Huascarán National Park is located in the Department of Ancash and was created by Supreme Decree Number 0622 75 AG on July 1, 1975. This photo is of Chacraraju snow-capped peak, road to Yanama, in the Park´s northern sector.
Huascarán National Park was created in 1975 covering 340,000 ha. In 1977 it was declared a Biosphere Reserve and in 1985 it was added to the list of World Heritage Sites.
Huascarán National Park is subjected to a series of threats, putting it in a vulnerable situation. Notable threats include loss of forest cover, presence of livestock, pressure from tourism, mining activities, furtive hunting, hydroelectric projects, limitations in the area´s management, and glacial retreat caused by the global warming effect.
Livestock are present within the protected area, photo © Diego Shoobridge.
Forest fires rage in the Park.
Puyas Raimondi in the Carpa sector, in the southern part of the Park, along the road to Pastoruri snow-capped peak.
An irresponsable burn affects Puyas within the Park. Recovery for these species is slow and difficult.
Churup Lagoon. Snowfields on this mountain are now scarce because global warming has caused melting. In just a few years, these snow packs will disappear as will the availability of water.
This photo shows a dam on one of the lagoons that is used to generate electricity.
Ice-climbing affects the glaciers. The lower part of this photo shows where part of the glacier has sloughed off because of the climbing.
Mining occurs within the area. Mining activities impact the soil and water, affect the landscape, and generate contaminiation. No environmental impact studies have been conducted here and there are no environmental remediation programs in place. Oversight by the Ministry of Energy and Mines is weak.
These photos show gravel extraction for road maintenance. This activity generates erosion and soil loss, landslides, dust, and impacts the integrity of the Park´s landscape. The Ministry of Transportation and Commuincation should select gravel extraction sites from outside of the Park.
ParksWatch-Peru: October 2005