INDONESIA, Pelilit Village, Nusa Penida Island, Bali- June 2011
Funding for planting 33,900 tree saplings and construction of a turtle guard post in exchange for the creation of 33.5 hectares (83 acres) of “no-take” forest and a one-half hectare (1.2 acre) “no-take” turtle-nesting beach for a duration of 10 years.
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Located off the southeast coast of Bali, Nusa Penida Island is dotted with villages that are either engaged in small-scale farming or seaweed culture. The island vegetation is mainly comprised of scrub and expansive savannah, but there are also several pockets of natural forest protecting valuable watershed resources. Through the efforts of a local NGO, Friends of the National Parks Foundation (FNPF), in 2006 all villages on the island unanimously agreed to make bird protection a social and spiritual obligation. Since then FNPF has rehabilitated and released various Indonesian birds, most notably the critically endangered Bali starling. FNPF runs a variety of community development projects including operating a tree-planting nursery where villagers may take saplings to plant at no charge. The village of Pelilit, with about 200 households, owns about 83 acres of community land, of which about 59 acres is naturally forested. The village plans to plant 33,900 trees on a total of 24 acres. They also wish to turn their hawksbill and green turtle nesting beach into a “no-take” area. In return for the protection of 83 acres of forest and 1.2 acres of beach as “no-take” areas for a minimum of 10 years, Seacology is funding the planting of 33,900 tree saplings (under supervision of FNPF) and the construction of a small turtle guard post on the beach.
