1st Year Progress – Global Park Defense in Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda

After 10 years of massive poaching, the Uganda Wildlife Authority is now re-focusing major efforts in law enforcement, anti-poaching and community development in Murchison Falls National Park to bring back the Jewel of Africa.

Global Conservation is investing in a multi-year Global Park Defense program to bring park-wide Internet and Satellite Communications, the Vulcan Domain Awareness System (DAS), Cellular Trailcam Networks, Long-range Thermal Cameras, and real-time Command and Control to Murchison Falls National Park in Uganda.

Our Partners in Conservation are the Uganda Conservation Foundation (UCF) and the Ugandan Wildlife Authority (UWA). Project Director is Michael Keigwin MBE, a 20-year veteran in Uganda conservation, especially in wildlife protection who led the turnaround of Murchison Falls National Park. Now we need to protect Murchison Falls - forever.

Newly built Command Center in procress for deplopying Global Park Defense including the Vulcan EarthRanger system.

In the past year, Uganda Conservation Foundation has made great progress kicking off the Global Park Defense program.  Global Conservation funding Uganda Conservation Foundation (UCF) saw construction of new Joint Operations Command Center (JOCC) and deployment of Vulcan EarthRanger, along with operating and deployment costs for Global Park Defense systems, technology and training.

The Rcovery of Murchison Falls National Park program iucluded Global Park Defense to protect elephants, lions, hippopautamus and ogther megasfauna, as well as their pey and habitats hard hit by illegal wildlife poaching and forest destruction.

Poacher snares for elephants are stacked up floor to ceiling in the Armory.

Land is cleared right up to the park border for hundreds of miles.

The larger project is ‘Recovery of Murchison Falls, designed and run in partnership between the Uganda Wildlife Authority and the Uganda Conservation Foundation funded by Tusk Trust, International Elephant Foundation, SeaWorld Busch Gardens Conservation Fund and the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation. The program built 11 ranger posts across Murchison Falls, created the Marine Ranger Unit and the Vet Response Unit.

Global Conservation is committed to support Murchison Falls National Park’s park and wildlife protection through co-funding to Uganda Conservation Foundation (UCF) in partnership with the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) for Global Park Defense systems including:

1) Deployment of Cellular Trailcam Networks, Vulcan EarthRanger, Satellite Communications, SMART Patrols, Long-range Thermal Cameras, Command Center equipment and systems.

 2) Supporting Land and Naval Patrol Operations - funding of fuel and maintenance for land, lake and river-based anti-poaching missions against illegal wildlife poaching and illegal fishing.

 3) Improving Community Involvement through employment, training and establishment of a Community Tourism Association with certified guides to become ambassadors for the park, as well as reward-based informant networks to alert rangers of illegal activities.

Progress Highlights – 1st Year Global Park Defense Program

For a full-report from Uganda Conservation Foundation – see here.

New Joint Operations Command Center (JOCC)

A new 4,000 square foot Joint Operations Command Center (JOCC) is being built by thirty (30) community apprentices making the bricks and assisting general contractor in constructing the buildings.  We expect to open the JOCC in November 2019 and host the Vulcan EarthRanger and digital radios systems there.

Using Pacer Community College, 100 youth, 1 from each family from the poaching community have gone through one week to one month courses including hydrafoam brickmaking, industrial painting, fencing, metal work to make bunk beds for the college, guttering and water tank installation and tractor driving.

10,000 snares were removed from the armory and buried in the foundations of the JOCC – never to be used again.

The JOCC construction project required 20,000 bricks. Thanks to Mutoni Construction we were able to purchase these bricks from Pacer Community College, where 40 youth from poaching communities’ north of Murchison Falls were trained and engaged to make Hydrafoam bricks. The youth were then brought into the construction project as apprentices providing paid, first hand teaching and mentorship for three months.

Once the construction project had enough bricks the youth teams were engaged on renovating two old ranger buildings and restoring the dispensary and nurse’s accommodation.
 

First Automated Aerial Elephant and Wildlife Census Completed

Global Conservation, the International Elephant Foundation and Save the Elephants sponsored a comprehensive Elephant and Wildlife Census in the park this year, but estimates believe there are less than 3000 elephants, 150 lions, 80 chimpanzees and hippo have been heavily impacted along with key prey species.

Global Conservation co-funded the first aerial imaging technology-based survey of Murchison Falls National Park elephant and mammal populations.  Using an automatic process of image recognition and expert oversight, thousands of images taken from high resolution cameras on the bottom of survey plane are processed to give highly accurate population counts not only of elephants, but all other mammals in the park.

World-renown pilot Richard Lamprey who undertook much of the Great Elephant Census flights for Vulcan across Africa, but those used an older manual data collection method with human spotters counting elephants one by one while looking out the window. With the latest airborne imaging systems, baseline wildlife population surveys and detailed land use and deforestation maps can be generated for park and wildlife management, community development and wildlife corridor planning.

Deployment Begins of Vulcan Earth Ranger

In the next three months, Vulcan EarthRanger will have prepared all mapping files for the park protection system. The change UWA is about to go through is the largest operational change they will have ever gone through. Being responsive to real time management issues requires a completely different culture and series of skill sets. UWA is excited and very much looking forwards to stepping up. The British Army have described the ranger teams as some of the most dedicated and impressive teams they have trained. They have maximized every opportunity to learn.

For more about Vulcan EarthRanger, see earthranger.com

Deployment of Thuraya Satellite Phones

Thanks to Global Conservation support, the park has begun to use Thuraya Satphones to support patrols communicating in areas of the park where there is currently no GMS or radio coverage; over 70% of the park has no communications. Global Conservation also introduced the use of the first Thermal Camera for night patrolling against illegal wildlife poaching and illegal fishing.

Construction of New Ranger Posts and Improvements

Primarily funded by David Sheldrick and Tusk Trust, with contributions from IEF and Global Conservation, the new Rabongo Ranger Post is finished and fully operational along with Waiga Ranger Post.

Ranger Posts Ayago 1, Ayago 3, Latoro, Adibuk and Ogello Ranger Posts all have guttering and water tanks installed now and Kololo, Got Labwor and Punu Rii Sector Command Posts all have solar power installed and panels fenced for protection. Kololo and Rabongo Radio Towers are now installed.

New Digital Radios and Solar Network

Thanks to the Forgotten Parks Foundation (Kevin Marriot) UCF has procured the initial kit necessary to establish the backbone of a digital system across Murchison Falls. Whilst the whole park is limited by the lack of power, solar power has been installed at the sector command stations including Kololo (where there is a tower), Punu Rii and Got Labwor.

The solar panels have been protected with wire fencing installed by a group from Pacer Community College.

Two repeaters, 30 radios and four car radios have now arrived in Uganda and are with UWA ready for installation in the next month. Installation will be carried out by the Forgotten Parks Foundation with UWA’s own technology staff present to benefit from learning opportunities.

In Q3 2019 Murchison Falls will have an operational JOC and the ability to communicate to its operational command centres for the first time.

Boats are restored for marine patrolling of rivers and lakes making rapid response possible in over 30% of the national park.

Partners in Conservation - Uganda Conservation Foundatiuon

The Uganda Conservation Foundation (UCF) is focusing on Ugandan wildlife conservation after years of extreme civil conflict and poaching. Their aim is to conserve and preserve the natural environment and the fauna and flora in Uganda.

UCF is working to support the Uganda Wildlife Authority and local communities in Murchison Falls National Park starting in 2018, and in the regeneration of Murchison Falls National Park over the past ten years, a model for recovery of Murchison Falls Naitonal Park.

 - To encourage, stimulate and support efforts in the betterment, recovery and future security of Uganda's wildlife, natural resources and environment.

 - To unite the needs of the Uganda people with that of conservation and development objectives for the benefit of both.

 - To collaborate, co-operate and support other agencies and organizations with mutual objectives, although focus on areas receiving little or no NGO emphasis.

 - To help provide practical support to conserve and revitalize areas of natural habitat and improve 'urban' areas for benefit of wildlife and communities.

 - To be involved in long term, proactive, realistic and practical projects, especially those that provide the opportunity of advancing Uganda's capability and prospects through employment, education, activities and research.

About Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda

Murchison Falls National Park is Uganda's largest national park. It measures approximately 3,893 square kilometres (1,503 sq mi). The park is bisected by the Victoria Nile from east to west for a distance of about 115 kilometres (71 mi). The park is the location of the Murchison Falls, where the waters of the Nile flow through a narrow gorge only 7 metres (23 ft) wide before plunging 43 metres (141 ft).

Murchison Falls National Park is the largest and was the most visited of Uganda’s parks known for abundant wildlife including African buffalo, Ugandan kob, hippopotamus, Nile crocodile, African bush elephant, African leopard, lion, and chimpanzee. It is home to 95 mammal species and over 610 bird species. 

Illegal wildlife poaching and hunting for bush meat has decimated the park wildlife populations over the past 10 years. Poachers typically kill wildlife using AK47’s or by setting large Wire Snares made from bicycle, motorcycle and other cables.  Snares are set primarily for antelopes and warthogs but are indiscriminate and often catch and kill lions too.

Poor leadership of the park during this period saw active rangers decrease from 120 to under 60 rangers which became ineffective in covering nearly 4000 square kilometers with few vehicles, no radios, patrolling support, few ranger stations, and little in the way of technology and systems for park and wildlife protection.