Carrying out an orangutan rehabilitation program is incredibly demanding. The BOS Foundation feels that to improve the quality of care for animals at the rehabilitation centres, supporting infrastructure ensuring the smooth delivery of food and supplies is essential. To this end, we repaired several main roads within the Samboja Lestari Rehabilitation Centre in East Kalimantan.
Since it was built in 2003, the Samboja Lestari Orangutan and Land Rehabilitation Centre in East Kalimantan has been connected by a network of dirt roads made of compacted soil. During the dry season, the hard soil never caused many problems, but the story was very different in the rainy season. Muddy, slippery, and waterlogged roads made it difficult to transport fruit and mobilise our staff.
Road Paving in Samboja Lestari (Photo credit: BOSF 2024)
Road Paving in Samboja Lestari (Photo credit: BOSF 2024)
Road Paving in Samboja Lestari (Photo credit: BOSF 2024)
Road Paving in Samboja Lestari (Photo credit: BOSF 2024)
In 2021, the BOS Foundation decided to pave the main roads to increase the mobility for staff between locations in Samboja Lestari, which covers an area of 1,800 hectares. The project began in September 2021 with the paving of three road sections, connecting the Security Post, Sun Bear Sanctuary, Samboja Lodge, Special Care Unit (SCU), and the office. In November 2022, the BOS Foundation started to pave the road within the Sun Bear Sanctuary as well.
The entire road project was finally completed in May 2023. Today, the transportation of goods, especially food for the orangutans and sun bears, as well as the mobilisation of staff at Samboja Lestari has gone much smoother thanks to the improved roads.
Now, the BOS Foundation continues to improve the roads and supporting infrastructure in Samboja Lestari to uphold its commitment to the welfare of both animals and staff.
In collaboration with the Institut Pertanian Bogor (IPB University) and the University of British Columbia, a camera trap project aims to answer questions about the distribution of orangutans after being released in the Bukit Batikap Protection Fores
One of the pillars of BOS Australia's success has been the support from long-term partners like the King Living Foundation, who have made significant contributions to our efforts, particularly within the Samboja Lestari Sanctuary.
To complement the BOS Foundations wildlife conservation activities at Samboja Lestari, a new solar system now produces clean solar energy that will power the centre for years to come as well as contribute to the global shift towards renewable energy.
