Fuelwood Shortage Sparks Strategies
Every morning, more than half of the five million people in
Honduras face the same time-consuming challenge: finding enough
firewood to cook the day's meals. According to a Honduran
citizen's group called PROLENA, 65 percent of the country's energy
comes from burning wood. To survive, families must cut or buy
precious hardwoods from northern rainforest, mangroves on the south
coast, and pine and oaks in the central mountains.
Conservationists agree that the huge demand for firewood is one of
the major forces driving the country's high rate of deforestation.
PROLENA estimates that Hondurans chop seven million cubic meters of
firewood every year. This amount is rapidly increasing, as the
population that depends totally upon fuelwood also grows apace.
Even many industries, such as bakeries and brick kilns, use wood as
their main energy source.
Rogerio C. Miranda, PROLENA's executive director, says that the
simmering fuelwood shortage crisis in Honduras shouldn't have
occurred in a country ecologically ideal for growing trees. There
is no national fuelwood policy, Miranda says, and "no incentives to
grow firewood, a lack of institutional leadership, a lack of
planning and research."
Miranda's group wants wood-burning industries to contribute to
reforestation programs. PROLENA is also urging the government to
develop a coherent fuelwood strategy, seek alternative energy
sources, use organic wastes as fuels, and deal with the health
problems suffered by women who spend countless hours bent over
woodstoves. "The government thinks that wood is the energy source
of the past, so they ignore it," Miranda says. "Unfortunately, for
the majority, wood still is and will be the energy of the future."
Contact: PROLENA, Apdo. 3870, Tegucigalpa, Honduras, 504/32-0639,
rogerio%prolena%sdnhon @sdnhq.undp.org (e-mail).
Mine Prospects Not Golden
Local residents and conservationists have launched a campaign
against a proposed gold mine in northern Costa Rica, just outside
a protected reserve shared with Nicaragua. A Canadian-based mining
company, Placer Dome, is exploring 74,000 acres in the region.
The Costa Rican Ecology Association (AECO) and the Committee in
Opposition to Mining in the Northern Zone fear the mine would
impact the region's environment since Placer Dome would use "open
pit" mining, which can lead to extensive erosion. The mine's
opponents also worry that escaped cyanide, commonly used to extract
gold, will pollute the streams that criss-cross the region. Placer
Dome has been sued for damages caused by cyanide spills and
explosions at their mining operations in Montana and Papua New
Guinea.
"We oppose this mine, since it not only violates international
agreements, but it also limits the development of communities that
would be displaced," says Freddy Vargas of AECO. "The affected
area comprises the great watershed of the San Juan River and the
main expanse of Caribbean lowland rainforest remaining in Central
America." Vargas notes that the proposed mine would sprawl over
56,680 acres, including part of the International System of
Protected Areas for Peace, a treaty between Costa Rica and
Nicaragua.
Felipe Ruiz, director of international relations for Placer Dome,
emphasizes that the company would spare no expense in limiting the
mine's environmental impact and preventing accidents. "It's very
beneficial for Costa Rica to have a company like Placer Dome
operate in the country because a great deal of employment will be
generated and new technology transferred," he says. Costa Rica's
Director of Geology and Mines, Walter Robinson, emphasizes that
mining activities are closely regulated. "It's not acceptable if
a mining company acts differently in a developed country like the
United States from the way they act here," he says.
Contacts: In Costa Rica, AECO, Apdo. 11812-1000, San Jose,
506/233-3013 (tel/fax); Walter Robinson, 506/283-1244; in Chile,
Felipe Ruiz, 562/206-3535.
Mapping for Conservation
Thanks to a user-friendly computer mapping system called CAMRIS,
environmental groups in Latin America are making important
conservation decisions based on up-to-the-minute geographic data.
Maps have always been a powerful conservation tool, but hand-drawn
maps require hours of analytical work, are often imprecise and
rapidly become obsolete.
With technology called Geographic Information Systems,
researchers enter their data into a computer, which can quickly
convert the information into a map. Most GIS systems are
expensive and require months of training, putting them out-of-reach
of most nonprofits.
With support from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the
RARE Center for Tropical Conservation is teaching Latin American
environmental groups how to use CAMRIS. "Almost anyone can learn
this system with just a few days of training," says George Powell,
director of conservation biology at RARE. "CAMRIS runs on
inexpensive personal computers but can handle hundreds of thousands
of data points and produces maps that rival the most expensive
systems." Maps help researchers decide on priority areas for
conservation, Powell points out, and can impress government
officials. "When you present an issue to busy policy makers, you
have about three seconds to capture their attention," he says. "A
map speaks the truth at a glance. Maps are the universal
language."
Amigos de Sian Ka'an, a conservation group in Mexico, credits
CAMRIS-generated maps with convincing officials to increase the
size of the Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve in the Yucatan peninsula.
Recently, Amigos began using CAMRIS to fight fires. By flying over
blazes in the Yucatan, entering geographic data and producing maps,
Amigos helped fire fighters pinpoint the quickest way to access and
control the flames.
"Using CAMRIS, we were able to protect important natural areas,"
explains Jorge Carranza of Amigos.
Contacts: George Powell, Apdo. 56-5655, Monteverde, Puntarenas,
Costa Rica; 506/645-5024 (tel/fax); gpowell@sol.racsa.co.cr (e-
mail). In the U.S., RARE Center for Tropical Conservation,
215/735-3510.
Bay Islands Watch
The Bay Islands of Honduras, a necklace of small keys that hug the
country's northern shore, are surrounded by thriving coral reefs.
Thanks to this natural blessing, the islands are one of the
Caribbean's hottest destinations for scuba divers. About 30,000
visitors arrive annually; tourism is now the second leading source
of income for the 25,000 Bay Islanders. While tourism is growing
rapidly, most residents still earn their living from fishing.
Fishing and tourism depend on a healthy Bay Island environment, and
there's cause for worry. "The government basically welcomes as
many tourists that want to come here," complains Irma Brady of the
Bay Islands Conservation Association (BICA). "They don't want to
hear about the negative aspects of tourism. We're losing a lot of
forest cover to tourism, commercial and housing development."
Clearing forest for hotels and condominiums means an increase in
erosion. Each tropical downpour washes soil directly into the
ocean, smothering coral colonies and thus threatening the island's
tourism and fishing industries. The lobster, shrimp and crab that
are mainly sold for export to the United States and Europe feed on
coral reefs.
With help from the tourism industry, BICA is fighting for the Bay
Islands' future. A local dive operator led a drive to establish a
marine reserve off the coast of Roatan, the most developed of the
islands. Managed by BICA and funded by hotels and dive shops, the
11-mile-long reserve is off-limits to commercial fishing. Julio
Galindo, whose family owns Anthony's Key dive resort, reports that
the ban seems to be gaining support. Anthony's Key covers 50
percent of the reserve's budget.
BICA also helps protect a 1,235-acre wildlife refuge that is the
principal watershed for Roatan. Brady and other BICA volunteers
hope to establish a trail system that would draw tourists, whose
entrance fees would help pay for park protection.
Contacts: In Honduras, BICA, Cooper Bldg., Calle Principal, Coxen
Hole, Roatan, Bay Islands, 504/45-1424; Julio Galindo, Anthony's
Key Resort, 504/45-1327 (or 800/227-3483 in the U.S.).