Protecting trees
November 8, 2011
Project goal: Preventing the destruction of the forest and preserving biodiversity Scale: Some 200,000 hectares of national park are to be protected. Currently, an average 1,240 hectares are destroyed every year
Investment: 875,000 euros ($1,206,598.46) from the German Environment Ministry Biodiversity: Sierra del Lacandón is home to over 3,000 plant species, 140 types of mammal, 460 bird species and 40 types of amphibia
In 25 years, Guatemala's third-largest national park, the Sierra del Lacandón in the north of the country, could lose over half its rainforest to illegal logging, unauthorized settlements, cattle breeding and corn farming. The German organization OroVerde has joined forces with local partners to prevent this from happening. Farmers are encouraged to protect the rainforest in return for financial incentives and guaranteed use of the land in the national park. Farmers are also switching to local crops and reforesting their farmland. For now, the project enjoys the backing of the International Climate Initiative (ICI) and the EU. In a few years time, it will be financially autonomous.
A film by Wolf Gebhardt