‘Safari tours’ to cut conflict with wildlife
The Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation has unveiled plans to develop “safari tourism” on the edge of the world-heritage Huai Kha Kheng Wildlife Sanctuary to reduce growing conflict there between humans and wildlife.
Department spokesman Sompoch Maneerat said locally run safari tourism is an effective model to reduce confrontations between wild animals and communities living in the buffer zone of the sanctuary, which sprawls across the western Tak and Uthai Thani provinces. Efforts should be made to ensure locals and all other stakeholders benefit from the plan, he added.
“We see no reason for not going ahead [with the safari project], which is based on academic studies conducted in various fields,” Mr Sompoch told a press conference on “Wildlife Tourism Based on the Truth”, organised by Kasetsart University’s Faculty of Forestry.
Apinya Wipatayotin
