Phnom penh: The Ministry of Environment, in cooperation with the Battambang provincial authorities, the provincial Department of Environment, Fauna and Flora International (FFI) Cambodia, and development partners, is working to assess and prepare for the listing of Phnom Sampov and Phnom Banan in Battambang province as natural heritage sites.
According to Agence Kampuchea Presse, technical teams are conducting thorough research and consultations to evaluate the historical, cultural, and natural resource potential of these limestone mountain areas for designation as protected green tourism destinations. Mr. Heng Hong, Director of the Department of Natural Heritage Sites and head of the ministry’s working group, along with FFI Cambodia researchers and the provincial environment department, recently conducted site inspections and community consultations in Phnom Sampov and Phnom Banan.
The visits followed the publication of a 2024 FFI biodiversity survey in these areas. According to the survey, camera trap studies in these sites have confirmed the presence of several globally threatened species, marking important additions to Cambodia’s and the world’s scientific records. Phnom Sampov and Phnom Banan are also historically significant, containing ancient Khmer city remnants from the Angkor period, inscriptions (notably K.1434), ancient temples, and rare limestone formations dating back to the Permian period of the Paleozoic era, around 251-299 million years ago.
Beyond biodiversity, the sites are popular for religious tourism and eco-tourism, attracting visitors who come to observe the daily spectacle of millions of bats emerging from cave systems between 5 and 6 p.m., a scene locals refer to as the ‘bat army.’ The bat populations also generate income for local communities through the collection of bat guano, earning an average of US$30,000 annually from Phnom Banan and US$20,000 from Phnom Sampov.
Recent studies have further recorded the discovery of a new species of ‘sun snail,’ recognised as a new land snail species for science, found abundantly in the limestone areas of Battambang, particularly Phnom Banan. In March 2024, researchers also discovered three new global records of biodiversity in the area: Cyrtodactylus kampingpoiensis (Kamping Pouy bent-toed gecko), Dixonius noctivagus (Battambang leaf-toed gecko), and Hemiphyllodactylus khpoh (Khpoh slender gecko).
The Ministry of Environment views these findings as critical evidence supporting the proposal to designate Phnom Sampov and Phnom Banan as natural heritage sites, preserving their ecological, historical, and cultural values for sustainable green tourism and scientific research.