White-necked Picathartes: an inhabitant of the Gola forest Zoom In | Hi-Res

Rainforest park sets the bar for Bali talks

10-12-2007

A huge rainforest in one of Africa's poorest countries has won indefinite government protection and is heralded as one of the first examples of forest conservation to cut carbon emissions.

President Ernest Bai Koroma of Sierra Leone has backed plans to make the 75,000-hectare Gola Forest his country's second national park protecting more than 50 mammal species including Leopards, Chimpanzees and Forest Elephants, 2,000 different plants and 274 bird species of which 14 are close to extinction.

The area, close to the Liberian border, will become the flagship site in a new national park network with local communities paid annually to replace royalties linked to logging and diamond mining in the forest.

The project is being funded by the European Commission, the French government, the RSPB and US-based Conservation International.

We are helping the government turn a logging forest into a protected forest. The forest is owned by Sierra Leone and we are working with the Sierra Leonean people to conserve the area, which has been rarely done before. —Alistair Gammell, International Director for the RSPB

Alistair Gammell, International Director for the RSPB, said: "Huge amounts of carbon will be saved and the site is an excellent example to those now involved in climate talks in Bali. It is showing how richer countries can help poorer countries protect wildlife, support local communities and tackle climate change. It is a project that politicians in Bali seeking to cut the world's carbon emissions should be lauding, applauding and copying."

The European Commission and the French government are both contributing more than 3 million pounds towards the training of more than 100 staff to patrol Gola's boundaries, monitor wildlife and run education programmes.

Scientists will be encouraged to study the wildlife of the area which is expected to become a hub for eco-tourism in the country.

Alistair Gammell adds: "In Sumatra, we are helping to rehabilitate the forest because most of it has been logged at some stage. Gola is different because much more of the area is primary rainforest and other areas have not been logged for more than 30 years. Without this project, the forest would have been destroyed within ten years because Sierry Leone needs funds for its development."

The Rufous Fishing Owl Scotopelia ussheri, the Green-tailed Bristlebill Bleda eximia and the Gola Malimbe Malimbus ballmanni are amongst bird species at risk in Gola. But best known in the forest is the White-necked Picathartes Picathartes gymnocephalus whose appearance and nesting habits are bizarre.

The Picathartes nests under the forest's towering rocks. Gola is thought to be the major stronghold for the bird, which is highly respected by villagers.

President Koroma is planning to establish six more national parks in Sierra Leone to develop tourism as the country recovers from the civil war of the 1990s.

Graham Wynne, Chief Executive of the RSPB, said: "Protecting Gola as a national park reflects the foresight of the Sierra Leone government and with time, Gola forest and the other parks will give the country something very special to shout about."

"There are few places in the world where you will find such diversity. Gola is a magical place and it is worth saving simply because it is there."