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World Land Trust News

If Only We Had The Funds

Low Tech' To The Philippines

WLT Projects: Action Update

Action on Danjugan Island. With your help, WLT managed to raise its funding commitments for 1996, to purchase and protect Danjugan Island from development...Gerardo Ledesma and Junie Lizares, Board Members of the Philippine partner organisation, visited the UK for the launch of the international Year of the Reef...Thanks due to British Airways (Assisting Conservation) for the tickets...Dominic White (WLT Project's Manager) met with local people on Bulata to talk about possible livelihood projects not damaging to the environment...Coral Cay Conservation volunteers will continue their surveys of Danjugan's coral reefs during 1997...WLT must raise finds this year to pay off two loan installments. The March repayment (£8,500) was met, but the big one (£40,000) is due in September. Calling all supporters...

Action on the Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica. WLT raises funds for Buffalo Breeding Centre...Funds raised are matched by 4:1 by the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation in Washington D.C.....Six buffalo are now living and working in the Osa forests, removing timber that had fallen naturally...the buffalos also provide local people with milk, and a small cheese factory has been started...recent sightings of jaguar and margay an encouraging sign that the wildlife of the Osa is increasing....turtle breeding grounds being monitored and protected...

Action at Programme for Belize. New dormitories open at La Milpa Field Station ...Discovery of skeleton dating back to AD450, found at the archaeological site of La Milpa. Wearing a jade necklace he is thought to be a king named "Bird Jaguar"...With the help of a grant from the EU and UK company Propagation Technology PFB's micropropagation laborartory is up and running... Sustainable Forestry Project underway... development of non-timber harvesting, such as chicle, sabal thatch, essential oils, honey ... 15 Species of Special Concern occur on land owned and protected by PFB .... PFB's forests believed to contain the highest population density of big cats in Belize ...

World Land Trust's Action Fund Helps Brazilian Project

I n a previous issue of World Land Trust News we reported on an exciting conservation initiative in Brazil which the Trust was pleased to be able to be part of.

Hardly a day goes by without some mention in the media of the horrendous destruction being inflicted on the rainforest of South America, in particular, the vast forests of the Amazon. Very little news, however seems to capture international headlines about the plight of the coastal Atlantic Forest, the Mata Atlantica of south-east Brazil, despite the fact that this area is now regarded by conservationists as a "Global Hotspot" and one of the most endangered habitats left on the planet.

Stephen Knapp and Project Serra do Mar were rewarded for their hard work when six landowners agreed to enter into Management Agreements to form the 11,600 acre Serra do Mar Reserve Ecologica. Barely sixty miles north-east of Rio de Janeiro this is the biologically richest part of the Mata Atlantica, supporting an amazing wealth of rare and endangered plants and animals.

Over 370 different species of birds have been documented, 27% of which are endemic to the area, and a staggering 33 of these are considered to be Threatened. Of the large mammals present, over half are listed under CITES as Endangered, including Jaguar, Ocelot, Margay, Oncilla, Bush Dog, River Otter, Sloth, Tufted-ear Marmoset and Golden Lion Tamarin. Butterflies, reptiles and amphibians, fish and plants all show similar patterns of uniqueness and rarity.

Not only does the Serra do Mar support this unique collection, it is also a crucial link in a forested corridor between two established montane reserves. The corridor is absolutely essential as it not only allows the wildlife to move freely between the sites but also provides a vital resource to the many lowland fauna that have seasonal migrations in a quest for food. With primary forest extending from near sea-level to over 6,000 feet it is no wonder that the Serra do Mar Reserve-Ecologica supports such a huge diversity.

This is only the beiginning of the story. The WLT will continue help and advise as this importamt project develops. For further information:

by John Burton

Tourism is Costa Rica's No. 1 source of income, and gone are the days when coffee and bananas ruled, so, quite justifiably, ther is concern over their 'golden egg'. No-one can pin down exactly why tourist numbers have dropped in an expanding market, and several theories have been put forward.
There have been isolated cases of violent crime, but when compared with the world's larger citie, not significant, a wetter than usual rainy season and the visit of Hurricane Cesar, did not help. Costa Rica must now address the challenges of linking a more aggressive attitude to nature tourism with the sustainable and harmonious ideals they identified at the onset of eco-tourism.

As a start, the Costa Rican Tourism Institue (ICT) have introduced a scheme to assess and monitor tourist lodges in four areas: (1) degree of harmony with the physical setting, (2) policies regarding consumption of water and electricity, disposal of wastes and use of bio-degradable products (3) relationship between hotel guests and staff (4) and social integration into the host community.

Costa Rica is lucky in having conservation-minded Jose Maria Figueres, as its President, and last year he was presented with a bronze medal by the Botanical Research Institute of Texas in recognition of his nations's commitment to conservation and sustainable development.

Costa Rica's flora is estimated to contain up to 13,000 flowering plants, many only found in Costa Rica, together with 10% of the world's birds and butterflies. Over 32% of the country has been designated as protected areas, so it is vitally important that tourism doesn't destroy the very things that make the country so special. The Osa Peninsula, where the WLT is primarily involved, is one such protected area. But it epitomizes a microcosm of the problems facing the country as a whole. Classed as one of the top twenty areas of greatest biodiversity on Earth, the Osa has the "misfortune" to be surrounded by some of the most spectacular coastline in the world. It is no surprise that the local people are under constant pressure to sell their bit of beach to developers.

Another point that has to be borne in mind is that if the numbers of tourists continue to increase then the type of visitor will change. The environmentally aware visitor tends to shun crowds, and will pay more for the priviledge of a low impact visit.

If you consider yourself to be an eco-friendly tourist, or would simply like to know a bit more about the impacts of travel to exotic destinations you will probably be interested in the organisation: Tourism Concern. Contact them for an information leaflet at:

If an individual or company was able to make a major contribution as did Perkin-Elmer a few year's ago, we have the projects !

• £1-million would buy 100,000 acres in Paraguay.
• £250,000 would acquire and manage sustainable logging concessions around a national park in West Africa.
• £500,000 would save one of the last coastal forests in the western Mediterranean.

In the Autumn/Winter issue of WLT News we published a letter from the Head Teacher of Bulata School in the Philippines. In it he made an urgent appeal for a mechanical duplicator to enable them to produce teaching materials.

The Chairman of Kent County Council responded enthusiastically by donating a machine, and transport brokers, Carousel, offered to freight it free of charge to the school's door. At a presentation ceremony at the Royal Geographical Society in February, David Bellamy said "it's good to see hands of friendship across the world duplicating goodwill". Mike Martin of Carousel said "We are only too pleased to help education, especially in the Third World". Our thanks to Kent County Council and Carousel, and special thanks also to Jo Upton. Other supporters telephoned with offers of machines and we will be in touch again if we have further requirements for them. Thank you to all.