The Salawin National Park (Salween National Park) is located in Mae Sariang and Sop Moei Districts in Mae Hong Son Province

Mae Hong Son Province

Most of the areas of Mae Hong Son Province are complex mountain ranges and likely still pristine virgin forest. Of the approximately 6,976,650 rai of national forest reserves, 88.02% is thought to be pristine virgin forest...

, northern Thailand

Thailand

Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...

, adjacent to its border with Burma. Much of the Salween River

Salween River

The Salween is a river, about long, that flows from the Tibetan Plateau into the Andaman Sea in Southeast Asia. It drains a narrow and mountainous watershed of that extends into the countries China, Burma and Thailand. Steep canyon walls line the swift, powerful and undammed Salween, one of the...

 is included in the 721.52 square kilometres (278.6 sq mi) park. The terrain is mountainous jungle and rocky river. Populated areas within the park include the Karen

Karen people

The Karen or Kayin people , are a Sino-Tibetan language speaking ethnic group which resides primarily in southern and southeastern Burma . The Karen make up approximately 7 percent of the total Burmese population of approximately 50 million people...

 village of Ta Tar Fan, and the riverside village of Mae Sam Laep

Mae Sam Laep

Mae Sam Laep is a village and tambon of Sop Moei District, in Mae Hong Son Province, Thailand. In 2005 it had a total population of 9,802 people. The tambon contains 10 villages. Mae Sam Leap lies near the Burmese border on the Salween River....

.

Flora

Thailand's second-largest teak tree is located in the park. Other flora includes Asian redwood and cherrywood

Cherrywood

Cherrywood is one of Dublin's newest suburbs, withhin Loughlinstown, and bordering Rathmichael, to the south east of the city, in the County of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown...

. In 1997, an illegal logging scandal, involving forestry and military officials, was uncovered at the park. Almost a third of its trees, and that of the Salawin Wildlife Sanctuary

Salawin Wildlife Sanctuary

The Salawin Wildlife Sanctuary is located in Thailand, and includes the Salween River. Founded in 1978, it is an IUCN Category IV wildlife sanctuary, measuring in size....

, were logged between 1996 and 1998.