An important report published in Diario Libre today, Friday 1 March makes the point that while all the media focus has been on the Bahia de las Aguilas protected area, more attention needs to be paid to the “backyard of the beach” in the southwestern national parks.
Journalist Marvin del Cid says that the Jaragua-Bahoruco-Enriquillo Biosphere Reserve, an area of 4,858 km?, is also located in the southwest and is under siege for the destruction of its ecosystem.
He comments that in his state of the nation speech, President Danilo Medina announced the planting of 5,885,998 trees, the construction of new park stations and facilities and the completion of 12 centers for National Protected areas.
“We hope that Bahia de las Aguilas will not be touched and that it will be protected in every way possible, but we need to draw attention to the fact that this lovely bay is not everything and there are areas that are even more fragile,” he writes. The UNESCO Biosphere covers the area from Parque Nacional Jaragua to Parque Nacional Sierra de Bahoruco as well as the Oviedo Lagoon in the east. The natural reserves in Pedernales take up 48% of the province.
The Medina administration had presented a deal for buying what are deemed as fraudulently obtained property titles in Bahia de las Aguilas. Environmentalists and civic groups disputed the Minister of Environment’s statements that the protected area would not be touched. Eventually, President Medina revoked the authorization for cutting the deal and ordered the judiciary to expedite the legal case.
In his report in Diario Libre, Cid presents videos with examples of illegal farming and forestry cutting in the protected areas. He says that the images show that a cancer is gradually engulfing the reserve, caused by human activity. He describes this illegal activity as “completely uncontrolled,” and shows several of the videos made a few meters from the highway where the “occupiers” of the park speak openly as they have no concern they will be expelled from the area or taken to justice.
La Jaragua-Bahoruco-Enriquillo Reserve covers an area of 4,858 km? that includes 3,184 km? on land and 900 km? at sea. They key areas are: Jaragua National Park (1983), Sierra de Bahoruco and Lago Enriquillo and Isla Cabritos (1974). After the declaration of the Biosphere by presidential degree, two protected areas were created within the Reserve: Loma Charco Azul Biological Reserve (La Placa) and National Park La Gran Sabana.
Cid says the law establishes penalties up to 10,000 minimum wages for anyone who occupies, destroys or farms in protected areas. But the judiciary has been negligent in applying the law.
www.diariolibre.com/destacada/2013/02/28/i373075_parques-nacionales-areas-desprotegidas.html
www.geografiafisica.org/2013/03/01/todas-las-parcelas-del-litoral-de-pedernales-parcela-215a-y-otras/