Forest protection

Authorities are facing mounting pressure to safeguard the Samlot Protected Area, where villagers and wealthy land-grabbers continue to trespass to start orchards and claim ownership of the plots. The area, which straddles Battambang and Pailin provinces, is jointly protected by the Ministry of Environment and ...

Provincial environment department director Mon Phalla said officials had inspected the area around the Prek Andong Teuk stream in the district’s Andong Teuk and Thmar Sar communes, which are vulnerable to encroachment. ...

Home to abundant natural resources and biodiversity, the listing of Phnom Kampong Trach, Phnom Chhngouk, Phnom Kbal Romeas and Phnom La’ang as protected cultural and historical sites would be of great benefit to the local communities and environment, said Kampot provincial governor Cheav Tay. ...

The Mondulkiri provincial Environment Department launched a campaign among the Banong, Krueng and Tumpuon ethnic communities to create awareness about the importance of wildlife to the ecology and tourism sector. The communities live close to wildlife sanctuaries. ...

Villagers from the Tumpuon ethnic minority group in Keng San community forest are accusing the local authority and some community members of colluding with timber traders to illegally fell large trees and clear dozens of hectares of forest land in their community. ...

Villagers claim that rampant illegal logging is taking place at the Phnom Namlear Wildlife Sanctuary and local authorities are not doing enough to curb the activity. Every night about 20 to 30 lorries remove luxury timber from the wildlife sanctuary, which is fast depleting its ...

Koh Kong provincial hall on Tuesday revoked ownership of land near the protected Peam Krasoap Wildlife Sanctuary to prevent further land clearing in the area. Its announcement raised fears among local communities of a potential forced eviction. “All illegal land ownership or unregistered land at ...

Senior Environment Ministry officials on Saturday agreed to continue to work together and cooperate with local forest rangers in order to maintain order and prevent forestry crimes from occurring in Kirirom national park. ...

The Mondulkiri provincial authority on Wednesday refuted claims that it had turned a blind eye to illegal timber trafficking to neighbouring Vietnam. The denial followed the discovery of over 500 pieces of first-grade timber by the National Military Police in protected areas and local media ...

Rights group Licadho said yesterday that a forestry crime reporting mechanism set in place by Koh Kong provincial Governor Mithona Phouthorng to protect tipsters is ineffective as residents fear repercussion from powerful figures. ...

The district governor of Koh Nheck in Mondulkiri province, Sin Vannvuth, on Tuesday confirmed that land located between the Phnom Prich wildlife sanctuary and protected forests in Royer commune, will not be seized by the state after authorities stopped its clearing. ...

The Mondulkiri provincial authorities on Sunday ordered the prevention of land and forest clearing in the protected Phnom Prich wildlife sanctuary in Koh Nhek district and neighbouring Lumphat wildlife sanctuary in Ratanakkiri province. ...

The Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered the Mondulkiri provincial authority to release on bail eight Vietnamese nationals who have been imprisoned for more than six months over an illegal timber trade. At an hour-long trial in absentia, the Supreme Court ordered the eight Vietnamese to ...

Cambodia will embark on developing a billion-dollar eco-tourism park on a 114-hectare land in Preah Vihear. It will use Japanese technology. The Royal Academy Cambodia (RAC) inked a deal with Japanese company BM Nature Safari Co Ltd on Saturday to develop the RAC Techo Sen ...

At least 66 resin trees in the Prey Preah Roka Wildlife Sanctuary in Preah Vihear province’s Tbeng Meanchey district, have been felled so far this month, according to environmental activists. They say deforestation continues to grow unabated, as authorities suspended or cut the number of ...

The Apsara Authority is stepping up its efforts to manage and maintain forest cover surrounding the Angkor World Heritage Site in Siem Reap province. At a meeting with about 250 officials and staff members of the authority’s forestry department on Wednesday, Hang Peou, deputy director-general ...

At least 107 cameras deployed for tracking endangered wildlife in the northeast provinces of Cambodia were dismantled or destroyed by poachers, according to a provincial environment official on Thursday. Mondulkiri Provincial Environment Department director Keo Sopheak told The Post that the dismantling of the cameras ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen on Tuesday denied that the government intends to allow private development around a lake in Ratanakkiri province, which is important to a biologically diverse ecosystem. The denial was sparked by an article published in the Rasmei Kampuchea Daily on Monday that ...

The Takeo provincial Environment Department on Monday warned authorites would take legal action against a senior police official in Koh Andet district who tried to use a vehicle to clear land illegally in the protected lake Boeung Prek Lapouv. ...

Authorities in Ratanakkiri province confiscated timber left behind inside the Lumphat Wildlife Santuary in Lumphat district on Tuesday. Kim Reaksmey, commander of the provincial military police, said that the timber was discovered abandoned, adding that no arrests were made. ...

The Mekong River Commission and the Japan International Cooperation Agency have launched a joint study on forest conservation and river basin management in the lower Mekong aimed at improving management and environmental conservation of the area. ...

The government yesterday announced a sub-decree by the office of the Prime Minister to designate Yeak Loam Lake in Ban Lung city in the northeastern province of Ratanakkiri as a new wildlife and ecological protected area. ...

Tumpuon ethnic minorities residing in Seda commune, in Ratanakkiri province’s Lumphat district, on Monday accused authorities of colluding to sell 100 hectares of protected land in the Lumphat Wildlife Sanctuary  that they say belongs to the community ...

The Senate yesterday approved a draft law to adopt the Asian Forest Cooperation Organisation’s policies to help regulate existing measures to prevent forest crimes. The approval of the draft law followed a May 31 National Assembly session where all 112 lawmakers approved the draft law. ...