Orangutan population faces extinction
By Stevie Emilia
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia is adored for its natural and cultural diversity and stands out among the richest countries in the world in terms of its biodiversity. But at the same time, it is also losing these assets at an incredibly fast rate.
Dutch researcher Erik Meijaard saw the poor state of the country's environmental programs in April 1994 when he started his research on orangutans. On just one of his trips to East Kalimantan, he encountered 13 caged orangutans.
"This makes it very frustrating to work here, you see a lot of beauty and you see it being destroyed at the same time," Meijaard told The Jakarta Post last week.
The research, performed under the guidance of Herman Rijksen, who has 25 years experience of Indonesian conservation, was completed last year.
The research was published in the Netherlands last month with Rijksen as first author, under the title Our Vanishing Relative: The Status of Wild Orangutans at the Close of the 20th Century. The book is currently being translated into Indonesian.
The authors' findings estimated that in Kalimantan and Sumatra -- the only places where the species are found -- no more than 27,000 orangutans were left in the wild, down from an estimated 315,000 at the start of this century.
The apes are spread out over more than 140 habitat fragments in 84 major sectors. In 54 percent of the fragments, the situation is critical with orangutans expected to become extinct there within the next few years. Nowhere, can the situation be considered stable, i.e. a condition in which a large area is suffering only minimal habitat degradation so that a normal population structure of apes may be preserved.
"We estimate that the orangutan is facing extinction in the wild within 20 years unless some significant changes occur," said the former activist with WWF-Netherlands, Balikpapan Orangutan Society and the International Ministry of Forestry -- Tropenbos Kalimantan Programme.
Meijaard, who obtained a master's degree in tropical ecology from the Wageningen Agricultural University in the Netherlands in 1994, is currently in Indonesia for PhD research on the distribution of large mammals.
His research on orangutans found that the number of the species has sharply decreased due to several factors: the illegal hunting of the orangutan populations, arson, deforestation and the accompanying fragmentation due to selective logging. He added that these issues arise from a range of impediments or ultimate causes, namely misconceptions, institutional deficiencies and ecological impediments.
"The problem can be tackled if the will to help the orangutan survive can be summoned, and a strategic plan is followed," he said.
Meijaard said the newly published book aims to provide background knowledge for people to make the right decision concerning the survival of orangutans.
"Many people are unaware that their decisions concerning wild lands often result in the death of formally protected orangutans. We want to inform these decision-makers about what is happening with the orangutans, in the hope that they can change the present course of decline."
The research discovered that the decline occurred not only in the unprotected habitat, but also inside national parks and nature reserves.
He criticized the government for the low priority accorded conservation efforts. Such programs received limited support from people and had a very low status in politics, he said.
In the research, Meijaard worked with different counterparts from the Ministry of Forestry and Plantations, and also relied on information provided by local people. He tried to gain information from logging concessions in Kalimantan, but only six percent of the concessions returned the questionnaire.
He also researched other species, such as the Malayan sun bear, the Sumatran rhino, tiger and proboscis monkeys.
He warned that the orangutan could meet the same fate of the Javan rhino. The rhino was common here several hundred years ago; people were accustomed to seeing them everywhere, grazing on riverbanks, but now "there are some 50 left on Java and less than 10 in Vietnam".
The research also proposed the orangutan survival program, covering two major issues: protection of the orangutan and protection of its habitat.
He said these two issues require diverse structural activities in a large number of locations in Sumatra and Kalimantan to be supported by different national and international sponsors.
The program requires coordination and an organization, which can handle acquisition, information dissemination, extension, training, guidance, advisory services, management and the maintenance of a network of relations, both nationally and internationally, he added.
In his research, he also noticed that despite all the efforts of dedicated conservationists, little has improved here.
"The orangutan programs have had an important role in raising awareness concerning the protected status of the species, still, orangutans are being shot and captured on an almost daily basis. Just the other week, three orangutans were found on sale in Jakarta's Pramuka market," complained Meijaard.
Even in Bogor, located just around the corner from the eyes of Indonesian conservation authorities, he saw protected species for sale almost every day.
"Overall, the conservation picture is very gloomy, and much more is needed to improve the conservation status of Indonesia's biodiversity," he said.
Even in protected areas, he adds, the implementation of conservation law is minimal, and often it makes little difference for wildlife and timber poachers, either poor individuals or rich corporations, whether an area is protected by conservation and forestry law or not.
"So without proper political support, both nationally and internationally, minimal law enforcement, a lack of funds and also a lack of commitment and dedication it is unlikely that the situation can be changed easily."
But Meijaard sees no reason to simply give up, since there is plenty to be saved and there is still hope for improvement.
"A very important step would be if Indonesia's future leaders would realize that their country's nature represents an enormous economic value, especially when other countries fail to protect their own resources."
In his opinion, Indonesia would be acting in a bold and enterprising manner if it considered the long-term benefit of protecting resources rather the short-term gain of their destruction.
"Sadly, it is not how the human mind seems to function and it will take a visionary and powerful person to realize such objectives."