<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/" xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/" xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/" >

	<channel>
		<title>Conservation news</title>
		<atom:link href="https://news.mongabay.com/feed/?topic=karst&#038;type=post" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
		<link>https://news.mongabay.com/list/karst/</link>
		<description>Environmental science and conservation news</description>
		<lastBuildDate>Mon, 07 Sep 2026 20:43:34 +0000</lastBuildDate>
		<language>en-US</language>
		<sy:updatePeriod>hourly</sy:updatePeriod>
		<sy:updateFrequency>1</sy:updateFrequency>
		<generator>https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0.4</generator>

<image>
	<url>https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2020/05/16160320/cropped-mongabay_icon-32x32.png</url>
	<title>News on Karst</title>
	<link>https://news.mongabay.com/list/karst/</link>
	<width>32</width>
	<height>32</height>
</image> 
				<item>
					<title>In Myanmar’s limestone hills, people and bats are often too close for comfort</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/02/in-myanmars-limestone-hills-people-and-bats-are-often-too-close-for-comfort/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/02/in-myanmars-limestone-hills-people-and-bats-are-often-too-close-for-comfort/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>25 Feb 2026 07:28:08 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Carolyn Cowan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/02/25070646/Bat01_SaMyoZaw-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=314743</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Myanmar, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Bats, Biodiversity, Caves, Conservation, Diseases, Environment, Habitat Degradation, Karst, Mammals, Research, Tourism, Wildlife, and Zoonotic Diseases]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Limestone karst is like an island. Each rocky formation rises distinctly out of the surrounding landscape. Over time, an array of highly specialized species, each adapted to that particular landform’s jagged forests and dark caves, have evolved. As a result, many karst species are endemic and perilously rare. Myanmar is home to Southeast Asia’s second-largest [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Limestone karst is like an island. Each rocky formation rises distinctly out of the surrounding landscape. Over time, an array of highly specialized species, each adapted to that particular landform’s jagged forests and dark caves, have evolved. As a result, many karst species are endemic and perilously rare. Myanmar is home to Southeast Asia’s second-largest area of limestone karst, after Indonesia; its rugged peaks cover a total of more than 80,000 square kilometers (31,000 square miles. The area hosts the entire global population of Popa langurs (Trachypithecus popa), one of the world’s most recently described primates, and scores of gecko species described only in the past decade. Scientists say countless others likely remain tucked away in obscurity, waiting to be discovered. Yet despite its biodiversity, less than 1% of Myanmar’s limestone karst is formally protected, prompting concerns from conservationists about fragile wildlife populations that are facing mounting pressure amid a boom in clandestine mining and deforestation across the country to meet rising demand for cement, minerals and timber. Now, a recent census of cave-dwelling bats in northeast Myanmar’s Shan state indicates many karst caverns are becoming increasingly inhospitable for the winged mammals due to human disturbance, posing risks to both bats and people. “Bats are natural reservoirs for many viruses, including coronaviruses,” said Thura Soe Min Htike, conservation officer at the Nature Conservation Society–Myanmar and a co-author of the study. “Understanding how bats interact with their environment, and how humans interact with bats, is an important first step in preventing&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2026/02/in-myanmars-limestone-hills-people-and-bats-are-often-too-close-for-comfort/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2026/02/in-myanmars-limestone-hills-people-and-bats-are-often-too-close-for-comfort/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-314743</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>On remote Indonesia karst outpost, Indigenous farmers fear the silence of the yams</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/on-remote-indonesia-karst-outpost-indigenous-farmers-fear-the-silence-of-the-yams/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/on-remote-indonesia-karst-outpost-indigenous-farmers-fear-the-silence-of-the-yams/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>09 Jun 2025 00:11:44 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Sarjan Lahay]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Philip Jacobson]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2025/06/03105812/Deslin-Kalaeng-1-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=300098</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Central Sulawesi, Indonesia, Southeast Asia, and Sulawesi]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Agriculture, Biodiversity, Botany, Crops, Culture, Environment, Farming, Food, food security, Indigenous Peoples, Indigenous Rights, Industry, Islands, Karst, Land Rights, Mining, Pollution, and Social Justice]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[BANGGAI ISLANDS, Indonesia — Dewdrops cling to weeds in the Banggai archipelago as Deslin Kalaeng grasps a large round root vegetable from the ancient karst. “That’s the Banggai yam,” she says, shortly after daybreak over the Maluku Sea. “It’s our source of life, other than rice.” Deslin is known as the Ibu Kampung — “village [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[BANGGAI ISLANDS, Indonesia — Dewdrops cling to weeds in the Banggai archipelago as Deslin Kalaeng grasps a large round root vegetable from the ancient karst. “That’s the Banggai yam,” she says, shortly after daybreak over the Maluku Sea. “It’s our source of life, other than rice.” Deslin is known as the Ibu Kampung — “village mother” — of the Tolobuono Komba-komba Indigenous community here in the center of Peleng, one of a cluster of karst islands just east of the much larger Indonesian island of Sulawesi. That honorific reflects Deslin’s advocacy against plans to quarry the limestone that surrounds Komba-komba village, and that makes up around 97% of the rest of the island chain, known as the Banggai Islands. Karst systems like the Banggai Islands are landscapes of soluble bedrock riddled with caves and underground rivers formed by erosion from acidic water over millions of years. Around 15% of the world’s land surface is karst, or carbonate rocks, the most common of which are dolostone and limestone. Indonesia accounts for around 155,000 square kilometers (60,000 square miles) of karst landscapes. Almost a tenth of this area has experienced degrees of environmental damage, mainly due to mining, according to Gadjah Mada University karst expert Eko Haryono. The limestone karst in the Banggai Islands is an intact Swiss cheese of caves and springs that sustain this archipelago of around 130,000 people with water to drink — and to irrigate the nutrient-dense yams harvested by women like Deslin. People here speak of no&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/on-remote-indonesia-karst-outpost-indigenous-farmers-fear-the-silence-of-the-yams/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2025/06/on-remote-indonesia-karst-outpost-indigenous-farmers-fear-the-silence-of-the-yams/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-300098</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>For Vietnam’s rare reptiles, lack of captive populations may spell doom</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/09/for-vietnams-rare-reptiles-lack-of-captive-populations-may-spell-doom/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/09/for-vietnams-rare-reptiles-lack-of-captive-populations-may-spell-doom/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>21 Sep 2023 06:42:36 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Carolyn Cowan]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2023/09/21062217/Endangered-psychedelic-rock-gecko-Cnemaspis-psychedelica-by-Thomas-Ziegler-768x512.png" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=273490</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Southeast Asia, and Vietnam]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Captive Breeding, Conservation, Critically Endangered Species, Endangered Species, Environment, Ex-situ Conservation, Extinction, Forests, Global Environmental Crisis, Green, Habitat Loss, Herps, Karst, Lizards, Pet Trade, Reintroductions, Reptiles, Snakes, Traditional Medicine, Turtles And Tortoises, Wildlife, Wildlife Trade, and Zoos]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Vietnam is the meeting point of two incredibly biodiverse ecoregions, where the tropical ecosystems of Southeast Asia merge seamlessly with the temperate biomes of mainland Asia. Across a terrain of mountain ranges, vast plains and limestone cliffs and caves, animals and plants have evolved into a rich diversity of forms. But more needs to be [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Vietnam is the meeting point of two incredibly biodiverse ecoregions, where the tropical ecosystems of Southeast Asia merge seamlessly with the temperate biomes of mainland Asia. Across a terrain of mountain ranges, vast plains and limestone cliffs and caves, animals and plants have evolved into a rich diversity of forms. But more needs to be done to protect key species groups, such as reptiles, from extinction, according to a new study. Researchers from Vietnam and Germany examining the status, threats and conservation priorities of Vietnam&#8217;s impressive total of 484 known reptile species found that many are excruciatingly rare and understudied and that most face serious threats from habitat loss and overharvesting for traditional medicine, the pet trade and human consumption. In their findings, published in Nature Conservation, the team provide a baseline assessment of the health of Vietnam’s reptiles, identifying a list of the country’s top 50 most threatened reptiles to guide future research and conservation efforts. They also earmark the country’s central Annamite Mountains range as the most important hotspot of reptile diversity in the country, home to 32 species found nowhere else on Earth. “Vietnam belongs to the global biodiversity hotspots, with a high number of species being discovered every year,” study co-author Thomas Ziegler, coordinator of biodiversity and nature conservation projects for Vietnam and Laos at Cologne Zoological Garden in Germany, told Mongabay in an email. “Our work group has described almost 90 new species of reptiles from Vietnam in the past two decades alone.” Mountainous, remote&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2023/09/for-vietnams-rare-reptiles-lack-of-captive-populations-may-spell-doom/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2023/09/for-vietnams-rare-reptiles-lack-of-captive-populations-may-spell-doom/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-273490</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>In Thailand&#8217;s deep south, a fight to stop quarrying in a global geopark</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/07/in-thailands-deep-south-a-fight-to-stop-quarrying-in-a-global-geopark/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/07/in-thailands-deep-south-a-fight-to-stop-quarrying-in-a-global-geopark/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>06 Jul 2022 03:00:28 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Kannikar Petchkaew]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2022/07/01121035/15-Ibrahim-with-the-underground-water-source-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=257900</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Land rights and extractives]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Activism, Biodiversity, Biodiversity Hotspots, Conservation, Deforestation, Degraded Lands, Drivers Of Deforestation, Environment, forest degradation, Forests, Governance, Habitat Degradation, Karst, Mining, Politics, Protests, Tropical Deforestation, and Tropical Forests]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[THUNG NUI, Thailand — Firdaw Manjeed says she’s glad to be back to school for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Here in Thailand’s southernmost province, Satun, on the Andaman Sea coast, it&#8217;s the first day after two years of depressing solitude away from friends. More than 1,600 students and 90 teachers buzz [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[THUNG NUI, Thailand — Firdaw Manjeed says she’s glad to be back to school for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Here in Thailand’s southernmost province, Satun, on the Andaman Sea coast, it&#8217;s the first day after two years of depressing solitude away from friends. More than 1,600 students and 90 teachers buzz and swarm everywhere. The 17-year-old says she’s happy to see her school again, and to know that everyone is safe. And, much to her relief, Khao Toh Krang, the limestone mountain that shadows her school, is still there. &#8220;I was afraid we wouldn&#8217;t see it again when we returned,&#8221; Firdaw says. According to Thai law, no rock quarry, mine or other extractive concession is allowed within 500 meters (1,640 feet) of a community or household. Khao Toh Krang stands 380 m (1,250 ft) from Firdaw’s school. Students of Arunsart Wittaya school gather before morning class, with Khao Toh Krang in the background. Image by Karnt Thassanaphak for Mongabay. Firdaw and her friends are no strangers to the mountain. They’ve seen it from their classroom windows, and before that from their bedrooms, since they were born. They’ve visited it for biology class to search for tiny rare snails, and for archaeology class to observe 11 limestone caves and the thousands of bats that make their home there. In 2016, when Firdaw was in sixth grade, the Thai government opened a rock quarrying concession on Khao Toh Krang. Poothonganda Company Limited, a mining firm with multiple operations&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2022/07/in-thailands-deep-south-a-fight-to-stop-quarrying-in-a-global-geopark/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/07/in-thailands-deep-south-a-fight-to-stop-quarrying-in-a-global-geopark/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-257900</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Environment award stokes urge to save Indonesia’s karst landscape</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/05/environment-award-stokes-urge-to-save-indonesias-karst-landscape/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/05/environment-award-stokes-urge-to-save-indonesias-karst-landscape/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>16 May 2022 15:49:55 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Donny IqbalWarief Djajanto Basorie]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Philip Jacobson]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2022/05/16153420/1-Highline-an-outdoor-activity-as-well-as-a-conservation-effort-in-the-Karst-Citatah-area-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=255870</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Indonesia, Southeast Asia, and West Java]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Activism, Caves, Community-based Conservation, Conservation, Conservation leadership, Degraded Lands, Environment, Illegal Mining, Karst, Land Conflict, Mining, NGOs, Pollution, and Protected Areas]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[“Recover Citatah Karst, Make People Prosper.” That’s the call printed in red letters on a huge white banner pinned on a limestone cliff in Indonesia’s West Java province. “We put up the banner so that anyone could read it — citizens, cliff climbers, the government — as a means of our campaign,” says Deden Syarif [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[“Recover Citatah Karst, Make People Prosper.” That’s the call printed in red letters on a huge white banner pinned on a limestone cliff in Indonesia’s West Java province. “We put up the banner so that anyone could read it — citizens, cliff climbers, the government — as a means of our campaign,” says Deden Syarif Hidayat, founder and head of the Citatah Karst Care Youth Forum. The environmental advocacy group operates to conserve a limestone-based karst landscape in four villages in Padalarang subdistrict, West Bandung district. Citatah is one of the four villages. What sparked Deden to start his conservation drive was the unsightly environmental damage in the area: mountain destruction, groundwater depletion, air and noise pollution, land erosion, animal extinction, and farmland loss. The vicinity was under threat from unsupervised mining and a confusing proliferation of permits. Aerial photo of karst conditions in Padalarang, West Java, some time ago. The vicinity was under threat from unsupervised mining and a confusing proliferation of permits. Image by Donny Iqbal/Mongabay. Much of the mining activity is illegal and ignores the impact to the environment, says Deden, 37, who works as an Islamic studies instructor at Bandung State Polytechnic, a local higher education institute. Last year, the group received a special recognition for its efforts: the Kalpataru Award, given by Indonesia’s Ministry of Environment and Forestry to honor individuals or groups for service in conservation. Karst is a limestone landscape easily dissolved by rainwater, often making formations of ridges, towers, fissures, caves and&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2022/05/environment-award-stokes-urge-to-save-indonesias-karst-landscape/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/05/environment-award-stokes-urge-to-save-indonesias-karst-landscape/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-255870</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Iwan Dento, ‘hero’ of South Sulawesi’s karst mountains</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/04/iwan-dento-hero-of-south-sulawesis-karst-mountains/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/04/iwan-dento-hero-of-south-sulawesis-karst-mountains/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>25 Apr 2022 14:53:20 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Wahyu Chandra]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Philip Jacobson]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2022/04/22142924/1-Iwan-Dento-is-also-active-in-promoting-organic-agriculture-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=255069</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Indonesia, South Sulawesi, Southeast Asia, and Sulawesi]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Activism, Community-based Conservation, Conservation, Conservation leadership, Development, Ecotourism, Environment, Environmental Law, Governance, Karst, Mining, Mountains, Politics, Tourism, and Travel]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[MAROS, Indonesia — Forty-two kilometers, or about 26 miles, north of the bustling port city of Makassar in Indonesia’s South Sulawesi province, undulating karst formations dominate the landscape. Covering an area of about 43,000 hectares (106,300 acres), the mountains sprawl across two administrative districts, Maros and the Pangkajene Islands (Pangkep), forming the second-largest karst area [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[MAROS, Indonesia — Forty-two kilometers, or about 26 miles, north of the bustling port city of Makassar in Indonesia’s South Sulawesi province, undulating karst formations dominate the landscape. Covering an area of about 43,000 hectares (106,300 acres), the mountains sprawl across two administrative districts, Maros and the Pangkajene Islands (Pangkep), forming the second-largest karst area in the world. Hidden in the limestone are hundreds of caves, many of which contain evidence of prehistoric civilization dating back more than 40,000 years. Several species endemic to Sulawesi, such as the crested black macaque (of “monkey selfie” fame), have also been found in the region. In Salenrang village lies Rammang-rammang, a cluster of karst formations with an inspiring story: once mined for marble and limestone, the area is now protected and home to a popular ecotourism initiative. Resident and environmental activist Muhammad Ikhwan, known as Iwan Dento, who led the fight to stop the mining activities and establish ecotourism in their place, was recently recognized as a “hero” of Rammang-rammang in an annual awards ceremony for social impact held by Indonesia’s top national news TV station. Together with other residents of Salenrang, for more than 10 years Iwan struggled to defend his homeland from the threat of extractive industries. Before it became a tourism village, inaugurated by Indonesia’s tourism minister in 2021, the area was being degraded by limestone and marble quarries. A cement mine was also located nearby. Iwan Dento receiving the Kick Andy Heroes award. Image courtesy of Iwan Dento. “The&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2022/04/iwan-dento-hero-of-south-sulawesis-karst-mountains/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2022/04/iwan-dento-hero-of-south-sulawesis-karst-mountains/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-255069</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Activists seek protection for Indonesia’s karst amid building boom pressure</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/12/activists-seek-protection-for-indonesias-karst-amid-building-boom-pressure/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/12/activists-seek-protection-for-indonesias-karst-amid-building-boom-pressure/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>05 Dec 2017 22:16:06 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Tommy Apriando]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Basten Gokkon]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/12/05080840/papua_0779-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=201839</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Indonesia, Java, Kalimantan, Papua, Southeast Asia, Sulawesi, and Sumatra]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Activism, Biodiversity, Conservation, Ecosystems, Environment, Global Environmental Crisis, Habitat Degradation, Habitat Loss, Karst, and Mining]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[YOGYAKARTA, Indonesia — Activists in Indonesia have called for the government to issue a new regulation aimed at better protecting the country’s karsts, the unique rocky landscapes that are home to species found nowhere else on Earth. The current regulation governing the management of this limestone topography dates from 2012, issued by the ministry for [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[YOGYAKARTA, Indonesia — Activists in Indonesia have called for the government to issue a new regulation aimed at better protecting the country’s karsts, the unique rocky landscapes that are home to species found nowhere else on Earth. The current regulation governing the management of this limestone topography dates from 2012, issued by the ministry for mines and energy, which frames karst preservation in terms of its geological importance rather than its role as an ecosystem supporting a diverse range of animal and plant life. “We need a regulation with a special agency that oversees the function, exploitation and protection of karst ecosystems,” said Wahyu Perdana, campaign manager for food, water and essential ecosystems at the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi), at a public discussion last month. Mining activities in a karst area in Rembang, Central Java. Photo by Tommy Apriando/Mongabay-Indonesia. Petrasa Wacana, coordinator for conservation, advocacy and campaign at the Indonesian Speleology Community (MSI), called for a government regulation — which would supersede the ministerial one — that would more holistically govern the management of karst ecosystems, including allowing better conservation efforts and imposing stricter punishment for damage to or destruction of these landscapes. A draft government regulation, known as an RPP, has been in the works since 2010, but opposition from the ministry of mines and the cement industry — which has long eyed the mineral deposits that make up the karst — has prevented it from being issued, according to Petrasa. “If the government continues to be&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2017/12/activists-seek-protection-for-indonesias-karst-amid-building-boom-pressure/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/12/activists-seek-protection-for-indonesias-karst-amid-building-boom-pressure/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-201839</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Thousands of anti-coal activists march in Jakarta, deliver complaints to anti-graft agency</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/03/thousands-of-anti-coal-activists-march-in-jakarta-deliver-complaints-to-anti-graft-agency/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/03/thousands-of-anti-coal-activists-march-in-jakarta-deliver-complaints-to-anti-graft-agency/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>29 Mar 2017 10:16:02 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Zamzami]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
							<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
										<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/03/30123530/GP0STQML3_PressMedia-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=194447</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Indonesia, Jakarta, Java, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Activism, Clean Energy, Climate Change, Coal, Corruption, Energy, Environment, Karst, Mining, and Pollution]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Around 2,000 people from across the Indonesian archipelago gathered in Jakarta last week to call for investigations into cases of alleged corruption in the coal and mineral industry. Demonstrators visited the office of Indonesia&#8217;s Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), bringing forward cases related to Indonesia&#8217;s extractive industries. Junainah, a 36-year-old resident of Rotang, in the Batang [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Around 2,000 people from across the Indonesian archipelago gathered in Jakarta last week to call for investigations into cases of alleged corruption in the coal and mineral industry. Demonstrators visited the office of Indonesia&#8217;s Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), bringing forward cases related to Indonesia&#8217;s extractive industries. Junainah, a 36-year-old resident of Rotang, in the Batang district of Central Java, made the eight-hour journey to Jakarta with her husband and children, and 600 other Batang residents. Since 2012, people in Batang have been fighting against the planned construction of a 2,000-megawatt coal-fired power plant. On March 23, at Jakarta&#8217;s Istiqlal mosque, the convoy from Batang joined protestors from other regions affected by coal plants or coal mines: Jepara and Cilicap in Central Java; Cirebon, Pelabuhan Ratu and Indramayu in West Java; Labuan in western Java&#8217;s Banten province; Bengkulu in southern Sumatra; and various parts of Kalimantan. People gather in front of the Corruption Eradication Commission building during a march in Jakarta, part of the global Break Free 2017 events. Photo by Jurnasyanto Sukarno/Greenpeace. &#8220;We continue to fight against the Batang coal-fired power plant,&#8221; said Junainah, who like many Indonesians goes by one name. &#8220;We have already been fighting for five years. Our fields are already finished. My husband is a fisherman and his fishing grounds are already covered with mud that was dug up during the construction of a dock.&#8221; Junainah&#8217;s husband, 41-year-old Karnoto, said he used to catch crabs, squid, fish and shrimp about three miles offshore. &#8220;Mud was dumped&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2017/03/thousands-of-anti-coal-activists-march-in-jakarta-deliver-complaints-to-anti-graft-agency/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/03/thousands-of-anti-coal-activists-march-in-jakarta-deliver-complaints-to-anti-graft-agency/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-194447</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Newly discovered gecko loses scales in &#8216;really bizarre&#8217; behavior</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/02/newly-discovered-gecko-loses-scales-in-really-bizarre-behavior/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/02/newly-discovered-gecko-loses-scales-in-really-bizarre-behavior/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>16 Feb 2017 17:21:16 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Benji Jones]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Morgan Erickson-Davis]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/02/16171818/Geckolepis-megalepis-scaleless-photo-Frank-Glaw1-683x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=193292</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Africa, East Africa, and Madagascar]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Adaptation, Deforestation, Environment, Forest Loss, Forests, Habitat Degradation, Habitat Loss, Karst, Lizards, Reptiles, Research, Species Discovery, Strange, Tropical Forests, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[When at risk, go naked. At least that’s the defense strategy of a newly described species of gecko that can shed its scales in the face – or in this case, mouth – of danger. Geckolepis megalepis is the latest of five species to be named in the so-called “fish-scaled” gecko genus – a group [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[When at risk, go naked. At least that’s the defense strategy of a newly described species of gecko that can shed its scales in the face – or in this case, mouth – of danger. Geckolepis megalepis is the latest of five species to be named in the so-called “fish-scaled” gecko genus – a group with a unique approach to predator evasion. When captured in the jaws of a predator, these geckos can shed their scales – along with a layer of skin, connective tissue, and fat – and literally slip away from harm, researchers say. The predator is left to dislodge a mouthful of scales while the denuded gecko seeks refuge, where its scales will regrow in a matter of weeks. Debuted last week in the journal PeerJ, G. megalepis is a master of this trick. Indeed, scientists believe that the new gecko can shed and regenerate its scales more quickly than any of the other fish-scaled species. “Nothing is adapted to do this as well as G. megalepis,” Mark Scherz, a doctoral student at Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich and lead author of the study, told Mongabay. “It’s really bizarre how much energy the gecko is willing to throw away to stay alive.” The new fish-scale gecko, Geckolepis megalepis, has the largest body scales of all geckos. This nocturnal lizard was discovered in the &#8220;tsingy&#8221; karst formations in northern Madagascar. Photo by Frank Glaw, 2016 “But losing scales is better than being food,” he adds. The researchers believe&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2017/02/newly-discovered-gecko-loses-scales-in-really-bizarre-behavior/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/02/newly-discovered-gecko-loses-scales-in-really-bizarre-behavior/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-193292</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>New study analyzes biggest threats to Southeast Asian biodiversity</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/01/new-study-analyzes-biggest-threats-to-southeast-asian-biodiversity/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/01/new-study-analyzes-biggest-threats-to-southeast-asian-biodiversity/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>12 Jan 2017 16:15:36 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Mike Gaworecki]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Mike Gaworecki]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2017/01/12154826/sabah_aerial_3019-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=192385</guid>

					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Animals, Biodiversity, Deforestation, Environment, Forests, Global Environmental Crisis, Habitat Degradation, Habitat Loss, Karst, Mining, Palm Oil, Pulp And Paper, Rainforests, Research, Tropical Forests, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Southeast Asia is a global biodiversity hotspot — but with about four billion people living in the region, the pressures on that biodiversity are severe. Deforestation rates in Southeast Asia are some of the highest anywhere on Earth, and the rate of mining is the highest in the tropics. The region also has a number [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Southeast Asia is a global biodiversity hotspot — but with about four billion people living in the region, the pressures on that biodiversity are severe. Deforestation rates in Southeast Asia are some of the highest anywhere on Earth, and the rate of mining is the highest in the tropics. The region also has a number of hydropower dams under construction, and consumption of species for traditional medicines is particularly pronounced. These issues are not unique to Southeast Asia, of course, as they are symptomatic of those facing tropical regions around the globe. But a new study published in the journal Ecosphere analyzing all of the threats to Southeast Asia’s biodiversity concludes that the region “may be under some of the greatest levels of biotic threat.” “Of all regional threats the two main drivers of biodiversity loss in the Asian tropics are hunting and trade, and habitat loss,” Alice Hughes, an associate professor in landscape ecology and conservation with the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the study’s author, told Mongabay. Hughes found that, region-wide, Southeast Asia has lost 14.5 percent of its forests in the last 15 years and may have already lost more than 50 percent of its original forest cover. Some areas, including parts of Indonesia, are projected to lose up to 98 percent of their forests by 2022 and the habitat for wildlife that it represents. The main drivers of this forest loss is conversion for agriculture: rubber, oil palm, and pulp and paper plantations have proliferated throughout&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2017/01/new-study-analyzes-biggest-threats-to-southeast-asian-biodiversity/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2017/01/new-study-analyzes-biggest-threats-to-southeast-asian-biodiversity/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-192385</doi>				</item>
						<item>
					<title>Stone, Sand, Water: the key ingredients changing the Salween landscape</title>
					<link>https://news.mongabay.com/2016/12/stone-sand-water-the-key-ingredients-changing-the-salween-landscape/</link>
					<comments>https://news.mongabay.com/2016/12/stone-sand-water-the-key-ingredients-changing-the-salween-landscape/#respond</comments>
					<pubDate>21 Dec 2016 15:52:31 +0000</pubDate>
											<dc:creator>
							<![CDATA[Demelza Stokes]]>
						</dc:creator>
										<author>
						<![CDATA[Isabel Esterman]]>
					</author>
															<enclosure url="https://imgs.mongabay.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2016/12/21121616/La-Teh-Kaw-Ku-no-blur-768x512.jpg" type="image/jpeg" />
					<guid isPermaLink="false">https://news.mongabay.com/?p=191845</guid>

											<reporting-project>
							<![CDATA[Mekong dams and Southeast Asian infrastructure]]>
						</reporting-project>
					
											<locations>
							<![CDATA[Asia, Myanmar, and Southeast Asia]]>
						</locations>
					
											<topic-tags>
							<![CDATA[Alternative Energy, Animals, Bats, Biodiversity, Dams, Energy, Environment, Habitat Loss, Hydroelectric Power, Infrastructure, Karst, Mammals, Mining, Renewable Energy, and Wildlife]]>
						</topic-tags>
					
					
											<description>
							<![CDATA[Tun Lin has a unique occupation: he is the security guard at Linno limestone karst cave on the bank of the Salween River in Myanmar’s southeast Karen (Kayin) State. He earns 80,000 Myanmar kyat (around $60) per month to guard the entrance to the cave, the contents of which &#8212; common nectar bats (Eonycteris spelaea), [&#8230;]]]>
						</description>
																					<content:encoded>
							<![CDATA[Tun Lin, the 36-year-old security guard who mans the door to the Linno cave &#8211; home to four species of bat. Photo by Demelza Stokes. Tun Lin has a unique occupation: he is the security guard at Linno limestone karst cave on the bank of the Salween River in Myanmar’s southeast Karen (Kayin) State. He earns 80,000 Myanmar kyat (around $60) per month to guard the entrance to the cave, the contents of which &#8212; common nectar bats (Eonycteris spelaea), wrinkle-lipped bats (Chaerephon plicatus), Theobold’s tomb bats (Taphozous theobaldi), black-bearded tomb bats (Taphozous melanopogon) and a lot of guano &#8212; are targeted by robbers who either poach the bats or steal the guano that is sold in the local area for use as fertilizer. Only five months on the job, the 36-year-old has not yet encountered any thieves, but the last time hunters came, they used nets to scoop up over a thousand of the cave-dwelling bats. Captured live and kept in bags, the bats were sold on as food or as traditional medicine, explained Myint Myint Nwe, the cave&#8217;s license holder and  customary “owner.” But it’s not just the cave bat colonies that are at risk here in Karen State. In fact, the entire limestone karst landscape, and its natural formations and caves are increasingly at risk from Myanmar’s (and Southeast Asia’s) booming construction industry, the bedrock of surging industrial development. This is the final article in a five-part series exploring Myanmar’s Salween landscape amid galvanizing plans to develop&hellip;This article was originally published on <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2016/12/stone-sand-water-the-key-ingredients-changing-the-salween-landscape/" data-wpel-link="internal">Mongabay</a>]]>
						</content:encoded>
										<wfw:commentRss>https://news.mongabay.com/2016/12/stone-sand-water-the-key-ingredients-changing-the-salween-landscape/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
					<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
										<doi>https://doi.org/10.66709/news-191845</doi>				</item>
			</channel>
</rss>