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Gabon Moves to Preserve Rainforests
Parks System Sets New Standard in African Conservation
 Listen to John Nielsen's report.
 See a photo gallery of Central Africa's wildlife.
See a map of the new Gabon national park system.
Sept. 4, 2002 --
U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell heads for the African nation of Gabon tomorrow, where he will tour some of the world's least spoiled and most threatened tropical forests. He's also expected to announce a $75 million U.S. contribution toward preserving those forests.
The government of Gabon has made a welcomed move to protect those regions by creating a system of national parks on 10 percent of its land. Logging and other kinds of industrial development will be banned inside the parks.
The blueprint for this system of parks was drawn up by the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society, and promoted by a man who walked across the continent of Africa. NPR's John Nielsen reports for All Things Considered.
Michael Fay, a research scientist with the Wildlife Conservation Society and the National Geographic Society, walked from the eastern edge of Congo to the western edge of Gabon during 1999 and 2000 -- a 456-day trip past a stunning range of animals and animal habitats. In Congo, he saw examples of the damage done throughout Africa by logging companies. In Gabon, he saw the promised land, Nielsen says.
"Blue seas, white sand, elephants, whales, sea turtles, monkeys, bush pigs, unbelievable scenery," says Fay. "Gabon has it all. It has everything that everyone ever dreams about in paradise, as far as I'm concerned."
Fay and a photographer named Michael Nichols met with the leader of Gabon after the trip was over. Fay says President El Hadj Omar Bongo was enthralled by Nichols' pictures. One of Bongo's favorite shots showed a gorilla in the forest. The gorilla is shrouded in shadows and lush vegetation, seemingly in the middle of nowhere.
A plan to preserve biodiversity and draw more tourists to Gabon by creating a chain of nature parks was reportedly sitting on Bongo's desk when he saw these pictures. At this week's United Nations meeting on sustainable development, held in South Africa, Gabon announced that it would soon create 13 new national parks on roughly 10,000 square miles of land. Logging leases on those lands would be bought out or cancelled.
When these parks are up and running, Gabon will leap from last to first in an important environmental category: As a percentage of total land mass, this will be the largest park system in the world.
In Depth
Browse the NPR archives for more stories on wildlife conservation.
Read the Radio Expeditions feature on Mike Fay's Megatransect.
Other Resources
• Get details on the conservation project at the new Gabon National Parks Web site.
• The New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society has worked closely with the Gabonese government on conservation issues.
• More about the Megantransect at NationalGeographic.com News.
• Global Forest Watch is a nonprofit organization that monitor's the world's remaining frontier forests, in part through digital mapping technology.
• Africa South of the Sahara is a clearinghouse of Africa-related Internet resources on news, environment, language, culture and
government.
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