermore, some 260 species of birds can also be found there.

There are also two endemic and protected primates living in the park, the Javan Gibbon and Grizzled Monkey, in addition to other protected and endangered animals and vegetation.

Around 70,000 people visit the park annually. One reason for its popularity is that it is highly accessible, lying between two main provincial routes: Jakarta-Puncak-Cianjur and Jakarta- Sukabumi-Cianjur.

Another growing threat to the park is increasing illegal logging, land encroachment and poaching.

Data given by the Bandung-based Foundation of Bioscience and Technology Development (YPBB), which conducts conservation programs in the area, shows that encroachment has reached 25.7 hectares, involving some 400 people.

David Sutasurya of YPBB said there remains little awareness and understanding by the local community of how important the park is.

Starting next month, he said, YPBB will conduct a new conservation program in the park using a US$19,000 fund received from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Global Environment Facility.

The new conservation program includes environmental awareness education and the provision of economic alternatives for the local community that are compatible with conservation objectives.

"As for garbage, we plan to charge visitors for every piece of potential garbage they bring. If they take it back with them, we'll give them their money back," David said. (hdn)