Safeguarding Nicaragua's dry forests
Dry tropical forests circumnavigate the globe yet they are considered to be among the world’s most endangered terrestrial ecosystems. In Central America only 2% of the region’s original dry forest remains.
Seasonally dry areas are ideal for agriculture and livestock. They offer a stable, although relatively arid, climate. However the conversion of dry forest to arable land and pasture causes habitat loss and fragmentation. Remnant patches of forest and dry forest-dependent plants and animals become increasingly isolated as a result.
In 1983 the Nicaraguan government gazetted Central America’s second largest fragment of dry forest to create the Río Escalante-Chacocente Wildlife Refuge. Situated in south west Nicaragua and adjacent to the Pacific coast the refuge is managed by the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources. However, a lack of resources and trained staff has undermined the integrity of the park.
In 2005 Fauna & Flora International began implementing a five-year project to improve the management of the refuge. The project has already established partnerships between private landowners, representatives of nearby communities, the municipal government and conservation groups.
Increasing the effectiveness of protection and enforcement activities and generating alternative sources of income for local communities are central to the project. These efforts aim to improve livelihoods while reducing the threats to remaining dry forest, such as wood collecting, and adjacent coastal areas, such as the illegal collection of turtle eggs.
The management plan for the refuge has been updated to include plans that aim to diversify the livelihoods of smallholders living within and adjacent to the refuge. Several livelihood options, assessed for their cultural appropriateness, sustainability, profitability and environmental impact, are being promoted.
Among the stakeholders, awareness of local environmental issues and capacity for collaborative management of the forest and coastal zone has increased dramatically.
Funded by the Global Environment Facility, the project will create a management model that could be replicated elsewhere.
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