As I’m finding out, there are many projects run by ZSL in Sumatra.  It’s only since being here that I understand the scale of the work done by ZSL for Sumatran tiger conservation.  It is a 21^st Century operation happening out here. This is only one of the countries where ZSL work and the scale of what we do as an organisation globally is mind boggling. My thanks to the zoo visitors back in London will be even more heartfelt now that I know where the money goes.

In Berbak National Park where I am now, the project is called the ‘Berbak Carbon Initiative Project’.  While I’m here I’ve been talking to the team about what this, as with most things in life I find it easier to understand if it’s made simple and taken back to basics.  I thought I would share what I have learnt with you.   If you want to find out more details you can follow these links: Berbak National Park and Saving Wild Tigers.

The Berbak Nation park is 1627 km2 of national park under the responsibility of the Ministry of Forestry of which 240 000 ha is swamp forest and is ideal tiger habitat. This tropical peat swamp forest is very productive and can support a higher numbers of animals than many tropical forests.  In Sumatra it has the highest density of tigers per hectare!   So I’ve been walking in a literal tiger hot spot!! The ZSL team have so far identified 13 individuals here and estimate that the National park is able to support 25 Sumatran tigers.  Food (or is that the wrong word?) for thought for me when walking around as I only thought about tigers being dangerous when walking outside in the night for a bathroom break.  It would be just typical for me to be eaten in such glamorous circumstances.

Peat swamp jungle

Unfortunately the park is at risk from encroachment, illegal logging and forest fires and it is slowly disappearing year on year, the real truth is that while it is a national park and protected by the provincial government it makes little money for the province as a wilderness.  People living here can make money from illegal hunting and logging.  To protect the forest the local people must be able to get something tangible from the forest.  This is where ZSL is working on a really smart project that could give real hope to tigers in Sumatra and a real long term solution to wildlife conservation in Indonesia.

Berbak National Park is not only important for the wildlife that lives here in the jungle but also for the carbon it has stored and the carbon it absorbs every day from the atmosphere.  Carbon dioxide is the most important green house gas responsible for global warming.  Over many thousands of years the tropical forest has been growing absorbing carbon dioxide day by day into its leaves, branches and trunks as it grows.   As the old leaves and trees die they fall to the wet swampy floor slowly breaking down over millennia forming deep layers of peat.  Peat is dense and dark it almost looks like coal when dried and locks up huge amounts of carbon that was once free in the atmosphere thousands of years ago.   As the jungle continues to grow it daily carries out this the vitally important task of absorbing of carbon from our atmosphere.

When the forest is cut down for logging or cleared for planting two things happen that cause green house gases to be released.  Firstly if the jungle is not there is cannot absorb any more carbon, even if it is replaced with farm crops, nothing tops the jungle for carbon absorption.  Secondly, the carbon locked in the trees and the deep layers of peat gets released back into the atmosphere reversing all those thousands of years of soaking it up.

Indonesia is at the moment one of the world’s largest producers of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.   It is also the world 4^th most populace country. If we can stop the remaining forest from being deforested and degraded, it will be a quick and low cost way of reducing carbon dioxide emissions.  So far so good right?

Checking weather station

Just like us in London and the rest of the world, Indonesia needs to develop and grow. At first this would seem to be at odds with conserving the jungle and the tigers that live in it. Development and conservation have historically been in opposing camps.  All over the world we have converted wilderness into farmland and industry putting innumerable species at risk.  ZSL is working to develop ways in which this conflict can be reduced and so that we conserve wildlife at the same time as opportunities for development to continue.

The ZSL carbon initiative project is setting up a system where carbon offset credits can be bought in Indonesian tropical forests.  The program is called Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation REDD+.  For a simple explanation for a zoo keeper like me this means that the peat swamp forest where the tigers live can have a monetary value to Indonesians and most importantly they need to do nothing with it, just protect it and let the jungle continue to happily absorb carbon and keep it locked deep under its roots.   The real plus here is that Berbak has tigers and can continue to support a wild population into the future.  So not only could carbon credits be bought, saving wild jungle purchasing these carbon credits will also save tigers, now that’s a real reward.

ZSLs Carbon Berbak Carbon Initiative project aims to combine conserving wildlife in Berbak National Park specially tigers and reduce greenhouse gas emissions (carbon dioxide).  Tiger conservation and reducing greenhouse gasses are entwined it seems.

As you can imagine this is a massive undertaking one of the many tasks for this to work is monitoring and surveying the populations of animals living here and also to survey and monitor the ecosystem in detail.  This is where I’m helping the team while I’m here by recording animal signs, collecting camera traps and recording field data.

Teague