11/4/2015

CEPF.netIndoBurma

INDOBURMA
OverviewSpeciesThreatsProjectsSources
Conservationactionandprotectedareas

ProtectedareasystemsarethecornerstonesofgovernmentconservationprogramsintheIndoBurmahotspot.Intotal,236,000k
officiallyprotected,representingroughly10percentoftheoriginalextentofvegetationinthehotspot.However,only132,000km
undersixpercent)isinIUCNprotectedareacategoriesItoIV.Furthermore,notallforesttypesandwildlifehabitatsareadequate
representedinthissystem,includinglowlandwetevergreenforests,riverinehabitats,mangroveforestsandteakdominateddecid
forests.

Collectively,theLowerMekongcountries(Cambodia,LaoP.D.R.,Vietnam,andThailand)havemorethan13percentoftheirlandw
systemofprotectedareas.In1993,Cambodiaestablished23protectedareasbyRoyalDecreetheseareascontainover18percen
kingdom'slandarea.Threeforestconservationareaswerelaterestablishedtoexplicitlypromotebiodiversityconservation.LaoP.D
20protectedareas,coveringatotalof14percentpercentofthenation'slandarea.AsinCambodia,mostoftheseprotectedareas
establishedin1993.Vietnamestablisheditsprotectedareasnetworkin1962,andcurrentlyhas95protectedareas.Thailandhas
extensivesystemofprotectedareas,withabout22percentofthenation'slandareaconservedwithin250protectedareas.Formal
conservationinthekingdomdatestothe1896establishmentoftheRoyalForestDepartment,butprotectedareaswereonlyestabl
theearly1960s.

Elsewhereinthehotspot,HainanIslandcontains26naturereserves,totalingabout1,190km,thataremanagedbytheForestry
Department,buttherearealsoasmallnumberofprotectedareasrunbyothergovernmentdepartments.Myanmarrepresentsone
bestopportunitiesforextensivehabitatprotectioninthehotspot,particularlyinitsrelativelylargeandundisturbedriverandflood
forestsystems.Atotalof38protectedareashadbeendeclaredorofficiallyproposedinMyanmarby2002.

Onewayofensuringthatthenetworkofprotectedareasadequatelyconservesrepresentativebiodiversityisthroughtheprotection
speciesthatfacethegreatestriskofextinctionworldwide.Globallythreatenedspeciesarebestprotectedthroughtargetingconser
investmenttothesitesinwhichtheyoccurthesesitesarereferredtoas"keybiodiversityareas"(KBAs).KBAsarediscretebiolog
thatcontainoneormoregloballythreatenedorrestrictedrangespecies,andcanbemanagedforconservationasasingleunit.In
IndoBurmaHotspot,thenetworkofImportantBirdAreas(IBAs)identifiedbyBirdLifeInternationalandpartnerorganizationswas
astartingpoint,andsitesimportantforothertaxonomicgroupswerethenaddedusingdatafromthepublishedliterature,andthr
consultationwithexperts.Atotalof362KBAsweredefinedforIndoBurmaduringthefirstphaseofaniterativeprocessabouttw
ofthesesiteshostthreatenedorrestrictedrangebirdsandmammals.Thisnumbershouldincreaseasmoredatabecomesavailab
globallythreatenedplantsandfreshwaterfishspecies.Ofthesitesdefinedduringthisinitialassessment,only229areentirelyor
withinprotectedareas.Thus,manyopportunitiesexistforconservationactionoutsideofprotectedareas.

InmostoftheIndoBurmahotspot,governmentinvestmentinconservationisrelativelylimited,withmostfundingdirectedtoward
andinfrastructuredevelopmentwithinprotectedareas.TheexceptionsareHongKong,IndiaandThailand.Bilateraldonorsinclude
Denmark,Japan,theUnitedStates,andtheNetherlands.MultilateraldonorsincludetheWorldBank,theAsianDevelopmentBank
UnitedNationsDevelopmentProgramme.SeveralinternationalNGOsarealsoactiveinthehotspotexamplesincludeWWF,WCS,F
TRAFFIC,CI,andWildAid.Ontheotherhand,corporateinvestmentinconservationisverylimited.AnexceptionistheHongKong
KadoorieFarmandBotanicalGarden,whichfocusesonenvironmentaleducation,animalrehabilitationandrareplantpropagation,
biodiversitysurveysinsouthernChina.

http://www.cepf.net/resources/hotspots/AsiaPacific/Pages/IndoBurma.aspx#

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