Experts and conservationists are calling for increased funding and efforts to save the dwindling number of elephants in Vietnam.
Ata recent conference by the Vietnam Forest Administration (VFA) and WWFVietnam, Tran The Lien, head of the VFA Department of NaturalConservation, said elephants are currently under threat of becomingextinct in Vietnam due to failed efforts to protect them from beinghunted by poachers seeking elephant tusks.
Statistics presentedat the conference showed that the elephant population decreased fromsome 1000 in the mid-1980s to about 120 in 2014.
The elephantsare often scattered in eight provinces: Son La, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, QuangNam, Dak Lak, Lam Dong, Dong Nai and Binh Phuoc.
According toAssociate Professor Nguyen Xuan Dang, an expert in biodiversity studiesand conservation with WWF Vietnam, each of the surviving elephant herdsis now made up of only one to five elephants.
These herds often live separately from one another, which further increases the risk of extinction, Dang noted.
Thelargest herds live in three national parks: Yok Don National Park in EaSup District of Central Highlands Dak Lak province, Pu Mat NationalPark in central Nghe An province and Cat Tien National Park in southernDong Nai province.
However, Dang said these herds comprise animbalanced number of male-female elephants and many of the femaleelephants have already passed their reproductive age, noting that allare at high risk of being killed by illegal hunters.
Expertsestimate that since 2009, at least 29 elephants were killed. Since thebeginning of the year, four domesticated elephants and another wildelephant died after being injured or from starvation just in Dak Lakprovince. Within the province, the number of wild elephants dropped from550 in the 1980s to 60 to 65 today.
Besides illegal hunting, aWWF report presented at the conference also contributed other factors tothe dwindling elephant population, which includes the loss of theirhabitat and increased degradation of the area landscape, illegallogging, urbanisation and conversion of forest land for coffee or rubberplantations, as well as strained relations between local residents andelephants.
In 2012, Dak Lak established its Elephant ConservationCenter. In 2013, the province approved a plan to work to protectelephants through 2020 with the use of 85 billion VND (3.95 million USD)in funding.
Huynh Trung Luan, director of the center, said protecting domesticated and wild elephants were difficult tasks.
Thecenter was currently only able to assist owners of domesticatedelephants by providing training and dispensing medicines for theelephants, Luan said, noting that the domesticated elephants are mostlyold and cannot reproduce. At the same time, wild elephants in theprovince had been facing reduced areas for living due to illegal loggingand burn-and-slash farming methods, he added.
At the beginningof this year, the center was allocated 200 hectares of forest forconservation efforts, but Luan said it could take three years for thecenter to complete an area designated for treating and protectingelephants.
Since 2004, the Government has approved a number ofresolutions and projects aimed at protecting elephants, including anational project to protect elephants from 2013-20, in addition toseparate emergency plans at the provincial level to protect elephants inthe provinces of Dak Lak, Dong Nai.
According to Ngo Le Truc, anofficer from the Department of Natural Conservation within VFA, theVietnam Forest Administration has also been carrying out an emergencyplan to protect elephants and improve the capacity to prevent elephanttusk trading through 2020.
The plan aims to create acomprehensive database on domesticated and wild elephants throughout thecountry, implementing plans to designate specialised areas of forestsfor elephants, restoring the landscape in some areas for elephants tolive in and expand their herds, applying technology in conservationefforts and enforcing laws and regulations on illegal poachers and thehunting of tusks.
Tran The Lien, head of the VFA Department ofNatural Conservation, believes the conservation of elephants mustinvolve the public by increasing their awareness and also enforcing lawsand regulations to increase cooperation at the border and internationallevels to apprehend poachers and prevent elephant tusk traders fromoperating.
The Vietnam Forestry Administration is also working tobuild an agreement on cross-border elephant conservation between YokDon National Park of Vietnam and Mundulkiri National Park of Cambodia.
VanNgoc Thinh, director of WWF Vietnam, noted that rhinos were declaredextinct in Vietnam in 2010 and tigers were also under a major threat.
"Wehave to do everything to save elephants from the same fate," he said."This requires greater efforts from the Government and the people topreserve our biodiversity values for the country and its futuregenerations."-VNA
Ata recent conference by the Vietnam Forest Administration (VFA) and WWFVietnam, Tran The Lien, head of the VFA Department of NaturalConservation, said elephants are currently under threat of becomingextinct in Vietnam due to failed efforts to protect them from beinghunted by poachers seeking elephant tusks.
Statistics presentedat the conference showed that the elephant population decreased fromsome 1000 in the mid-1980s to about 120 in 2014.
The elephantsare often scattered in eight provinces: Son La, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, QuangNam, Dak Lak, Lam Dong, Dong Nai and Binh Phuoc.
According toAssociate Professor Nguyen Xuan Dang, an expert in biodiversity studiesand conservation with WWF Vietnam, each of the surviving elephant herdsis now made up of only one to five elephants.
These herds often live separately from one another, which further increases the risk of extinction, Dang noted.
Thelargest herds live in three national parks: Yok Don National Park in EaSup District of Central Highlands Dak Lak province, Pu Mat NationalPark in central Nghe An province and Cat Tien National Park in southernDong Nai province.
However, Dang said these herds comprise animbalanced number of male-female elephants and many of the femaleelephants have already passed their reproductive age, noting that allare at high risk of being killed by illegal hunters.
Expertsestimate that since 2009, at least 29 elephants were killed. Since thebeginning of the year, four domesticated elephants and another wildelephant died after being injured or from starvation just in Dak Lakprovince. Within the province, the number of wild elephants dropped from550 in the 1980s to 60 to 65 today.
Besides illegal hunting, aWWF report presented at the conference also contributed other factors tothe dwindling elephant population, which includes the loss of theirhabitat and increased degradation of the area landscape, illegallogging, urbanisation and conversion of forest land for coffee or rubberplantations, as well as strained relations between local residents andelephants.
In 2012, Dak Lak established its Elephant ConservationCenter. In 2013, the province approved a plan to work to protectelephants through 2020 with the use of 85 billion VND (3.95 million USD)in funding.
Huynh Trung Luan, director of the center, said protecting domesticated and wild elephants were difficult tasks.
Thecenter was currently only able to assist owners of domesticatedelephants by providing training and dispensing medicines for theelephants, Luan said, noting that the domesticated elephants are mostlyold and cannot reproduce. At the same time, wild elephants in theprovince had been facing reduced areas for living due to illegal loggingand burn-and-slash farming methods, he added.
At the beginningof this year, the center was allocated 200 hectares of forest forconservation efforts, but Luan said it could take three years for thecenter to complete an area designated for treating and protectingelephants.
Since 2004, the Government has approved a number ofresolutions and projects aimed at protecting elephants, including anational project to protect elephants from 2013-20, in addition toseparate emergency plans at the provincial level to protect elephants inthe provinces of Dak Lak, Dong Nai.
According to Ngo Le Truc, anofficer from the Department of Natural Conservation within VFA, theVietnam Forest Administration has also been carrying out an emergencyplan to protect elephants and improve the capacity to prevent elephanttusk trading through 2020.
The plan aims to create acomprehensive database on domesticated and wild elephants throughout thecountry, implementing plans to designate specialised areas of forestsfor elephants, restoring the landscape in some areas for elephants tolive in and expand their herds, applying technology in conservationefforts and enforcing laws and regulations on illegal poachers and thehunting of tusks.
Tran The Lien, head of the VFA Department ofNatural Conservation, believes the conservation of elephants mustinvolve the public by increasing their awareness and also enforcing lawsand regulations to increase cooperation at the border and internationallevels to apprehend poachers and prevent elephant tusk traders fromoperating.
The Vietnam Forestry Administration is also working tobuild an agreement on cross-border elephant conservation between YokDon National Park of Vietnam and Mundulkiri National Park of Cambodia.
VanNgoc Thinh, director of WWF Vietnam, noted that rhinos were declaredextinct in Vietnam in 2010 and tigers were also under a major threat.
"Wehave to do everything to save elephants from the same fate," he said."This requires greater efforts from the Government and the people topreserve our biodiversity values for the country and its futuregenerations."-VNA
