Preah Vihear Forestry Patrol Finds Hundreds of Felled Trees

Cambodian authorities’ ban on community forest patrols didn’t stop an environmental group from returning to Prey Preah Roka Wildlife Sanctuary over the weekend, where they found hundreds of felled resin trees that they say are vital for the local community.

The sanctuary, a 90,000-hectare protected area in Preah Vihear province, lost more than 600 hectares of tree cover in 2020, according to Global Forest Watch data. However, independent patrols of protected areas by environmentalists have been banned since early 2020, leading to reports of rising deforestation.

San Mala, a former Cambodian Youth Network official who now works for the Forest Defenders Project, which he says is part of another group he would not name due to safety concerns, nevertheless made a three-day trip into the wildlife sanctuary from Friday to Sunday, his second visit this year and the first since February.

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