A central component of the Nam Et – Phou Louey (NEPL) National Protected Area (NPA) Management Program is law enforcement and ranger patrolling. The key focus of the NEPL ranger patrolling program is preventing and reducing hunting pressure and other threats inside the Total Protection Zone (TPZ) of the Protected Area (PA). Because available resources are limited, a strategic approach is required to deliver the maximum level of protection over the key biodiversity areas of NEPL.

The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) has been supporting the NEPL Management Unit in planning and coordinating the NEPL program since 2003. During this time, significant experience has been gained in several different approaches to law enforcement and ranger patrolling, and this brief explains how this range of approaches can be applied to effectively address the threats to protected areas.

The current structure for law enforcement and ranger patrolling at NEPL incorporates several different strategies, and uses high capacity monitoring, management and coordination to adjust these strategies to address current and emerging  threats  to  wildlife  and  the  integrity  of the protected area. The most important aspects of this approach include the use of monthly reporting and planning meetings with all ranger personnel, supervisors working with teams in the field, and the use of the Spatial Management and Reporting Tool (SMART) software to keep track of and analyze threats and patrolling efforts.