The Democratic Republic of the Congo is opening untouched forest land and gorilla habitats to oil and gas firm for drilling, with an aim to allow resource exploitation on half the country.
The DRC's government has opened 306million acres of land and inland water, described as the 'world's worst place to prospect for oil', for auction, splitting the vast swathe of land up into 52 blocks.
According to Earth Insight, a research group, 64% of the area that is set to be exploited is intact tropical forest, and experts have warned that the DRC's government's move stands at odds with its commitments to protect biodiversity.
The DRC's ancient forests are home to several endangered species, including gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobo apes and okapis, otherwise known as forest giraffes.
And the area that is being flogged off to oil firms is home to 39million people, including many Indigenous people who often rely on clean and healthy forest and river lands to survive.
