Aceh forum urges stronger protection of elephant corridors

Banda Aceh, Aceh (ANTARA) - The Peusangan Elephant Conservation Coordination Forum (FK PECI) is urging stronger protection of Sumatran elephant corridors in Aceh Province to safeguard the habitat of the critically endangered species.

FK PECI Chairwoman Sri Wahyuni said elephant corridors provide essential habitat for protected wildlife and must be preserved for future generations.

“We continue to push for elephant corridor protection. Only 21 of Indonesia’s original 42 elephant corridors remain. Half have disappeared,” she said here Wednesday.

The loss of corridors has contributed to declining elephant populations, with Aceh among the areas reporting the highest number of elephant deaths linked to habitat loss, she said.

The decline has also affected the Peusangan area, forcing elephant herds into increasingly limited spaces. Land clearing, road construction and other activities have reduced the corridors.

Sri Wahyuni said protecting elephant corridors is consistent with Presidential Instruction No. 8 of 2026 on protecting Sumatran and Bornean elephant populations and habitats.

“We welcome the presidential instruction because it regulates elephant corridor protection. We urge governments, state institutions and communities to implement it,” she said.

The instruction stipulates that projects affecting elephant corridors, including road construction, must provide alternatives, such as wildlife tunnels, she said.

“For plantations, areas for elephants and their corridors must be provided, along with feeding grounds. This is what we continue to promote for elephant conservation in Aceh,” she said.

Sri Wahyuni said the presidential instruction means government agencies and police can no longer ignore activities affecting elephant corridors and must ensure compliance with its provisions.

“We urge communities to work together to protect elephant corridors. These are elephants’ habitats, increasingly squeezed by human activities in forest areas,” she said.

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Translator: M.Haris SA, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Bayu Prasetyo
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