vietnamnews.vnagency.com.vn  

YEN BAI — Environmental activists have raised the alarm over the future of the black-crested gibbon, calling for a new nature reserve in the northern mountainous province of Yen Bai to secure the endangered species’ survival.

At a workshop in the province last week, environmental groups and officials agreed to move quickly to develop a sustainable protection strategy.

The black-crested gibbon has recently been found in the Che Tao-Nam Pam Forest in upland Mu Cang Chai District, and the strategy will focus on protecting this habitat.

In the long term, a reserve will be set up in which the animal and its environment are protected from hunting and logging.

Meanwhile, a key short-term initiative will be to raise local awareness of the animal’s importance.

The most serious threat to the gibbon – whose numbers have dwindled to just 120 in the whole country, of whom 100 live in the Che Tao-Nam Pam region – is hunting by local people.

Among various awareness-raising activities, local ethnic people will be encouraged to sign a commitment not to hunt gibbons or other rare animal species.

The authorities will be directed to boost their supervision and control over the trading, trafficking and collection of wild animals, with tough penalties for violations.

Another problem is illegal logging, which has reduced the amount of forest cover and jeopardised the gibbons’ habitat. Timber poachers will also be targeted by the strategy.

The workshop was jointly organised by the Yen Bai Forest Protection Department and the non-government organisation Fauna and Flora International. — VNS

www.ecologyasia.com

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