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Friends of National Parks Foundation (FNPF) is a local non-profit organisation working to preserve Indonesia’s wildlife and its habitat for her people and for the world. The Philosophy of FNPF is that we are all connected |
Urgent Appeal to Combat Fires in Tanjung Puting National Park |
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Dear FNPF Supporters, The latest details about the fires currently burning in Borneo indicate they are having a devastating effect on orangutan habitat. Reports confirm that the airport has now been closed down due to thickness of the smoke. We ask for your urgent support as the fires continue to burn in our project area within Tanjung Puting National Park. We are in the midst of an extreme dry season. Conditions are similar to those which preceded the last fire which destroyed significant parts of our reforestation efforts and orangutan habitat in 2006. Our team is presently uncontactable as all effort go to containing the fires from reaching our reforestation site. 
Fire has been detected in the Padang Sembilan farming area despite our efforts, which could be attributed to the lack of law enforcement by local authorities in response to burning off practices. Fortunately our preventative measures, early detection and increased firefighting efforts have allowed us to prevent fire spreading at three fire locations. The threat is far from over with some areas becoming very dangerous, as the swamp forest areas have become an active fire fuel load, due to prior burning in 2006. We are presently focusing our efforts on averting this disaster by holding the fire back as long as we can while also preparing the fire line to protect our working site. We urgently need funds to continue and strengthen our firefighting efforts. This includes feeding local people assisting us with our efforts and the supply of better fire fighting equipment including protective clothing for our workers. 
Our ongoing priority will be to continue our education program for local farmers to develop alternative methods to slash and burn techniques currently still in use. Further details of our firefighting activities in the past 25 days inside Tanjung Putting National Park is on our website, including the map of the periodic fire hotspot and some photos. Many thanks for your support at this critical time. Komang in Borneo & Bayu and the whole FNPF Staff |
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FNPF believe that working in just one area is not enough. We take a holistic, balanced and comprehensive approach which recognizes the intrinsic inter-relatedness of human beings, our fellow creatures and the environment. As a small active Non Government Organisation we focus on grassroots issues and frontline conservation. We work in cooperation with many groups and individuals including researchers, local communities, government, customary and cultural groups, international volunteers and the global conservation community. |
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Our work is highly regarded in many circles. In 2004, our Nusa Penida project was short-listed for a Whitley Award nomination. In 2006, our Kalimantan project was nominated for the Equator Prize. In 2003 Director of FNPF, Drh I.G.N. Bayu Wirayudha was nominated for Indonesia’s Kalpataru (Hero of the Earth) Award for his work with conservation. He has again been nominated for this award in 2007 |
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Can you help us? |
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