In a Troubled African Park, A Battle Over Oil Exploration

Alexa Cotton

Pearce, F. (2014, May 1). In a Troubled African Park, A Battle Over Oil Exploration. Retrieved February 19, 2018, from http://e360.yale.edu/features/in_troubled_african_virunga_national_park_a_battle_over_oil_exploration

1. I already knew about the biologically sensitive area which Virunga National Park protects and the great biodiversity which exists within it. I was aware that in many protected areas of the world there are often rich natural resources such as oil and so it creates large conflict within those communities. This problem is oftentimes aggravated if the country or region in question is not rich in socioeconomic resources. While this article only touched upon the issue, I have done lots of reading on different methods to mitigate poaching in regions similar to Virunga National Park.

2. I learned about the conflict which occurred with the oil company Soco International and its attempt to gain access to the oil in Virunga National Park. I learned about the efforts of certain key players such as de Merode, the park warden and the effect which nonprofits can have through creating enough pressure to stop the drilling. It was very interesting to read about the tensions between park rangers and militias, park patrolling becomes ineffective 3 km past the patrolling stations because of violence from militias.  Additionally, in terms of conservation strategies there are studies which indicate that focusing on resource protection and as a byproduct excluding local communities is ineffective. It has been found that involving local communities and allowing them to be the warden of their land is the most effective strategy.

3. I found this article relevant to our class because it discussed the topic of resource management in relation to balancing environmental, economic and social capital. Soco International promised that it would raise the standards of the community through investment in its development. It also promised to not negatively impact the biologically important areas of the park. Interestingly, it was the outside actors such as the UN, UNESCO and international nonprofits such as WWF who put heavy pressure on preventing the drilling.

4. I found this article to be interesting and representative of a lot of the issues which developing countries in Africa are facing since they hold such biologically important regions but they also need resources to survive. While this story ends with a note that Soco International halted its efforts to drill, I would imagine that is not that common.