Conservation
Gorilla Refuge, Rainforest May Be Opened in Congo Oil Search
- Committee established to consider declassifying reserves
- Congo seeking to boost oil output from 25,000 barrels a day
The Bageni family in the gorilla sector of Virunga National Park.
Photographer: Brent Stirton/Getty Images
The Democratic Republic of Congo is considering whether to open up swathes of two world-famous national parks to oil exploration.
A decision to allow a search for crude may threaten Virunga National Park, home to many of the about 1,000 mountain gorillas still alive, and Salonga National Park, the world’s second-biggest tropical rainforest reserve. A committee is being established to debate the proposal as Congo plans to increase crude output from the 25,000 barrels per day it produces from aging oil blocks along the Atlantic Ocean coast.