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 Managing a Mountain Landscape
Sierra de las Minas, Guatemala
Sierra de las Minas is a magnificent chain of mountains, more than 130 kilometers long and up to 30 kilometers wide, stretching across the landscape of eastern Guatemala. Steep slopes rise abruptly from near sea level to more than 3000 meters. Of the total biodiversity in Guatemala, about 80 percent is represented in Sierra de las Minas: more than 1,000 mammal, bird and reptile species, many of which are endemic and charismatic species such as the quetzal, horned guan, and five species of wild felines. The westernmost peak of the range contains 600 square kilometers of mountain cloud forest, the largest remaining cloud forest in Central America. Coniferous forests contain 17 different species, which makes the Sierra one of the world’s principal seedbanks of tropical conifers. Mixed pine-oak forests are a key habitat to migratory birds. Sierra de las Minas totals 236,000 hectares. The reserve forms a key segment of the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor.
Portions of the range receive more than four meters of annual rainfall Sixty-three rivers pour down the slopes, carrying the rain into the Polochic River valley to the north and the Motagua River to the south. Wetlands fed by the Sierra de las Minas rivers are crucial for the balance and quality of water resources for Lake Izabal, the country’s largest freshwater body. The Sierra de las Minas is the main water source for Guatemala’s entire northeastern region; especially for the densely settled (and dry) Motagua Valley, the water from the Sierra de las Minas is essential. As it became evident that ecological and hydrological processes united Sierra de las Minas with the wetlands of the nearby Bocas del Polochic, a new wildlife refuge/RAMSAR site was created at the latter.
In 1990 Guatemala’s National Congress declared Sierra de las Minas a protected area. Concern by municipalities about the future of their water supplies was a major factor in public support for establishment of the reserve. The legislation establishing the reserve named Defensores de la Naturaleza (Defensores), a respected Guatemalan conservation NGO, to manage the reserve under supervision of the national council of protected areas (CONAP).
The rugged terrain and inhospitable conditions of Sierra de las Minas long kept major portions relatively pristine and isolated from intensive human settlement. However, the land is not uninhabited; more than 45,000 people live inside Sierra de las Minas reserve, and another 400,000 live nearby. About one-third of the population inside the reserve are “ladinos” (of mixed or Spanish descent), the rest are indigenous Maya. Half the land in the reserve is government owned, the rest is private (Defensores owns 28,000 hectares). The land tenure situation varies: on the better-watered north slopes, vast forests remain and most land is in relatively large, privately owned blocks. However, the lack of a national land survey and a long history of rural land conflicts meant that actual tenure on such lands was often doubtful. The growing Mayan population on the north slopes was land hungry and lacked other economic alternatives; land invasions had become common, often followed by immediate destruction of the forest. On the southern slopes, where ladino settlement has a longer history, the forests had already been greatly reduced before the reserve was created, but the land tenure situation was relatively clear, with most plots in the hands of small farmers and ranchers.
During 1991-99, critical early years after the establishment of the reserve, Parks in Peril and The Nature Conservancy partnered with Defensores to make the reserve a functioning reality. The major threats to the reserve were fires, hunting, illegal forest clearance for agriculture, and illegal lumbering. Defensores and The Nature Conservancy’s conservation strategy focused broadly on 1) protection, land stewardship, land purchase, and legal action; 2) sustainable development, social organization and site constituency building in the areas around the wildlands; and 3) applied research and systemization of lessons to ensure adaptive management. The idea was to reduce imminent threats to the biosphere reserve and wildlife refuge (e.g. through park patrols, field infrastructure and park ranger presence), while simultaneously promoting community support for conservation (through generation of economic alternatives for local people such as shade grown coffee, and permanent agriculture to stabilize the agricultural frontier).
Parks in Peril achievements included:
· Hiring an average of about 10 fully trained and equipped park guards (up from zero)for patrolling activities, later supplemented by 20 more guards paid by the government. (Today, there are 46 park guards for Sierra de las Minas, 22 paid by the national government and the rest by local municipalities.)
· Adequate radio communications system; financing general operations costs; negotiating and purchasing land (23,000 hectares) from large landowners in the core zone of the reserve; signing and demarcating most of the reserve boundaries; developing good working relations with law enforcement agencies; and purchasing vehicles for improved logistical purposes within the protected areas.
· Support for modernization of Defensores as it decentralized its operations and increased operational efficiency; the financing of training needs for key personnel at workshops and seminars; and the promotion of strategic, operational and financial planning. Defensores divided the reserve into three administrative districts, further divided into eleven sectors; each district had a local office with a resident director, and many sectors additionally established field stations. (This system has been maintained since PiP funding ended.)
· A public awareness campaign among key stakeholders and target groups, strengthening local constituency support. Local communities participated in planning and evaluation activities and were encouraged to actively take part in mitigation schemes with local municipalities – for example, local fire brigades have been formed.
· Resolution of several major land disputes – most notably, PiP supported 7 years of negotiation for the voluntary resettling of the Vega Larga community, who moved to a farm on the outskirts of the Sierra de las Minas. This relocation allowed for the recovery of 1,350 hectares in the heart of the core zone of the reserve, in an extraordinary old-growth cloud forest. The community in exchange received 450 hectares of land better adapted for agriculture, plus an access road, 34 new homes, a health center, 2 churches, as well as a school, a communal center and other services such as clean drinking water, latrines and energy-saving stoves. In general, land tenure disputes in the reserve were handled with patience and ultimately with good effect. In coordination with CONAP, a Human Settlement Policy was created, which helped with conflict resolution where land use disputes arise.
· Diversification of the funding sources available to Defensores (national, international and local) and helping Defensores plan for long-term financial stability. PiP encouraged the establishment of the Sierra de las Minas trust fund, and the work on provision of funds from the government forest protection and reforestation incentives; this latter will provide a crucial source of funds until at least 2013.
The authorizing legislation for Sierra de las Minas created separate management zones within the reserve. The natural or core zone of 105,000 hectares is used for conservation of nature and limited eco-tourism; extractive used and human settlements are not permitted. The sustainable use zone of 34,000 hectares forms a narrow ring around the core; within this area; sustainable harvest of the forests are permitted, but no settlements. The buffer zone of 92,000 hectares includes more than 100 human settlements (villages, ranches, and co-ops); the management goal for this portion is sustainable use of natural resources. The recovery zone of about 4000 hectares is a critical portion of the conifer forests which had been cut over by loggers; an effort is being made to restore the forest.
In addition to funding from Parks in Peril, the reserve and nearby communities during this period received help from EU official development assistance (ODA), private foundations, and other international conservation groups. Defensores drew upon EU funding mainly for community forestry, environmental education, income-generating activities and sustainable agriculture. Nature Conservancy programs (beyond PiP) that contributed to the reserve include the Adopt-an-Acre Campaign, the Freshwater Initiative, partnerships with three The Nature Conservancy state chapters, and funding from The Nature Conservancy/Wings (bird conservation).
Measured against indicators of conservation, Parks in Peril was successful at Sierra de las Minas. While at least 16 illegal logging operations were reported in 1991, none were reported at the time of “consolidation” from PiP, and none exist today. Deforestation rates at the end of the PiP period show a considerable decrease compared to those of the 1980’s. Forest fires were reduced with the assistance of almost 50 voluntary communal fire brigades and forest watch towers. The fire brigade system has been maintained and, since the end of Parks in Peril funding, progress against forest fires has continued. The total area burned per year during the last five years is only about 20 percent of the annual totals in the 1990’s. The core zone was stabilized and protected. Increased knowledge enabled community leaders to reduce hunting pressure.
While PiP was not solely responsible for the consolidation of the reserve, it made a major contribution at a critical time. Major threats to Sierra de las Minas are stabile through sound policies and strong local conservation partners. Sierra de las Minas has become a learning site, benefiting the entire Guatemalan protected areas system and other conservation sites in the region. In 1991, Defensores de la Naturaleza managed only Sierra de las Minas. Today, Defensores is a respected role model to other conservation groups in the region and successfully manages four protected areas (more than 200,000 hectares) on behalf of the government and people of Guatemala.
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