The secretary general of the Ramsar Convention reiterated his concern last week for the new law on Protected Areas, which has been approved by Congress but is currently under litigation with regards to its constitutionality. Peter Bridgewater of the Ramsar Convention sent a letter to President Leonel Fernandez to remind the new government of its international obligations regarding protected areas. Earlier, Bridgewater had addressed Fernandez’s predecessor, President Hipolito Mejia, to express his apprehension of Law 202-04 signed by Mejia that allows the fragmentation and reduction of protected areas for development, primarily of hotels.
Bridgewater is especially concerned about Lake Enriquillo, designated a Wetland of International Importance under the Ramsar Convention on 15 May 2002. Enriquillo is the biggest lake in the Caribbean region and represents an extremely important site for the conservation of biological diversity in this area. The lake is home to the three largest reptile species on the island of Hispaniola, all three threatened with extinction. The lake is also an important habitat for more than 65 bird species, five of them endangered, besides being a place of great archaeological interest.
In his letter to the President, the secretary general exhorts the new government to adhere fully to its international responsibilities. Bridgewater explains that the recent landslides and floods that hit Haiti and the Dominican Republic are an example of how a sustainable tourism industry can be jeopardized by environmental damage (e.g., forest clearing and wetland drainage). He offered the full support of the Ramsar Convention in order to find acceptable solutions that would allow for sustainable development of the tourism industry in the DR, while simultaneously ensuring the preservation of its national resources. This attitude stems from the convention’s basic philosophy, known as the wise use principle, according to Sebastian Semene Guitart of the convention’s secretariat. For more information, see http://ramsar.org