Iwokrama opens southern ranger station
Stabroek News
March 31, 2003
A new ranger station was commissioned at Corkwood, located on the southern boundary of Iwokrama’s rainforest reserve last Thursday. The commissioning was a part of other events including the graduation of twelve forest rangers and a tour of Iwokrama’s canopy walkway.
Among those attending the dedication ceremony were the Minister of Amerindian Affairs, Carolyn Rodrigues; British High Commissioner, Stephen Hiscock; Executive Director of Conservation International (CI) (Guyana), Joe Singh; PNCR member, Lance Carberry; First Secretary of the Suriname Embassy in Georgetown, Charlo Doedal and Chairman of the North Rupununi District Development Board (NRDDB), Rodney Davis.
The new ranger station will enhance the capacity of Iwokrama to effectively monitor the grounds of the reserve, protecting them against the poaching of reserve wildlife.
Trekforce Expeditions, a UK based charity organisation and Iwokrama Partner, together with a team of volunteers from the UK, constructed the building in a few weeks.
Clarence Johnson, in charge of administration of the Iwokrama Field Station at Kurupukari, Essequibo River, said that at least 3 rangers would be stationed at the Corkwood location at any one time. Efforts are being made by Iwokrama to have a rank from the Guyana Police Force stationed there as well.
Another ranger station to be located at the northern entrance to the reserve, is to be completed by July. This will also be built by Trekforce Expeditions, which has 12 years experience conducting expeditions in tropical rainforests. It has field bases in Central America and South East Asia.
Ian Craddock of Trekforce told Stabroek News that the two ranger stations would work in tandem to curb illegal hunting on Iwokrama’s reserve by placing a seal on the weapons of persons entering through one end of the reserve and removing the seal at the other end. In addition to giving adventurous expeditions through the Iwokrama reserve, Trekforce also intends to enhance the road safety of the reserve, in collaboration with Iwokrama, by posting signs at various points of the section of the Linden/Lethem Road which passes through the reserve. The road is in good condition which may encourage drivers to speed. Because of this, the monitoring of vehicles is also expected to be undertaken by the stations.
Stephen Hiscock, in a brief statement, urged the Trekforce volunteers to take the message of conservation back with them. “As partners of Iwokrama, the aim was long-term sustainability, not short-term fixes.”
In her opening remarks, outgoing Director General Dr Kathryn Monk said, “it gives me particular pleasure because all three have been initiated and completed during my two-year term as turnaround leader of Iwokrama, as it moved from being a centre of innovative thinking and experimentation on sustainable development focused on forests and forest margin communities, to the realisation that the world is not going to continue to fund such centres as it has done in the past...Iwokrama has always been a donor funded programme.” Her remarks came in light of announcements of cutbacks made at Iwokrama. At a recent press conference, it was announced that Dr Monk was not going to renew her contract as Director-General when it comes to an end on May 31, as the organisation was not in a position financially to support such a contract. In the interim, it had been announced, Dr. Graham Watkins, a Senior Wildlife Biologist, was to be appointed Acting Director-General. The Centre is also restructuring, with a number of persons being let go. Iwokrama’s reserve, located some 300 kilometres south of Georgetown, encompasses 3,600 square kilometres of pristine tropical forests, and is home to many species of plants and animals.
