Ujung Kulon on alert for forest fires
Ujung Kulon on alert for forest fires
UJUNG KULON, West Java (JP): "Command Post I, Command Post I
-- a fire is breaking out around the protected forest. Please
dispatch the fire brigade to extinguish it," said an Ujung Kulon
National Park ranger into his communications radio, asking for
help.
Moments later, a fire brigade of forest rangers carrying fire-
fighting equipment rushed into the area to extinguish the fire,
now beginning to rage in the forest.
This was part of a forest fire-fighting exercise for the
national park's rangers, in which they were learning to operate
fire-fighting instruments donated by the World Wide Fund for
Nature (WWF) Japan to WWF Indonesia.
"Prevention is better than cure, as the old adage goes. This
is what we adhere to in guarding the forest and everything inside
it," said Tri Wibowo, head of the Ujung Kulon National Park, who
accompanied the forest rangers in the exercise.
"I really did not know what to do when there was a fire here
in the dry season in late 1997 because I was a newcomer. As we
know, when there is something strange with Ujung Kulon, it
becomes the focus of the world's attention because Ujung Kulon is
associated with its single-horned Javanese rhinos (rhinoceros
sondaicus). Hopefully this dry season will not be like previous
ones," he said.
Ujung Kulon National Park, home to a thick forest and a great
variety of beautiful wildlife, is one of Indonesia's most
important national parks. It measures 120,551 hectares,
comprising 76,214 hectares of land area and 44,337 hectares of
water. During the dry season of 1997, the forest sustained
several fires, which raged in the Honje mountain area, Cinini
Cape and on Panaitan island. However, these forest fires were a
long way from the habitat of the Javan rhino.
"Forest fires at Ujung Kulon National Park are not
attributable to natural factors, but rather to human factors --
namely, a lack of attention to the beauty of the forest," said
Arief Tongkagie, head of the park's conservation section.
"Sometimes the forest rangers find traces of fires. Some
people may have grilled fish which they have caught on a small
open fire, and then just left without ensuring that the fire has
been extinguished. Things like this may cause a forest fire," he
added.
To ensure that there will be no repeat of the forest fires
that broke out in the dry season of 1997, the management of Ujung
Kulon National Park has established the Rhino Monitoring and
Protection Unit (RMPU). The unit is managed by the Directorate
General of Nature Protection and Conservation and the
International Rhino Foundation, which is financially supported by
the Mitra Rhino Foundation and WWF Indonesia.
In this way, forest fires can be handled early enough to
ensure that the Javan rhinos will not be disturbed. The RMPU
group monitors the movement of Javan rhinos in Ujung Kulon
National Park. Members of RMPU stay in the forest for weeks at a
time to monitor the rhinos.
"I follow rhinos wherever they go. I measure their foot prints
and collect their dung, which is later examined by our medical
team," said RMPU member Ridwan S.
According to a survey conducted between 1967 and 1997, only
some 50 to 60 rhinos remain in Ujung Kulon National Park. Other
sources quote the total number as 80.
A team of researchers from the Bogor Institute of Agriculture
claims there are only 50 to 60 Javan rhinos left because of the
Arenga Palm (arenga obtusifolia), which damages the plant usually
eaten by Javan rhinos.
Therefore, it is difficult for the rhinos to find food, and as
a result they cannot multiply easily. In addition, the rhinos may
have to fight for food with the parks numerous bulls (bos
javanicus), estimated to number 800 according to a 1997 survey by
the institute.
The national park's management strives to maintain the
habitat of the Javan rhinos, which are now rare animals. The
people living in the surrounding areas of the national park are
provided with counseling to promote their active participation in
keeping the forest and its contents sustainable and intact.
Ujung Kulon National Park and WWF Ujung Kulon, the national
park's working partner, has devised a program called Rhino Care.
This program, which is intended to preserve the rhinos and
promote the welfare of Ujung Kulon's community, has produced
souvenirs in the form of rhino statues, unique to Ujung Kulon.
Warca Dinata, a resident of Ujung Jaya village, Ujung Kulon,
joined the Rhino Care program in 1995.
"My family and I enjoy a better life now as a result of
selling rhino statues," said Dinata, who belongs to the Rhino
Manunggal Engravers' Group. (PJ Leo)