With the news that Soco International will cease its exploration for oil in Africa's oldest national park conservationists breathed a collective sigh of relief.
It seems somewhat absurd that such a hard fought battle is necessary to protect an already protected UNESCO world heritage site...but here we are. The increasingly desperate search for new oil, combined with the poverty, violence and political unrest in DR Congo counteracts the extraordinary biodiversity of the Virunga National Park and its practical and symbolic significance for the Congolese people.
The fight to protect Virunga has been high profile and international. Actress Anna Friel has been campaigning on behalf of the WWF. Desmond Tutu, Richard Branson and Howard Buffett voiced their concerns in a joint editorial. The Tribeca Film Festival 2014 featured the documentary film Virunga directed and produced by Orlando Von Einsiedel.
Virunga is also under threat from poachers and militia; the future of the park and the endangered species living within it are far from secure but the withdrawal of Soco is encouraging. The future of the park might be further secured with the development of eco-tourism and renewable energy initiatives which will create greater economic prosperity in the park without damaging its environmental integrity. This will make it easier to resist promises of wealth from oil, for which the environmental price is far too high.
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