Balikpapan, East Kalimantan: The Berau district administration is temporarily taking over the management of Sangalaki Island, a breeding ground for green turtles that has been declared a conservation area by the government, following a dispute between residents and conservationists, Jakarta Globe reported news.
There are about 20 to 30 breeding sites scattered across the island, which is also a popular diving site, and each spot can produce up to 100 eggs.
Locals have been complaining about the harsh treatment they receive from conservationists, who in turn accuse them of stealing turtle eggs. Residents of the area recently told the Tribun Kaltim newspaper that conservation officials had even extorted fishermen.
The dispute has forced conservationists to leave the island and has left thousands of turtle eggs and baby turtles abandoned.
Berau administration officials said they would temporarily take over the conservation activities with the help of local officials and police pending a decision on the matter from the central government.
The island was previously managed by the East Kalimantan Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA).
“The Berau district administration will take over the supervision of the island until a joint decision to solve the island dispute is issued,” district head Achmad Rifai said on Thursday.
“We’re ready to manage the island.”
He added that the dispute arose because local fishermen felt they were being sidelined by conservationists, led by the BKSDA working in cooperation with the World Wide Fund for Nature and the Berau Turtle Foundation. They said that the turtle conservation activities were made so exclusive that even the locals were not allowed to visit the island, while NGOs and other organizations were free to enter and leave the island as they pleased.
Achmad said that in future, the residents of the island should be empowered and involved in the conservation efforts, adding that every policy and regulation must include citizens to prevent the supervision of the island becoming too rigid.
“The BKSDA must evaluate its policy on how it manages the island. The people must be involved. They live there, so they shouldn’t just be spectators,” he said.
The district administration and the Berau district legislature have also rejected the BKSDA’s request to manage the island again. Saga, a deputy legislative speaker, said the rejection was meant to thwart new problems from arising regarding the administration of the island.