Wildlife got a break in the Republic of Congo yesterday when the government quadrupled the size of Odzala National Park to 3.2 million acres, about half the size of Vermont. Much of the land had been slated for logging. Conservation International is helping to fund the expansion of the park, which provides habitat for 15,000 lowland gorillas, the only surviving lions in Central Africa, as well as birds, buffalo, and elephants. Congolese authorities are hoping for a bright future for the park, but challenges remain: poaching, illegal logging, and a tenuous peace following three civil wars in the 1990s.
