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Jamursba Medi Beach: Petocz (1987) assumed that the whole coast of northern Bird Head Peninsula and the North Coast of Yapen Island were potential turtle nesting areas and surveys have revealed nests on all beaches in this area. However, extensive hunting and egg collection, in addition to rapid rural and urban development, have reduced nesting activities in these areas. Jamursba Medi, located on Bird Head Peninsula on the northern coast of Irian Jaya (0°20'-0°22' S and 132°25'-132°39’E), is one of few remaining nesting beaches available for the turtles, particularly leatherbacks. The beach is unique in that it is pristine and undeveloped. Unfortunately, a company (PT. Multi Wahana Wijaya) was recently granted permission from the local government to conduct logging activity in the vicinity.

Local egg exploitation has been relatively intense in the past. During the period 1984/1985, 4 - 5 boats visited the beach weekly, each removing 10,000-15,000 eggs. This activity has declined significantly since 1993 (Bakarbessy 1999).

At present, the logging concessions are not restricted to the southern boundary of the nesting beach, which is gazetted as limited production forest. The logging activities include lumber harvest and transportation, and the construction of a log pond and base camp. These activities have the potential to cause direct disturbance of the turtles and pollute the local environment and damage beach structure, due to changes to the physical environment, not to mention increasing the threat of poaching.

It is critical for the provincial government and the forestry agencies to be more proactive with respect to this issue, otherwise this unique asset will be lost. It is of utmost urgency that this beach is declared as a protected area. The district government of Sorong of Irian Jaya has already recommended that it receive Wildlife Reserve status under the Letter No. 522.5/1010, dated 8 November 1994, covering an area of 10, 000 hectares. However, recommendation is not enough, and legal status must be issued. So far, the government has shown no signs of serious action or follow-up on this issue. To address the issue, WWF and Irian Jaya II Regional Nature Conservation Office held a workshop in December 1999 to gazette the beach as National Park, in particular for turtles. The proposed National Park will cover an area of 465, 543.45 hectares, including:
- Jamursba-Medi beach (278. 75 hectares),
- Limited production forest in the southern boundary of the beach (74, 855.50 hectares),
- Protected forest in the other part of the area (25, 595.30 hectares),
- Northern Tamrau Mountain Nature Reserve (351, 934.80 hectares) and
- Seas (12, 515.10 hectares).

Cendrawasih Bay: This is the largest bay in Irian Jaya. The western part of the bay (1°43'-3°22' S and 134°06'-135°10' E) was declared as a Marine National Park on 2 September 1993 by the Decree of Ministry of Forestry No. 472/Kpts-II/1993. The park occupies an area of 1,453,500 hectares of sea and islands. The park includes 80,000 hectares of coral reefs, 55,800 hectares of islands and 12,400 hectares of Northern Irian Jaya coastal lands (Reksodihardjo-Lilley 1993).

Salm et al. (1982) recorded 169 turtle nests in the area (82 green, 52 hawksbill and 35 unidentified) and 88 discarded carapaces (20 green, 31 hawksbill and 17 unidentified), while another 33 turtles (21 green and 12 hawksbill) were detected in an aerial survey. Using comparable methodologies, Setyadi (1997) has more recently recorded turtle occurrences at several potential locations (see Table 2) showing that nesting numbers and relative distribution are similar to those of Salm et al. (1982).

Turtle hunting and egg exploitation, which have been practised mostly by outside fishermen for centuries, are the main threats in this area. Putrawidjaja (1997) reported the existence of trade in meat and eggs in the local fish market of Nabire. Approximately five turtles (average weight: 5 kg) are traded daily for Rp. 6,500-10,000 (US$ 0.85-1.30) per kilo. Most of the turtles that were offered for sale were hawksbill and green turtle, and were caught in the park. Other turtles caught are thought to be exported to Bali, the largest turtle market in Indonesia. Eggs are also sold for Rp. 10,000 (US$ 1.30) per 10-12 eggs. The trade also occurs in other major cities around the bay including Biak, Serui and Manokwari (Putrawidjaja 1997).

Jayapura Bay: According to WWF monitoring in 1999, olive ridley turtles were often seen feeding in the bays of Jayapura. In June 1999, an estimated several hundred olive ridley turtle were observed nesting on Hamadi beach (Yos Sudarso Bay), close to the Indonesian Naval Base and local fish market despite its highly populated nature and the fact that sago swamp occupies some of the area. Between 2-5 turtles (average weight: 5 kg) are traded daily in local fish market for of Rp. 15,000 (US$ 2) per kg. Eggs are also traded for the same price in Nabire. Locals reported that approximately 500 eggs are traded in the market every day.

Management plans for turtle conservation are required to establish the protection of turtle nesting beaches and should include the following:
Training and education, law enforcement, patrolling and monitoring, development of alternative local economies, e.g. seaweed and sea cucumber culture.

BHASKAR, S. 1987. Management and Research of Marine Turtle Nesting Sites on the North Vogelkop Coast of Irian Jaya, Indonesia. WWF Publication. 85 pp.

BAKARBESSY, J. 1999. Kondisi Penyu Belimbing (Dermochelys coriacea) dan Kawasan Pantai Jamursba Medi Kecamatan Sausapor Kabupaten Sorong Propinsi Irian Jaya (Condition of Leatherback Turtle and Jamursba Medi Beach). Research Paper. Balai Konservasi Sumber Daya Alam Irian Jaya II, Sorong. (Bahasa Indonesia). 9pp.

PUTRAWIDJAJA, M. 1997. Eksploitasi Satwa Laut Langka dan Dilindungi di Irian Jaya, Studi Kasus di Taman Nasional Teluk Cendrawasih (Exploitation of Endangered Marine Biota, Case Study in Cendrawasih Bay National Park). Research Paper. Cendrawasih Bay Marine National Park Project -WWF Indonesia Programme, Nabire. (Bahasa Indonesia).5pp

PETOCZ, R.G. 1987. Nature Conservation and Development in Irian Jaya. Pustaka Grafiti, Jakarta. 217pp

REKSODIHARDJO-LILLEY, G. 1993. Laporan Kegiatan Taman Nasional Laut Teluk Cendrawasih 23 Juli-14 Agustus 1992 (Activity Report Cendrawasih Bay Marine National Park). Internal Report. Marine Conservation Development Program - WWF Indonesia Programme, Jakarta. (Bahasa Indonesia). 33pp.

SALM, R.V., R.G. PETOCZ & T. SOEHARTONO. 1982. Survey on Coastal Area in Irian Jaya. UNDP/FAO National Park Development Project, WWF Indonesia Programme, Bogor. 24pp.

SETYADI, G. 1997. Laporan Kegiatan Bidang Penelitian dan Monitoring Periode Januari-Juni 1997 (Research and Monitoring Activity Report Period January to June 1997). Cendrawasih Bay Marine National Park Project. Internal Report. WWF Indonesia Programme, Nabire (Bahasa Indonesia). 15pp.

TEGUH, H. 2000. Leatherback Turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) Nesting in Jamursba-Medi Beach, Irian Jaya. WWF Indonesia-Sahul Bioregion Sorong Field Office, Sorong. 9pp.

TOMASCIK, T., A.J. MAH, A. NONTJI, & M.K. MOOSA 1997. The Ecology of Indonesian Seas. Part II, Vol. I and VIII. Periplus Edition Ltd. Hong Kong. 655pp.