Sustainable Mountain Development in Meso America from Rio 1992 to Rio 2012 and Beyond
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Regional Report Sustainable Mountain Development in Meso America From Rio 1992 to Rio 2012 and beyond 2012 From Rio 1992 to 2012 and beyond: 20 years of Sustainable Mountain Development What have we learnt and where should we go? Regional report for Mesoamerica Prepared by: Latin American School for Protected Areas (ELAP) University for International Cooperation (UCI) Tropical Science Center (TSC) Olivier Chassot, Ph.D Alan Valverde, MPM Vladimir Jiménez, M.Sc. Eduard Müller, Ph.D Tania Moreno, B.Sc. May 2012 2 Mountains are the beginning and the end of all natural scenery. John Ruskin (1856) A man can hardly be a beast or a fool alone on a great mountain. Francis Kilvert (1871) These days when we talk about preservation of the environment, whether we mean the wildlife, forests, oceans, rivers or mountains, ultimately the decision to act must come from our hearts. So, the key point, I think, is for all of us to develop a genuine sense of universal responsibility, not only toward s this beautiful blue planet that is our home, but also towards the innumerable sentient beings with' whom we share it Dalai Lama (1992) To Professor Lawrence S. Hamilton, a true champion of Mountain Sustainable Development in Meso America and the mountains of the world. It is a great honour to be able to share a part of the climbing trail with you. 3 Table of contents Why mountains matter for Mesoamerica 6 Summary: Key points and recommendations 8 Methodological considerations 10 Part 1: Setting the stage 12 Part 2: Evaluating progress with sustainable mountain development 26 Case studies 26 Short description of case studies 26 Sustainability vision of case studies 28 4 Main themes for the initiatives in the region 30 Institutions and management mechanisms to support sustainable mountain development 31 Mechanisms of integration and their implications 33 Participation of stakeholders 33 Results and indicators of the case studies 35 Factors of success or failure of the case studies 35 Learned lessons 36 The role of Chapter 13 of Agenda 21 (Rio 1992) 38 Part 3: Emerging trends, challenges and opportunities for SMD in Mesoamerica 42 A look into the future 45 Addressing trends, challenges and opportunities 46 References 54 Annex 1: Case studies 60 Annex 2: List of Mesoamerican indigenous territories 65 Annex 3: List of Mesoamerican Mountain Biosphere Reserves 67 Annex 4: List of Mesoamerican Mountain World Heritage Sites 77 Annex 5: List of selected Mesoamerican sustainable mountain development projects and initiatives 81 List of Figures Figure 1: Map of Mesoamerica, study area 13 Figure 2: Mesoamerica: Political Division 13 Figure 3: Mesoamerica: Topography and Mountain Systems 14 Figure 4: Mesoamerica: Mountains and Plains 15 Figure 5: Mesoamerica: Mountain and Population 16 Figure 6: Mesoamerica: Mountain and Major Cities 16 Figure 7: Mesoamerica: Terrestrial Ecoregions 17 Figure 8: Mesoamerica: Mountains and Ecoregions 19 5 Figure 9: Mesoamerica: Mountains and Forest Cover 20 Figure 10: Mesoamerica: Mountains and Protected Areas (2010) 21 Figure 11: Mesoamerica: Mountains and Indigenous Territories 22 Figure 12: Location of Case Studies in Mesoamerica 26 Figure 13: Mesoamerican Biological Corridor and Protected Areas 47 Figure 14: Mesoamerica: Mountains and Biosphere Reserves 67 Figure 15: Mesoamerica: Mountains and World Heritage Sites 77 List of Tables Table 1: Mesoamerica: Mountains and Forest Cover (over 700 m.a.s.l., 1995-2000) 19 Table 2: Mesoamerica: Mountains and Protected Areas (2010) 21 Table 3: Mesoamerica: Mountains and Indigenous Territories 23 Table 4: Mesoamerica: Overview of Country Data 23 Table 5: A Snapshot of Case Studies 28 Table 6: Mesoamerican Institutions and Mechanisms that have fostered Sustainable Mountain Development since 1992 32 Table 7: Donors of Case Studies Initiatives 34 Why mountains matter for Mesoamerica Mountains in Mesoamerica cover 25.2% of the region and have a remarkable 12% of the world’s biodiversity for only about 2% of earth’s land surface. A total of 86 indigenous ethnic groups occupy 54.2% of the mountain territories. The greatest global threat to sustainable mountain development in the region is climate change; other direct threats are mining, expansion of hydropower generation, urban sprawl into mountain areas, deforestation and soil erosion. 6 Mesoamerica extends from the Tehuantepec Isthmus in Mexico, across Southern Mexico (Campeche, Yucatan, Quintana Roo, Chiapas, Tabasco and Oaxaca) to Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, with a total of 862,468 km2. Since Rio 1992, Meso America finds itself immersed in a new and more complex international situation without having achieved, in recent years, rapid advances in human development and regional integration. This panorama poses strategic challenges that will not only require innovative and bold regional and national responses, but also major improvements in the collective capacity to implement them. The contribution of mountains to sustainable development in Meso America Today, a vast majority of Mesoamerica’s more than 50 million people live in the lowlands of the Pacific coast. Nevertheless, Mesoamerica has a higher concentration of large cities in central valleys that increasingly depend on water supplies from the mountains. Regional ecosystems and the economic and social capital they support are now facing climate change and, as a consequence, an unprecedented combination of tipping points including extreme population growth (doubling of the regional population since 1992). Forests, protected areas, biological corridors and indigenous territories cover 72.6% of the mountain land. In contrast to the more densely populated and industrialized lowlands, the mountains represent an opportunity for the region to strengthen conservation and sustainable development. Manifold challenges One of the main causes for increased pressure on natural resources is the rapid population growth in the region, having gone from 11 million to more than 50 million in the last six decades. A great part of the region’s economy is based on extractive use of mountain natural resources. Energy production from renewable resources within mountain protected areas is growing in many countries in the region, particularly hydroelectric and geothermal energy. The challenges of sustainable mountain development include mitigation of the impacts of climate change, adaptation to climate change, provision of jobs and health services, food security, prevention of outmigration, stabilization of democracy, the fight against corruption, strengthening local government, protection of the natural heritage, and provision of clean energy. Because of their magnitude, no country can address these challenges alone; close and effective collaboration within the region is crucial. Policy action – the mountains of Meso America and the future we want The Mesoamerica Biological Corridor (MBC) is the region’s best opportunity to implement sustainable mountain development, provided that the Central American Integration System and its Central American Development Commission (SICA-CCAD) are put to work properly with a strong backing from the countries in the region. Today, the MBC still faces many challenges, but the administrative structure has been consolidated, allowing the eight countries to meet and jointly plan and evaluate progress. There is a need for a strong coordinating role, dedicated leadership, and sufficient funding to assure operation in the mid-term and broad regional participation. This must go together with strengthening and empowering local 7 organizations in order to be successful at the local level. The Costa Rican model of connectivity conservation and management, for instance, could be replicated and adapted elsewhere in the region, fostering the institutionalization of regional initiatives expressed in local action through alliances between the states and civil society. Currently, the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor covers only 16,6% of the mountain regions of Mesoamerica, with plenty of room for increasing connectivity in mountainous areas. The design of connectivity landscapes in mountains should be further conducted in order to fill conservation gaps and promote sound land planning. Biological corridors, designed adequately, represent an especially relevant planning and management tool, which may connect mountain protected areas with the densely populated lowlands at the regional and continental scale, providing a link that may enhance the appreciation for mountains in the regional culture. The regional network of protected areas must also be extended in order to fill conservation gaps and in order to promote connectivity within mountain areas, for the benefit of mitigation and adaptation to climate change. To achieve this goal, national governments must take the necessary measures to complete their national conservation systems in a timely way. Finally, a mountain culture must be developed at all levels and mountains must become an integral part of local, national and regional agendas in Mesoamerica. There is an urgent need for the establishment of a new inter and multi-disciplinary regional mountain institute that will contribute to foster a “mountain identity” within the region and which will support and orient government action in favor of sustainable mountain development. Summary: Key points and recommendations . Mesoamerica finds itself immersed in a new and more complex international situation without having achieved, in recent years,