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One of the biggest threats to the continued survival of orang utans, elephants, sun bears and other wildlife in Borneo is the increasing fragmentation of remaining forest habitat for conversion to oil palm and other agricultural uses. This fragmentation leads to increased isolation of individuals and groups, and reduced access to food and mates. This can impact the long-term viability and survival of entire species.
To address this growing problem, LEAP set up a Malaysian non-profit corporation called LEAP Conservancy in 2006 to purchase and hold critical parcels of land in trust for conservation. LEAP Conservancy focuses particularly on parcels forming links between important habitat areas and which are slated for imminent sale and/or conversion to oil palm plantation.
Lower Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary
A major focal region for LEAP Conservancy is the incredibly beautiful and diverse Lower Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary (LKWS), which lies along an approximately 80 kilometer stretch of the Kinabatangan River in eastern Sabah. This sanctuary encompasses no less than seven distinct ecoregions including rare freshwater swamp and seasonally flooded riparian forest, as well as lowland dipterocarp and mangrove forests. It is also home to an amazing array of wildlife – including a population of over 1,000 orang utans, Borneo pygmy elephants, proboscis monkeys and eight other species of primate, clouded leopards, and eight species of hornbill, to name just a few. Unfortunately, this 26,000 hectare sanctuary is divided into a series of increasingly isolated and narrow fragments of forest (called Lots) hugging the banks of the river. Interspersed among the sanctuary Lots are numerous privately-owned parcels of land that act as potential barriers to wildlife movement along the river and between sanctuary Lots. As these private lands are increasingly sold off for conversion to oil palm agriculture, the barriers also increase, as the plantations are very difficult for many animals to cross safely. LEAP Conservancy’s goal is to identify and purchase strategic parcels of private land within this patchwork to create continuous protected habitat for the wildlife in the region.
LEAP Conservancy has already acquired several critical parcels in the LKWS, in conjunction with various partners. In 2007, LEAP purchased five parcels of land in partnership with The Alexander Abraham Foundation and The Shared Earth Foundation. With these five parcels, LEAP was able to establish a permanent wildlife corridor between Lot 1 and the Pangi Forest Reserve, an area of particular diversity. In 2008, LEAP initiated with the World Land Trust (WLT), a UK charity, to negotiate the purchase of an important 222-acre corridor between two other sanctuary Lots – habitat critical to the long-term survival of over 600 orang utans – which is under threat of immediate sale to oil palm interests.
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