Stopping illegal fishing in the Leuser Ecosystem.
The Leuser Ecosystem is the largest terrestrial conservation area in Indonesia and is renowned for its biodiversity. When most people think of Leuser’s forests they think of the charismatic animals such as tigers, elephants and orang-utans or maybe the spectacular Argus Pheasant - the peacock of the rainforest. But there is much more than that. Insects make up the vast majority of visible species and those things that live in the abundant streams and rivers of Leuser are likewise often overlooked. Without fish the rivers would start to choke with algae and the wildcats, otters and specialised civets that live on these fish, would die out.
Originally, people rarely fished inside the Leuser Ecosystem. There were more than adequate opportunities to catch fish downstream and outside the reserve and the rivers inside Leuser were difficult to access. But as the downstream rivers were poisoned by agricultural pesticides, increased sedimentation, and over fishing pressures began to mount on the rivers inside the Leuser Ecosystem.
Tragically, the destructive fishing practices which had been perfected outside the reserve were quickly applied inside. To maximise harvests fishermen used pesticides (even DDT) to poison large stretches of rivers. This impoverished whole aquatic ecosystems and certain species of fish are thought to have become locally extinct. When it was no longer economic to use poisons, fishermen used explosives to stun what fish were left, and when yields from this technique fell off, they resorted to electrocution - essentially using battery powered probes to stun or kill what few fish remained beneath boulders or under rocky ledges beneath the water.
Soon after taking over the management of the Leuser Ecosystem the Leuser Ecosystem Management Authority (BPKEL) made it clear that it would uphold the laws which protect rivers from illegal fishing. Already BPKEL’s staff has undertaken several operations against the worst offenders including one group backed by local military personnel.
Enforcement of this nature is initiated by local field staff that has been chosen for their dedication and commitment to conserving the areas surrounding the places where they live. This, in essence, is community enforcement with the support of local police and the backing of the Aceh Government through BPKEL.
The most recent example of this work in action was in stopping an illegal fishing operation on the 18 September, in which the fishermen were using electrocution devices right near an important research station at Ketambe. Local staff has good access to information on plans like this and as soon as the illegal fishers moved to Ketambe River the staff informed local police officials and immediately went into action. The police arrested the offenders and confiscated the electrocution equipment including a generator.
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This is the small raft that the illegal fishermen used to carry the generator.
I hope they were not actually wading when in use... |
Here we have four fishermen caught in the act, who are waiting on the road for interrogation by local police. |
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Only with constant pressure on illegal fishing will the rivers both inside and outside the Leuser Ecosystem have a chance of recovering. And only when they recover will the people outside the Leuser Ecosystem have a chance of harvesting the bounty of fish which sustained them in years gone by.
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