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Viewing cable 08VLADIVOSTOK89, A HIKE THROUGH LEOPARD TERRITORY

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
08VLADIVOSTOK89 2008-08-18 02:52 2011-08-24 01:00 UNCLASSIFIED Consulate Vladivostok
R 180252Z AUG 08
FM AMCONSUL VLADIVOSTOK
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 0995
INFO MOSCOW POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
EPA WASHINGTON DC
DEPT OF INTERIOR WASHINGTON DC
AMCONSUL VLADIVOSTOK
UNCLAS VLADIVOSTOK 000089 
 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SENV TBIO PGOV RS
SUBJECT: A HIKE THROUGH LEOPARD TERRITORY 
 
REF: A. A. VLADIVOSTOK 83 
     B. B. 07 VLADIVOSTOK 45 
     C. C. 07 VLADIVOSTOK 64 
     D. D. 07 VLADIVOSTOK 124 
 
 
1. (U)  Consulate staff hiked through World Wildlife 
Foundation's (WWF) leased forest in Barabash on August 17.  The 
trail takes about two hours and includes information on the 
leopard habitat and how the forests of the Far East have 
changed.  The forests are much more diverse than in northern 
Russia, with iron, yellow, and white (Manchurian) birch, elm, 
Manchurian Pine and oak.  The mix of trees in the forest is 
critical for leopard and tiger survival.  Pine nuts, for 
example, are a staple for the wild boar that is the foundation 
of the tiger diet.  For the leopard, the favorite habitat is 200 
to 300 year old virgin forest with oak, Korean pine, and 
abundant grass for deer, raccoon, badgers, and other prey.  WWF 
is planting pine in hopes of changing the forest mix, but it 
will take many years for the project to be fully implemented. 
Pine nuts, like many forest products, are harvested illegally 
and sold to China.  WWF is working with local firms to develop 
ways to sustainably harvest pine nuts and other forest products 
and they are working to label these products as "tiger 
friendly."  Most of the wood that is illegally harvested and 
exported to China winds up in furniture in Wal-Mart and other 
U.S. chains. 
 
2. (U)  The hike itself is a perfect introduction for school 
children into the importance of conservation and the rich 
natural heritage that they still enjoy in the Far East.  The 
students respond with beautiful artwork dedicated to the 
leopards and they are forceful advocates for the environment 
with their parents and teachers.  Given that changing the forest 
is such a long term endeavor, working with local young people is 
an excellent strategy. 
 
3. (U)  WWF's has two immediate goals.  First, to put three 
separate conservation areas in Primorye under one national 
forest reserve umbrella.  That project is moving forward with 
Vice Minister Ivanov's blessing and encouragement.  Although 
that project looks hopeful, Dennis Smirnov, WWF specialist, 
cautions that there is a lot of infighting between local 
reserves so the union of these protected forest areas is far 
from certain.  The other goal is to provide some tunnels or 
bridges that allow the leopards to move back and forth through 
their range where a new highway is being built.  The highway 
will link Vladivostok with North Korea, and it bisects the 
leopard territory.  Inbreeding is already a critical problem, 
and isolating the leopards into two groups on either side of the 
road would probably spell the end for the leopards.  WWF does 
not favor introducing captive leopards into the wild population 
because the range is too small to support more leopards. 
 
4. (U)  WWF is also working to reduce illegal logging by taking 
core samples of Far Eastern trees so that they can identify 
where the wood is coming from.  Then they will know if wood from 
forest preserves is being illegal sold.  WWF's other challenge 
is working with North Korean and Chinese partners to try to ban 
the flow of tiger and leopard parts into China.  The Far Eastern 
Border Guard Directorate is involved in WWF leopard and tiger 
projects, as wild cats often migrate across the border to the 
neighboring northern province of China. 
 
5. (U)  WWF has rented some 40 thousand hectares of forest in 
Khasanskiy Rayon to use as a model territory to implement its 
programs on the sustainable use of natural resources, wildfire 
protection and forest restoration.  Farmers use fire to clear 
agricultural land, but the fires inevitably spread to the 
forests.  Smirnov said 99 percent of the fires in the Russian 
Far East are caused by man.  A special program on protection of 
Korean pine includes pine planting, banning pine logging, and 
increasing public awareness of the importance of pine for 
Primorye's ecosystem.  Another forest creature, the forest cat, 
is so secretive that WWF does not know anything about its 
numbers or habits, but they do have photographs that were 
tripped remotely so the forest cats do inhabit Far Eastern 
Forests.  The cameras are also useful in identifying and 
tracking the habits of individual leopards.  While no leopards 
were spotted (inevitable leopard pun--sorry!) on this trip, it 
is evident that the leopards have some strong supporters in the 
area and that WWF is making some gains politically.  Whether it 
will be enough to save the world's most endangered big cat 
remains to be seen. 
 
 
ARMBRUSTER