Lorentz National Park

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Lorentz National Park
Cassowary
Cassowary
Lorentz National Park (Indonesia)
Paris plan pointer b jms.svg
Coordinates: 4 ° 45 ′ 0 ″  S , 137 ° 50 ′ 0 ″  E
Location: Indonesia
Surface: 25,056 km²
Founding: 1997 Indonesia, 1999 UNESCO
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Lorentz National Park
UNESCO world heritage UNESCO World Heritage Emblem

Puncakjaya.jpg
The Carstensz pyramid
National territory: IndonesiaIndonesia Indonesia
Type: nature
Criteria : viii, ix, x
Reference No .: 955
UNESCO region : Asia and Pacific
History of enrollment
Enrollment: 1999  (session 23)

The Lorentz National Park ( Indonesian: Taman Nasional Lorentz ) in western New Guinea , Indonesia , covers the area of ​​a central German state (23,555 km²) and is the largest national park in Southeast Asia . It is the only park that stretches from equatorial glaciers to the tropical sea. It includes lowland rainforest, mountain rainforest, subalpine vegetation zone , peat and freshwater swamp forest and mangroves. Its diverse geology at the point of rupture between two continental plates contains fossil sites that bear witness to the evolutionary history of New Guinea. The national park was named after Hendrikus Albertus Lorentz from the Netherlands .

geography

In the northwest of the park lies the highest mountain in Oceania, the Carstensz pyramid (Puncak Jaya, 4884 m) and its glaciers, in the south the Arafura Sea , in the west the park borders on the concession area of ​​the Grasberg mine of Freeport-McMoRan . Large parts of the park have not yet been scientifically researched. On the one hand, the jungle of the park is extremely inaccessible, on the other hand, it is difficult to get permission because the military suspects the liberation movement of Papua in the area.

Fauna and vegetation

The national park is home to around 80% of the mammal species and 65% of the bird species of West Papua, numerous still unexplored plants and animals, as well as eight indigenous peoples such as the Asmat , Amungme (Damal) , Nakai (Asmat Keenok), Sempan, West Dani and Kamoro. Due to pressure from environmentalists, under President Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie , the park was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1999 as a natural monument and is therefore a World Heritage Site .

The park is particularly important due to its size and the biodiversity , richness and representativeness of its flora and fauna. Almost 90% are untouched natural rainforest. Mammal specialists consider the park to be the most important region in the Australo-Pacific for mammalian biodiversity.

About 164 mammals, 324 reptiles, and 650 bird species live in the park. The number of insect species is estimated at around 150,000. Unique among the mammals are the so-called monotremes , two species of which live in the park, the short-billed urchin ( Tachyglossus aculeatus ) and the western long-billed urchin ( Zaglossus brujini ). In addition, the mammals are mainly represented by marsupials. These include at least four species of cuscus , the New Guinea bag marten ( Dasyurus albopunctatus ) and several species of tree kangaroos (including the newly discovered dingy ). Among the birds are numerous endangered species, such as the cassowary ( Casuarius casuarius ), the crowned pigeon ( Goura scheepmakeri ) and the bristle head ( Psittrichas fulgidus ). The most common reptile species include the two crocodile species, the estuarine crocodile ( Crocodylus porosus ) and the New Guinea crocodile ( Crocodylus novaeguineae ).

Lorentz National Park; in the northwest the Grasberg mine

One of the most exciting discoveries was Tim Flannery's discovery of a new tree kangaroo called dingiso ( Dentrolagus mbaiso ) in the Tembagapura area at the Freeport mine in 1994 . The animal living on the ground is remarkably trusting and is protected by the Moni tribe and venerated as an ancestor.

threat

The park is also endangered by the rapid population increase in the town of Timika , which has grown to over 100,000 inhabitants and attracted by the mining company Freeport . Before mining, Timika had fewer than 2000 inhabitants. The Indonesian military stationed in large numbers around the mine is improving its meager pay. a. through illegal logging and smuggling of rare birds.

Mining

The world's largest gold mine, the Grasberg Mine , is in the immediate vicinity. Every day, 238,000 tons of spoil are dumped into the Ajkwa River via the Aghawagon and Otomona rivers. Copper and other heavy metals reach the Arafura Sea and have also been found in high concentrations in the park's groundwater. In contrast, the Lorentz National Park Conservation Project sees itself as a joint initiative for the preservation of the communal and ecological heritage in the area of ​​the Lorentz National Park.

45 km southeast of Grasberg in the Hoea Valley is a presumably rich ore deposit called "Mamoa". Geologists compare it to Grasberg, which is how it got the nickname "Grasberg's son". However, fifteen of the world's largest mining companies signed an agreement in 2003 not to geologically explore world heritage parks .

According to the unpublished concession agreement, Freeport's “Contract Area B” overlaps with the Lorentz National Park. Indonesian law allows mining in national parks, as mining is seen as a higher form of land use than a park.

Web links

Ecosystems details with species lists (worldwildlife.org 2001)

(Data from Eric Wikramanayake, Eric Dinerstein: Terrestrial ecoregions of the Indo-Pacific: a conservation assessment. Washington, Island Press , 2001, ISBN 1-55963-923-7 )

cards

Individual evidence

  1. Kal Muller, rtf Section 2, VII Mammals
  2. United Nations Environment Program-World Conservation Monitoring Center (Content Partner); Mark McGinley (Topic Editor). 2008. " Lorentz National Park, Indonesia. " In: Encyclopedia of Earth. Eds. Cutler J. Cleveland (Washington, DC: Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment). [First published in the Encyclopedia of Earth February 11, 2008; Last revised November 21, 2008; Retrieved January 2, 2010]. < [1] >
  3. Tim Flannery, excerpt from 1996 http://www.papuaweb.org/gb/ref/flannery-1996/114-115.html see also Kal Muller and - ( Memento of the original from December 9, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.indonesianfauna.com
  4. ^ Denise Leith: The Politics of Power: Freeport in Suharto's Indonesia. Hawai 2002, ISBN 0-8248-2566-7 , pp. 164-166.