Replanting Rainforest in Sumatra, Indonesia

The Leuser Ecosystem is threatened with development under a regional plan which could wipe out millions of acres of prime rainforest. This is the only place on earth where critically endangered orangutans live alongside rhinos, elephants and tigers. SOS and its partner the Orangutan Information Centre are now part of a consortium which aims to prevent the devastation.

The regional plan would enable mining, road building and oil palm plantations to deforest the ecosystem on a massive scale.   The Consortium has two main aims: to stop, with legal challenges if necessary, the plan going ahead; to establish ways of protecting key areas.  These include setting up patrols to enforce protection and stop poaching, and promoting a spatial plan of its own which has protection of the ecosystem and its rare biodiversity at its heart. Your donations are helping all this go ahead.

There is also the practical work on the ground which is making such a big difference. Your donations have helped us see rare species return to our restoration site. Excitingly these camera trap images, taken in June, show the potential of forest restoration for attracting back orangutans and elephants. We now have eight organic tree nurseries established, providing jobs and training for the local community, and have planted well over a million trees. On July 16 it’s Bonus Day on Global Giving so your donations are worth 40% with match funding.  Please support us by donating through the website between 9am and 11.59pm EDT. Your help will make a really big difference. Thank you.

We have been fortunate to work with several experts in forest regeneration, who spend time with the restoration team in Sumatra, helping them develop and try out new techniques to make the project even more successful. One such expert is Paul Daley from Australia, who is spending 12 months in Besitang, supporting the tree nursery and planting work, and documenting the impact that the project is having for wildlife.

We were delighted when, this morning, Paul sent us a photo from the field - of a young male orangutan in the trees right next to the restoration cabin! This was a wonderful moment for the whole team. They have seen wild orangutans and their nests in the area before, regularly hear their booming long calls in the adjacent forest, and one of the camera traps even captured an image of a big male cheekpadder walking on the ground a few weeks ago - but this curious young male was an exciting close encounter!

It's sightings like this that make all the hard work worthwhile - to know that the trees we are planting are genuinely creating vital habitat for orangutans and other wildlife. And as we always say, it's the support of the local community that make this project such a success, as they are so deeply committed to ensuring that this corner of the park is safe from destruction.

Thank you for your gift to this project - forest and wildlife are returning to a once-barren landscape, and it's wonderful.

For an exclusive opportunity to visit the restoration team, spending two days at the replanting site leanring about this project, you can join a special trip to Sumatra in September, also including jungle trekking and the chance to see orangutans in the wild. See http://orangutans-sos.org/visit_sumatra for more details.

Links:

• Visit Sumatra with SOS