KOCP

Kinabatangan Orangutan Conservation Project

The Kinabatangan Orangutan Conservation Project (KOCP) is an offshoot of Hutan, a French non-governmental organization that was founded in 1998 by conservation scientists Marc Ancrenaz and Dr. Isabelle Lackman. KOCP studies how orangutans adapt to changes in their natural habitat and tries to find ways to achieve long-term survival of this endangered species in exploited areas, especially within and around the proposed Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary in the eastern Sabah section of Malaysia on the island of Borneo.

Sabah is home to 11,000 orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus morio), making it one of the major strongholds for the conservation of the species. However, orangutan numbers in Sabah have decreased dramatically over the past decades because of habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation, primarily due to poor logging practices and subsequent land conversion to agriculture. KOCP addresses the severe threat of habitat loss to the survival of orangutans in the wild.

The project staff includes 35 villagers of Sukau, where the project is based. It is hoped that the villagers will ultimately assume responsibility for the project and to this end, a long-term intensive training program has been instituted. KOCP has also attracted a number of Malaysian students pursuing their post-graduate studies in the field.

KOCP promotes the importance of maintaining viable orangutan habitat through the sustainable management of forests outside of protected areas. Therefore innovative environmental management practices are necessary to be developed and to be linked with the local communities to ensure the long-term survival of orangutans in Sabah.

The vision for this project embraces two different levels:

  • Locally, KOCP aims at understanding how orangutans can survive in highly degraded forests and to further the re-establishment of the ecological integrity of the Lower Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary (home to about 1,000 orang-utans).
  • Regionally (State level), KOCP aims at designing and assisting relevant partners to implement land-use strategies that are respective of the ecological needs of orangutans and that are compatible with their long-term survival.

Recent surveys by Hutan have established that 65% of the remaining orangutan populations are currently found in unprotected areas – forests exploited for timber or plantations of acacias and oil palms – which increases their vulnerability and the risk of further population loss. This new situation results in several major issues: (1) increased conflicts between apes and human activities; (2) intense population fragmentation and isolation jeopardizing a proper gene flow and resulting in local extinction; (3) increased sensitivity to natural and man-made catastrophes. Embracing a wide landscape conservation approach and addressing the fate of orangutan populations living in unprotected areas are therefore a crucial need to ensure the long-term future of wild orangutans in Borneo.

Help the Orangutan Conservancy support work like KOCP by becoming a member today!