Ipassa Mingouli Project
9/5/97
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Headline: Ipassa Mingouli Project
Source: Panda/RAG
Date: 9/5/97
IPASSA-MINGOULI PROJECT, GABON (Central Africa), for a naturalistic
conservation and sustainable developpement.
1) to preserve in pristine condition a great primeval forest and put in
place methods for sustainable logging in the forested areas bordering the
protected area.
2) to integrate the richness of the biodiversity of the forest with the two
scientific research centers set up there and with the important knowledges
of traditional doctors. (They will be interested in their scientific support).
3) to exploit the wonderful waterfalls and cataracts, and the presence of
gorillas and chimpanzees, by promoting a sort of eco tourism free from
"tourist infection". Most of all, a tourism respecting the human and
biological environment.
Gabon is one of the richest and less peopled country of Africa. Some years
ago, the presence of the musician philantropist Albert Schweitzer raised
its popularity.
Until a few years ago, the presence of the 85% of primeval rainforest
peopled by gorillas, chimpanzees, mandrills and the last pygmean
populations, could make Gabon the first Park Nation in the world.
Today we can see that a development only aimed to oil, uranium and other
minerals and forests exploitation are causing the almost complete
disappearance of primeval forests. To this add the absence of protected
forests all over Gabon.
Logging is carried out everywhere, Asiatic loggers appeared as well, and in
some years there won't be any forest left.
Gorillas, chimpanzees, mandrills and elephants are in danger of extinction.
Pygmies will disappear as well, carrying away with them their secrets about
traditional medicine and plants, such as Iboga, present only in Gabon,
which is today studied in the United States and considered to be the best
pharmacological hope against drug addiction.
In Gabon buffalos and elephants were hunted at night time dazzling them by
the lorries' headlights. Gorillas and chimpanzees were poached by traps.
After many years of efforts to awaken public opinion, after many missions
in the field and meetings with Gabonese authorities, the Project for
conservation and sustainable development Ipassa-Mingouli, with the
agreement of local populations and the support of institutions such as IUCN
(the World Conservation Union), European Union and UNESCO, started its long
and difficult way.
In November 1995 the Rougier Group - the timber company who has its logging
concessions just in the area of the Project - and the IUCN signed an
agreement for a sustainable development of natural resources in the area.
This agreement, signed by IUCN and Rougier, was under the auspices of the
European Union Delegation in Gabon, which was the financial supporter of
the project.
Due to various facts, the European Union and IUCN delayed the beginning of
the Project. In the mean time, the Rougier Group, without informing its
partners, deeply logged inside the core conservation zone of the Ipassa
Mingouli Project, practicing the industrial logging and opening roads for
logging trucks. These logging roads allow poachers to enter the zone to
hunt gorillas an chimpanzees.
This invasion, carried out by the Rougier Group in the core conservation
zone of the Project, was discovered during the CNN shooting for Wild Planet
programme by the CNN journalist Gary Strieker, and by myself. (see
"Ecowarrior battling..." on CNN Earth home page for the essentials of the
Wild Planet, and our home page www.dna.it/ecowarriors. If you are
interested, we can send you the videocassette).
Furthermore, it seems that Ebola emergency in the area, the fearful virus
epidemic described also in a book and in the movie "Hot Zone" with Dustin
Hoffman, broke out there just because chimpanzees, once confident in
humans, were hunted and their meat was eaten as "bush meat" by nearby
populations. It actually seems that the spreading of Ebola to humans is caused
by apes blood and fresh meat.
These sad events show that institutions can't cope with the environmental
onslaught carried out in tropical countries by logging international
groups, and this with all its dangerous effects : desertification, threat
to human populations and animal species, and terrible emergencies caused by
viruses, like Ebola or Aids.
As a result of this situation, students from some European Universities
have realised that they should enter the field to save our Planet's future.
Young generations are the most committed in the future, and they have not
been touched by corruption yet.
That's the reason why they created WEESA (World Eco Emergency Students
Action). Their goal is to enter the field using the web, following what the
Free Burma Coalition did in USA.
If you are interested in our Project and have any means to support us,
please look at our homepage (www.dna.it/ecowarriors) and contact us by
e-mail at the following address:
panda@mv.itline.it
Best regards and best wishes for all your actions.
WEESA