Countries of the World/COUNTRYS.BIN/dp/0092/00924.txt

Text File | 1991-06-24 | 14KB | 272 lines

$Unique_ID{COW00924}
$Pretitle{226}
$Title{Colombia
National Parks and the Environment in Colombia}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{Embassy of Colombia, Washington DC}
$Affiliation{Embassy of Colombia, Washington DC}
$Subject{amazon
national
parks
colombia
park
natural
basin
inderena
colombian
environmental}
$Date{1990}
$Log{Table 1.*0092401.tab
Table 2.*0092402.tab
Table 3.*0092403.tab
Table 4.*0092404.tab
Table 5.*0092405.tab
Table 6.*0092406.tab
}
Country:     Colombia
Book:        Colombia Today
Author:      Embassy of Colombia, Washington DC
Affiliation: Embassy of Colombia, Washington DC
Date:        1990

National Parks and the Environment in Colombia

     Colombia has great natural wealth, exhibiting complexity in ecosystems
and biological diversity including many endemic species. Its mega-diversity
extends into the ethnic and cultural world as well. To preserve this valuable
patrimony, the government has in the past decade vigorously implemented a
strategy for protecting the environment and the rights of indigenous peoples.

     The vast and expanding national parks system now covers some 22 million
acres (9 million hectares), or 8.5 per cent of the Colombian territory, and
consists of some 42 conservation areas distributed among National Natural
Parks, Flora and Fauna Sanctuaries, Special Reserves and Unique Natural Areas.
INDERENA, the state environmental agency, has been recognized by the United
Nations and world conservation organizations for its important contributions
to the environment.

     Government policies demonstrate a firm commitment to the preservation of
the Amazon rain-forests. Colombia is an active supporter of the Amazon
Cooperation Treaty and in 1989 took the extraordinary step of granting
Indians in its Amazon Basin land rights to some 23,000 square miles, adding to
some 46,000 square miles already in Indian hands. This land represents
one-half of Colombia's Amazon Basin and is roughly the size of the State of
Washington. In addition, forest reserves incorporated in the national parks
system now cover approximately one-quarter of the Amazon.

State Environmental Agency

     Legal responsibility for environmental protection in Colombia lies with
the National Institute for Renewable Natural Resources and the Environment
(Instituto Nacional de Recursos Naturales Renovables y del
Ambiente - INDERENA). The agency was officially entrusted with the role in
1976, following implementation of a National Code for Environmental
Protection. In 1977, it was additionally empowered with the management and
administration of the National Parks System.

     INDERENA has undertaken highly diversified work covering reforestation
and erosion control; the regulation of industrial and hazardous waste, air
pollution and sewerage disposal; and wildlife conservation, including
supervision of fishing grounds. The agency's educational programs are designed
to gain support from the general public on matters of environmental
protection. In 1989, the Director of INDERENA was cited by the United Nations
for distinguished work in ecology and the environment.

     Several other agencies are also actively involved in environmental
protection work and studies. Among these are the regional development
corporations operating within the major river basins, including the Cauca
Valley Regional Corporation (Corporacion Autonoma Regional del Valle Del
Cauca - CVC), in the Upper Cauca River Valley; CAR in the Bogota River Basin;
and CVS in the Sinu and San Jorge River Basins. It is estimated that 45 per
cent of the nation's biological diversity lies within the Cauca Valley region,
prompting CVC to take a particularly active role.

     INDERENA is also gaining the cooperation of Colombian municipalities in
environmental protection. Town mayors are encouraged to embark on projects
designed to protect the environment and educate citizens on how to improve the
environment. Each cooperating town must establish a green council or similar
ecological organization to invest at least 1 per cent of the local budget in
environmental projects.

     Projects typically range from the management of water sources to the
replanting of forests and the operation of lakes for fish breeding. "Green
town" awards are granted by the United Nations and INDERENA to the most
outstanding participants.

National Parks System

     Colombia has a large system of national parks, consisting of thirty-three
natural parks, six flora and wildlife sanctuaries, two special reserves and
one unique natural area. Their size varies from the larger parks like La
Serrania de la Macarena, with slightly over 1.5 million acres, to smaller gems
like Corales del Rosario, a submarine preserve along the Caribbean coast, with
48,200 acres.

     Different criteria have been applied in the designation of national
parks. Certain selected areas preserve original ecosystems, while others
create refuges for the wildlife and flora which are an invaluable source of
foodstuffs, medicine and industrial raw materials to modern man. Certain parks
have also been established for reasons of history, culture, and natural
beauty. INDERENA directly oversees the parks, and coordinates and assists the
work of other public agencies, including the Colombian Institute of
Anthropology.

     The Colombian Government declared six new areas part of the National
Natural Parks System in 1989-90. These areas constitute one of the most
valuable contributions of the past decade to the conservation and perpetuation
of the natural wealth of the country, and give a new dimension to the
management of natural resources in the Amazon Basin.

     Some of the more accessible parks have evolved as recreational centers
with simple lodging and campgrounds. But most are highly inaccessible and not
intended for tourism. Among the parks are:

     Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta National Park. This important park covers
some 946,390 acres and provides a unique example of a coastal mountain range
containing every biotic zone from arid seaboard to snow-covered peak within a
distance of 24 miles from the Caribbean. The Sierra Nevada Mountain rises some
18,942 feet above sea level, and is the highest coastal mountain in the world.

     Within the park, at an altitude of some 2,953 feet above sea level, the
Institute of Anthropology discovered La Ciudad Perdida (The Lost City), one of
the best-preserved pre-Hispanic cities ever found.  The remains include dozens
of stone dwellings, pathways, drainage systems and ceremonial sites,
indicative of the complexity of early Tayrona culture. Access to La Ciudad
Perdida is limited.

     Tayrona National Park. This park, covering 37,065 acres outside of the
Caribbean port of Santa Marta, includes magnificent coves, coral reefs and
beaches. Within the park, the Pueblito archeological site contains ruins of a
small Tayrona settlement. INDERENA has constructed environmentally-sensitive
"ecohabs" as tourist accommodations in the park.

     Corales del Rosario National Park. Not far from the port of Cartagena,
this submarine natural park preserves coral reefs with surrounding platforms
as well as submarine prairies rich in mollusks and other fish. A total of 31
bird species have been observed, including the rare frigate bird. The El
Rosario islands have tourist lodging available; the park is 1.5 hours from
Cartagena by motor boat.

     Serrania de la Macarena National Park. This remote park at the
southwestern fringe of the Eastern Plains is among the largest in Colombia and
preserves one of the most exotic ecosystems in the world. Situated in a
mountain range isolated from the main Andean Cordillera system, it has
extremely rich birdlife, wildlife and flora. It is open primarily for
scientific study.

Colombian Amazon Policy

     Slightly more than a third of the continental area of Colombia lies
within the Amazon basin, comprised mainly of the watersheds of five Amazon
River tributaries: the Putumayo, Caqueta, Apaporis, Vaupes and Guainia
Rivers. The count