ExxonMobil has long been a staunch supporter of biodiversity in Papua New Guinea (PNG), joining over 100 clans to sign deeds for community conservation in 2023.
Held in the Lower Kikori region of the Kikori River, the event was a record-breaking milestone toward shared conservation goals in the region, seeing clans unite to conserve 20,000 hectares.
In total, 11 deeds were signed for community conservation, the largest number signed at any one time in PNG.
“These deeds serve to create formal protected areas in the Kikori Delta area,” ExxonMobil said. “We have supported this effort for more than a decade through collaboration, engagement and facilitation.”’
ExxonMobil’s long-term goal is to retain biodiversity value as outlined in PNG’s strategy:
- Maintain the integrity of the ecosystem in the project’s upstream area
- Conserve priority ecosystems such as the Hildes Ridge and Lake Kutubu areas
- Protect focal habitats and significant ecological features such as caves and swamp forests
- Identify and offset impacts such as land cover changes from the installation of pipelines and roads
“At ExxonMobil we are committed to looking after the areas we operate in,” ExxonMobil PNG biodiversity supervisor Anita Mosby said. “Our policy says we ‘protect tomorrow, today’.
“When we started working with the communities in Kikori, the same message resonated with all the people of Kikori.”
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