Virunga National Park lies from the west of the Virunga Mountains to the east of Ruwenzori Mountains. It is located in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo. It borders Ruwenzori and Volcanoes National Parks. It was classified as a World Heritage Site in 1979 and was established back in 1925. It’s the home of the highly endangered Mountain Gorillas. The animals are maimed by poachers who through taking advantage of the civil war would have an easier access into the park.
Virunga National Park is now managed by the Congolese National Park Authorities through the funding from European Union. This is to protect further encroachment of the pack and to help conserve the remaining numbers of the Mountain Gorillas. The park covers the western shore of Lake Edward that supports a lot of aquatic species. Grassland plateau and plains dominate the park. The Ruwenzori Mountains that lie within the Ugandan border have several features that make visiting the park an exciting affair. The mountains harbor Nyiragongo and Nyamuragira that are both active volcanoes.
Virunga National Park conserves lot of wildlife from forest elephants, chimpanzees, giraffes, buffaloes and different species of birds. Other features include a neighboring Mount Moyo under the park’s management. It is home to the Bambuti Pygmy people, waterfalls and caves. The park due effects of civil wars have seen many rangers die on duty while guarding against the poachers who had earlier wrecked havoc in the park. Charcoal burners had also caused a lot of deforestation, but the introductions of stiff penalties have seen the habit depreciate.
John Butler speaking about the importance of protecting Tasmania’s threatened high conservation value forests, especially the unprotected forests of the Styx Valley in Southern Tasmania. This footage was taken whilst John Butler was sitting 65 metres up a tree at the Global Rescue Station in the Styx Valley in 2003. Parts of the Styx Valley were protected in 2005 as a result of this joint campaign by The Wilderness Society and Greenpeace. Unfortunately, logging is still occuring in unprotected forests of the Styx Valley and other parts of Tasmania, and some of the world’s tallest hardwood trees continue to be logged, woodchipped and sent to Japan.
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