In the remote lowland forests of northwestern Bolivia, a small municipality has taken a big step to protect one of the Amazon\u2019s most biodiverse regions.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
With support from Conservation International, the municipality of Sena established a law to protect 452,639 hectares (1.1 million acres) of Amazon rainforest. The Gran Manupare Integrated Management Natural Area is the most recent piece in a massive, interconnected \u201cconservation mosaic\u201d created largely by local municipalities and Indigenous communities that are taking forest protection into their own hands.<\/p>\n
In the past 25 years, Bolivian towns like Sena have protected 10 million contiguous hectares (25 million acres) of Bolivia\u2019s Amazon \u2014 an area nearly the size of Iceland \u2014 securing their livelihoods, as well as endangered wildlife, and helping the country reach its ambitious goal to protect 30 percent<\/a> of its land years ahead of schedule.<\/p>\n \u201cPiece by piece, we are knitting together the fabric of conservation in the Amazon,\u201d said Conservation International-Bolivia Vice President Eduardo Forno. \u201cThis is a huge achievement, a testament to the power of a consistent approach. Local communities have kept their eyes on the prize. They are having a big impact on the Amazon \u2014 for the benefit of us all.\u201d<\/p>\n The approach, spearheaded by Conservation International, was born out of necessity, Forno said. Bolivia\u2019s last national protected areas were created in the early 2000s, and historically the country has had one of the highest per capita deforestation rates in the world.<\/p>\n But in Pando, the department where Gran Manupare is located, the story is different. There, more than 90 percent of the land is covered by forest, compared with 44 percent nationally, Forno said.\u00a0<\/p>\n That\u2019s thanks in large part to a nut.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cIt\u2019s all about the Brazil nut,\u201d said Juliana Ewert, a program manager at Conservation International-Bolivia who worked with the community to establish the protected area. \u201cPando\u2019s forest is still standing because of it.\u201d Despite what the name suggests, Brazil nuts mostly come from Bolivia where they are a major source of income for local communities, Ewert says.\u00a0<\/p>\n Up to 70 percent of the forest in Pando Department is made up of sustainably managed Brazil nut trees. But mining and encroachment by settlers who practice slash and burn agriculture are an ever-present threat. In response, Conservation International approached the Sena municipality about establishing a protected area that locals can continue to manage sustainably, thereby ensuring their livelihoods.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cProtected areas act as a shield against these threats, allowing the Indigenous communities and municipalities to preserve their main source of income,\u201d Forno said.<\/p>\n Over time, municipalities, Indigenous communities, conservation organizations and other partners have managed to build a \u201cconservation mosaic\u201d that connects millions of hectares of neighboring protected areas.<\/p>\n \u201cBy connecting these protected areas, our impact can be much greater,\u201d Ewert said. \u201cIt creates a network of communities who can share knowledge and forge partnerships. For example, how one community chooses to manage their forests can have dramatic impacts on another\u2019s water supply \u2014 it can even impact rainfall in cities miles away.\u201d<\/p>\n It also establishes interconnected corridors for wildlife to travel freely. Gran Manupare is home to a vast array of species, including the endangered giant otter<\/a> (Pteronura brasiliensis), which can grow up to six feet long. In the 1950s and \u201860s, giant otters were poached to near extinction for their water-repellent pelts. Today, these \u201criver wolves,\u201d as they are known in South America, are threatened by habitat loss in the Amazon, Orinoco and La Plata river systems due to climate change, as well as roads and dams. The new protected area in Bolivia could provide this species with a bulwark against extinction.<\/p>\n Gran Manupare\u2019s benefits extend far beyond the region \u2014 protected areas have enormous potential to stave off the worst consequences<\/a> of climate change. A recent study<\/a> co-developed with Conservation International scientists found that forests that are in protected areas keep an additional 10 billion metric tons of carbon out of the atmosphere. That\u2019s the equivalent of one year\u2019s worth of global fossil fuel emissions.\u00a0<\/p>\n Gran Manupare may be the newest addition to the effort, but it\u2019s far from the last, Forno said. Conservation International has plans to work with three additional municipalities in the Pando Department. By 2030, Forno expects to help \u201cThe collaboration among the communities, environmental organizations and governments is encouraging,\u201d Forno said. \u201cWe must continue to be strategic and work together \u2014 we cannot fly solo.\u201d<\/p>\n This initiative was supported by the French Ministry for the Economy and Finance and the French Fund for the Global Environment as part of the ‘Our Future Forests \u2013 Vital Reserves’ project. The Embassy of Sweden and the Andes Amazon Fund also provided support.<\/em><\/p>\n Mary Kate McCoy is a staff writer at Conservation International. Want to read more stories like this? Sign up for email updates<\/a>. Also, please consider supporting our critical work<\/a>.![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/ciorg.imgix.net\/images\/default-source\/non-vault-images\/img_20230724_162009.jpg?sfvrsn=634447bb_3?&auto=compress&auto=format&w=800\")
Local and Indigenous communities
\nled the effort to establish the Gran Manupare protected area. \u00a9\u00a0Rene Herbas<\/h6>\n![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/ciorg.imgix.net\/images\/default-source\/non-vault-images\/a-gabriela-villanueva.jpg?sfvrsn=4585bfb7_5?&auto=compress&auto=format&w=800\")
Giant otters were hunted
\nto near extinction for their water-repellant pelts.\u00a0\u00a9\u00a0Gabriela Villanueva \u00a0<\/h6>\n
\ncommunities protect an additional 4 million hectares (10 million acres).\u00a0
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