Wild elephant populations across Thailand are on the rise, thanks to successful conservation efforts. But while this is a good sign to those who are fond of the gentle giants, others, especially those living in villages on the outskirts of protected forest areas, are worried about the increase in local jumbos.
According to the National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department (DNP), there are about 3,500 to 4,000 wild elephants roaming the forests of Thailand, and that number is expected to continue to climb.
As the population of pachyderms becomes larger and food and water resources become more limited, many elephants have no choice but to make their way into surrounding villages and croplands in search of food.
As a result, human-elephant conflicts are becoming more frequent. Elephants have been injured and killed by electric fences and vehicles, while many villagers have been attacked, dying gruesome deaths while their farm products are taken away by hungry elephants.
Due to the rising number of conflicts, the DNP has recently come up with a new way of containing the elephants in the forest near Khao Yai National Park. The project involves growing thorny bamboo fences around the community.
Bamboo fences are believed to be harmless to elephants, yet effective and easy to maintain. As the third largest national park in Thailand with an area of 2,168 square kilometres, Khao Yai, which is home to more than 300 wild elephants, is also one of the areas with the most human-elephant conflicts.
Across the last 10 years, 17 villages have been damaged by marauding elephants, while 13 elephants have been killed.
"Elephants are intelligent beings. They have learned over a period of time how to overcome the barriers we have put up for them," said Chongklai Worapongsathorn, deputy director-general of the DNP.
The project, which started last year, is a collaboration between the DNP and a group of environmental activists and local people calling themselves the "Bamboo Heroes".
Together they plan to plant thorny bamboo along the 400-km road that cuts through and circles Khao Yai National Park, aiming to use it as a tough, living fence against raiding wild elephants.
"This can be a life-saver for both humans and elephants. With this technique, we are looking at a long-term solution because bamboo fences do not require regular maintenance and are sturdier than their electric counterparts. What could be better than a fence that grows on its own?" Mr Chongklai said.
Bamboo Hero leader Amara Dhammapat said building bamboo fences is a natural method that has been adopted by many countries to reduce the number human-elephant conflicts.
"As a plant native to Khao Yai, this thorny bamboo species grows easily and thrives in the region's climate, making it a low maintenance fencing material. You just have to wait for five years until the plants are fully grown and can act as natural fences," Ms Amara said.
So far, Ms Amara said, the group has been training local people and DNP officials on how to grow bamboo. So far, the group has fenced 63 km of Khao Yai's roads, and plans to plant more than 400,000 thorny bamboo plants in the long run.
Mr Chongklai said if bamboo fences are proven successful, the same measure will be implemented in other forest areas under the DNP's supervision.
He said that apart from bamboo fencing, other constructive measures will also be used to deal with wild elephants such as installing CCTV and phone signal reception stations along the road, installing bee-hive fences and building more sources of water and food for the elephants in the deep forest, so the animals will not have to venture further afield.
To turn human-elephant conflict into human-elephant harmony, people must understand the nature of these wild jumbos and learn to live with them, he said.
"Humans are encroaching on the forest, making it harder for the elephants, which already face limited food sources. Therefore, it is our responsibility not to invade their homes in the first place," Mr Chongklai said.