EDINBURGH Zoo is sending money and equipment to
China to help those dealing with the aftermath
of the earthquake.
Zoo representatives visited a panda research
centre in Wolong, in Sichuan province, to
discuss obtaining a pair of giant pandas, just a
week before the quake devastated the region.
Wolong, which is the largest giant panda reserve
in China, was c
lose to the epicentre of the earthquake and
remains under threat from aftershocks and
landslides.
Five members of staff at the Panda Conversation
and Research Centre died and many more have been
injured.
The zoo has donated £10,000 to the disaster
relief fund set up by the Chinese authorities
which will help people and animals in the
national park area, and has also sent a donation
of communications equipment and satellite
phones. It is currently investigating sending
personnel to China to help in the relief effort.
Iain Valentine, head of animals, conservation
and education at the Royal Zoological Society of
Scotland (RZSS), who was part of the Edinburgh
delegation, said: "The Wolong nature reserve has
been left absolutely devastated. We're very
concerned for our friends and colleagues. For us
it's not just about pandas, it's about helping
people as well. The panda centre acts as a focus
for the economy of the whole area."
The Chinese state forestry administration, which
looks after the national park, has set up a
special relief fund for people and animals in
all the panda reserves in Sichuan.
Communications to the area are still cut off.
The Wolong Panda conservation centre houses 60
adult pandas plus their young – about half the
total population in captivity. About 10 per cent
of China's remaining wild pandas also live in
the area.
Mr Valentine said that three-quarters of the
buildings at the centre had been damaged by
landslides following the earthquake, and that
the centre's specialist medical facilities had
been flattened. The centre also faced a struggle
obtaining bamboo to feed the pandas.
He said: "The state forestry administration and
the Chinese Wildlife Conservation Association
are working hard to resolve the problem.
"Staff at the centre are also working really
hard to repair some of the buildings and to
continue to care for the pandas."
He added: "We felt this was the right thing to
do as part of the relationship that we've struck
up. We will continue to offer our assistance."
• Robyn Rowles, who runs a photography gallery
in Edinburgh, was also part of the Edinburgh
delegation who visited Wolong. She plans to sell
photographs she took in Wolong to raise money.
The pictures will be sold at the Robyn Rowles
Gallery, Howe Street, from Saturday until 14
June, and can also be viewed at
www.robynrowlesphotography.com
WHAT NEXT?
EDINBURGH Zoo officials say the earthquake has
not dashed hopes of bringing giant pandas to the
capital by next year, though they are putting
negotiations on hold for the immediate future to
concentrate on disaster relief.
During their visit to the Wolong research
centre, senior officials from the zoo signed a
letter of intent concerning the loan of a pair
of giant pandas for ten years.
Iain Valentine, the zoo's head of animals,
conservation and education, said: "At the
moment, the main priority is helping the Chinese
to overcome the situation they are in.
"The letter of intent sits in the background.
When things settle down, we will open that
discussion again, but at the moment it's not a
priority."
The agreement needs to be signed off in both
countries at the highest political level. Zoo
officials had hoped that Gordon Brown, the Prime
Minister, could sign the official documents
during the Beijing Olympic Games this summer.
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