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The
Komodo
National
Park
is a
national
park
in
Indonesia
located
near
the
Lesser
Sunda
Islands
in
the
border
region
between
the
provinces
of
East
Nusa
Tenggara
and
West
Nusa
Tenggara.
The
park
includes
the
three
larger
islands
Komodo,
Rinca
and
Padar,
as
well
as
numerous
smaller
ones,
and
a
total
area
of
1817
kmē
(603
kmē
of
it
land).
The
national
park
was
founded
in
1980
in
order
to
protect
the
Komodo
dragon.
Later
it
was
dedicated
to
protecting
other
species,
including
marine
species.
The
islands
of
the
national
park
are
of
volcanic
origin.
About
4000
people
live
within
the
park.
In
1991
the
national
park
was
named
a
UNESCO
World
Heritage
Site. |
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Scuba
diving
is
popular
Komodo
National
Park
because
of
its
high
marine
biodiversity,
including
whale
sharks,
ocean
sunfish,
manta
rays,
eagle
rays,
pygmy
seahorse,
false
pipefish,
clown
frogfish,
nudibranchs,
blue-ringed
octopus,
sponges,
tunicates,
and
coral. |
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Since
1995,
the
national
park
authority
has
been
supported
by
The
Nature
Conservancy
(TNC),
an
American
environmental
organization.
A
new
management
plan
was
co-authored
with
TNC
and
implemented
in
2000
to
address
the
problem
of
increasing
resource
exploitation,
both
marine
and
terrestrial.
Most
pressure
on
marine
resources
originates
from
fishing
communities
and
commercial
enterprises
from
outside
the
park.
However,
regulations
and
restrictions
on
resource
use
impact
mostly
on
park
residents,
who
have
few
options
to
make
a
living
but
rely
on
what
the
park
has
to
offer.
The
provision
of
alternative
livelihoods
is
part
of
the
overall
management
strategy,
but
communities
within
the
park
are
yet
to
benefit
from
appropriate
measures
addressing
their
needs
(WALHI
2004). |
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Komodo
National
Park
remains
an
awe-inspiring
experience
for
tourists
and
travelers,
but
the
conflict
between
park
management,
TNC
and
local
communities
continues
unabated. |
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