Tourism Seen As Forest Risk

[george]

Tourism seen as forest risk

TAK: -- Tourism and expansion of monoculture crops pose a grave threat to the western forest complex and people living in the area, conservationists said.

About 50 conservationists who represented the Provincial Conservation Forum (PCF) in Kamphaeng Phet, Tak, Nakhon Sawan, Suphan Buri and Uthai Thani, raised concerns about the issue during a meeting in Uthai Thani, saying they would conduct a study on the problem and make recommendations to the government.

Phra Khru Attakitnantakun, PCF president, said deforestation was widespread in the forest complex.

``The government's asset capitalisation scheme and inadvertent efforts to regulate land holdings without actual knowledge of what is going on are causing forest loss,'' the monk said.

Rataya Chantian, president of the Seub Nakasathien Foundation, said 40,000 villagers live in the forest complex while nearly 200,000 are in the buffer area.

``Many still keep to the tradition of rotational farming in a self-reliant way which has little impact on the forest. Others, however, are lured into monoculture crops, such as corn and rubber, while land developers are making an attempt to open resorts,'' she said.

--Bangkok Post 2005-06-20