South Coast - Cambodia - page 333

CHI PHAT: AN ECOTOURISM CASE STUDY
The Chi Phat community has long supplemented their meagre agricultural income with products from
the nearby forests. Gathering nontimber forest products (known in development lingo as NTFPs) and
small quantities of firewood can be ecologically sustainable, but around Chi Phat the wholesale forest
destruction carried out during 'the logging time' - the anarchic 1990s - left the whole ecosystem, and
the villagers' livelihoods, way out of kilter. For many, poaching endangered animals became a way of
life.
When Wildlife Alliance ( Click here ) came on the scene in 2002 in a last-ditch effort to save the
southern Cardamoms, local villagers and outsiders were encroaching on protected land, destroying the
forest by illegal logging, and hunting endangered animals for local consumption and sale on the black
market. The only way to prevent ecological catastrophe - and, among other things, to save macaques
from being trapped, sold for US$60 and shipped to Vietnam to be eaten - was to send in teams of en-
forcement rangers to crack down on 'forestry and wildlife crimes'.
But enforcing the law impinged on local people's ability to earn income, generating a great deal of
resentment. Wildlife Alliance realised that in order to save the Cardamoms, it needed the cooperation
of locals, which would be forthcoming only if income-generating alternatives to poaching and logging
were available.
Thus Wildlife Alliance launched what's known in NGO parlance as a community-based ecotourism
(CBET) project. The first step was empowering the local community. A committee of 14 elected rep-
resentatives was established to assess positive and negative impacts, set goals and manage the project.
Many of those who joined as 'stakeholders' were former loggers and wildlife traders.
Today the Chi Phat CBET project is flourishing. The initially sceptical locals have warmed to the
idea, and the income generated from ecotourism - income that goes into both the villagers' pockets
and a community development fund - is starting to make a real difference. Chi Phat is seen as a model
for other CBET projects, and delegations from around Cambodia now come here to see how it's done.
Sleeping
Chi Phat's CBET project has 13 family-run guesthouses (d US$5) , 10 homestays (s/d US$3/4)
and two small groups of bungalows. Some of these places are in town; others are out in
the countryside, surrounded by orchards. In addition there's a more upmarket place to stay
at Butterfly Lodge (r US$15-25) , previously known as Sothun Lodge, on a small island in the
middle of a river. It has a delightful restaurant on a platform overlooking the river, and
simple but sturdy bungalows with twin or double beds, balconies and en-suite bathrooms
with real showers.
Booking in advance brings the bonus of helpful travel advice and a fact sheet about
tours. Otherwise, just call in at the visitor centre when you arrive, and choose your accom-
modation from the display board. The guesthouse owner will come to meet you.