Pangrango Nat. Park closes temporarily

BOGOR: In a bid to allow the natural ecosystem time to recover, Pangrango National Park will temporarily close the conservation area located on Mount Gede Pangrango starting on Aug. 17.

The action was taken to anticipate forest fires during the dry season that starts this month.

Pangrango National Park head Nopianto Bambang said that the three main entrances to the park -- Gunung Putri, Selabintana Sukabumi and Cibodas -- would be closed to the public.

"Climbers and mountain trackers usually enter the park on Aug. 17 to celebrate Independence Day at Suryakencana square at the peak of the mountain," he said.

Nopianto added that the park had been scheduled for closing four times a year -- in January, February, March and August -- since 2003.

Nopianto said that the park was the home of several rare animals like the Javanese eagle, which were often illegally hunted. "We are also trying to prevent illegal hunting here," he said. -- JP