PEOPLE AROUND UJUNG KULON NATIONAL PARK

Local inhabitants around Ujung Kulon National Park are called Sundanese of the southwest Banten. 90% of the local people still live in the old tradition of relying on resources from land (farming, paddy fields) and sea (fishermen) for subsistence. Their staple rice diet is supplemented by corn, sweet potato, cassava, and various fruits such as bananas, and mangosteens. The villagers also raise water buffalo, goats, sheep, ducks, geese, chicken, and collect wild honey and palm sap.

In average, a village in this area consists of around 2,500 people, and a family usually consists of 4 members (Mother, father and two children). Most of the people finished elementary school, while some managed to get through junior high school. Only a few finished Senior high school. These communities are accessible through a bad road condition to the provincial road that eventually connects to the toll highway (around 250 km from the capital city Jakarta).

Each household usually has one or two sources of income (the father and the mother work) with average income ranging from IDR 390,525 to IDR 790,265 per month. Although many people work in the paddy fields, many of them also open an agriculture area in the forest. Part of the Park used to be a forest estate owned by Perhutani, a government owned mahogany plantation. Local people (workers) were allowed to cultivate vegetables, rice, and fruits in the estate. Later on, when the area was converted into a National Park, these people continued to maintain their farm inside the Park, and even further expand into the forest areas. It is clear that people residing near Park’s territory rely on forest resources for daily subsistence.

LET'S BUILD A REEF!!!

Ever dreamed of having your own tropical coral reef?

© WWF-Indonesia

BuildReef is an eco-tourism program designed by WWF project in Ujung Kulon National Park that can serve many purposes such as:

• Enhancing ecosystem by placing human-made structure known as artificial reef. In many places, artificial reefs are recognized as a feasible means for enhancing marine ecosystem, increasing fishery potential, and improving tourism prospects.


• Attaching soft coral colonies to the structures to attract fishes and other organisms to ensure that the coral reef recovery take place. Soft coral colonies are taken from people's farm to ensure that the wild coral population is not harmed for BuildReef activity


• Improving tourism potential for the area, as tourism can bring potential income for local people

© WWF-Indonesia

In this program divers are invited to help install and stabilize the artificial reef structures called "racks". Racks are made of concrete with bamboo reinforcement embedded in the structure. One rack weighs approximately 100 kg to ensure fixation in BuildReef location. For this purpose, the racks have been pre-installed, but divers will be required to strengthen these racks further into the substrate (sand) in BuildReef area.

© WWF-Indonesia

The next step is choosing coral colonies to be attached to the racks. Coral colonies are attached to a mini substrate. This will ensure that the colonies are glued to the rack structures. Basket with coral colonies will be placed in a distance from the racks to prevent damage to the coral colonies during fixing and strengthening racks process. Divers will swim to the coral baskets, bring two colonies back to the racks and attach them to racks. It is recommended that diver bring only two colonies each time to prevent friction between colonies. Total of 24 racks and 600 coral colonies need to be installed in this trip. Throughout the process the water can get murky, but the dive master will oversee the activity and ensure the safety of all divers involved.

© WWF-Indonesia

After a while, the newly built reef will be ready for the visitation. BuildReef divers will be the ones to visit this reef, and observe the handy work they've done throughout the weekend. Furthermore, BuildReef divers will be asked to name this new reef. The coordinate location of this reef, along with the reef name will be recorded. A certificate will then be produced and sent out to BuildReef divers. This is not a certificate of ownership, but it will state that the individual is involved in the installment of the reef.