Environment and natural resources
Forests and forestry
Deserted Thai beaches lure rare turtles to build most nests in 20 years
Thailand has found the largest number of nests of rare leatherback sea turtles in two decades on beaches bereft of tourists because of the coronavirus pandemic, environmentalists say. From wild boars patrolling the Israeli city of Haifa to deer venturing into London suburbs, virus closures are ...
Jiraporn Kuhakan
Sanctuaries now state land
The Ministries of Environment, and Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction have listed the Peam Krasop Wildlife Sanctuary in Koh Kong province and Phnom Prich Wildlife Sanctuary in Mondulkiri province as state land to eliminate land grabbing offences. The operations have gained support from community members ...
Soth Koemsoeun
National forest reserve encroached in Mae Sot
Three large tracts of woodland — about 45 rai altogether — were found to have been encroached on inside the Mae Sot National Forest Reserve in Phop Phra district, according to a local media report. The encroachment was reported to the 6th Forest Protection Unit in ...
ASSAWIN PINITWONG
US ambassador talks forest protection
US ambassador to Cambodia Patrick Murphy and the Greening Prey Lang project discussed conservation technology being used in Cambodia to preserve natural resources. The USAID-funded Greening Prey Lang is a project that promotes resilient, low-emissions development and inclusive and sustainable management of the Prey Lang forest. In ...
Ry Sochan
Forest fires rage in northern Thailand
While the world’s attention has been focused on the Covid-19 pandemic, northern Thailand has been experiencing the worst forest fires in decades. Already raging since mid-March, the fires are projected to continue well into May. With the news of the pandemic dominating international media, the choking ...
Sonia Sambhi
Logging is rampant at Prey Lang, report says
Denmark’s University of Copenhagen has drawn Prey Lang stakeholders’ attention to recently published data which shows increased illegal logging within the Prey Lang Wildlife Sanctuary. In an open letter dated April 11 and penned by the university, illegal logging activities were highlighted on a map provided ...
Ry Sochan
Herd of endangered elephants found in Quảng Nam Province
A herd of eight Asian elephants – an endangered species listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) – has been found living in an elephant conservation area in Nông Sơn District, Quảng Nam Province. Deputy head of the provincial ranger and forest protection sub-department Từ Văn Khánh confirmed ...
A forest lockdown will fuel more fires
With strong wind and fast-approaching forest fires, a group of forest dwellers on Doi Mon Dok mountain in Chiang Mai’s Samoeng District are racing against time to stop the flames from engulfing their village. “This is the ninth time the fires have erupted near our home,” ...
SANITSUDA EKACHAI
Boundary markers create concerns for indigenous people
The Bunong indigenous people in Mondulkiri province have expressed concerns about deforestation in the Phnom Nam Lyr Wildlife Sanctuary after a forest community spotted machinery in an off-limits area and noticed markers planted in the surrounding land. But an environment official claimed the machinery was being ...
Khorn Savi
Myanmar shorebirds get four-fold expansion in protected wetland
Twenty years ago, few conservationists knew about the Gulf of Mottama and the secrets hidden within its complex coastline. Its location in southern Myanmar is, like many parts of the country, rugged and difficult to access. However, in the early 2010s, everything changed when surveys lead ...
Ding Li Yong