Aerial view of the Purús River in Alto Purús National Park (Photo: Diego Shoobridge)
Wednesday, March 2nd, 2005 – The final Master Plans for the management of Alto Purús National Park and the Alto Purús Communal Reserve were presented in the city of Pucallpa, capital of the department of Ucayali, where the province of Purús is located.
After a long process of public consultation, press conferences and workshops in the city of Pucallpa, Puerto Esperanza, and in the native communities during these last two years, both master plans were concluded in a participatory and coordinated way amongst all interested sectors. AB-Sustenta, the consortium in charge of the entire process under a contract with the National Institute of Natural Resources (INRENA), has carried out the preliminary investigation and the design of the management documents for both protected areas.
The presentation was attended by the manager of protected natural areas of INRENA, local and regional authorities, representatives of the native communities, local press and citizens of Pucallpa, and there was a great level of acceptance from the audience. Diego Shoobridge, representative of ParksWatch Peru, participated as a panelist, gave a talk and answered questions from the audience.
\”The Alto Purús is a priority zone for the conservation of the Peruvian lowland forest, because from the geological point of view, this is an area of biogeographic transition, with important aquatic and forest ecosystems. The hydrographic network formed in the interior of this area, creates an assemblage of watercourses that have national and international importance, aside from the environmental services that they provide; they constitute a corridor for migratory species and genetic exchange. Biologically, it also constitutes one of the most important and best refuges of diverse, endemic, and threatened species of plant and animals of the tropical forests of South America. The diversity and size of its populations is a result of the general state of forest conservation. These forests harbor more than 30% of the known vertebrate species in the Amazon, and integrate one of the most important biological corridors in the region.
The conservation of the natural environments of the Alto Purús area is particularly important, because they are inhabited by native people who have chosen to be uncontacted. These human groups move through many parts of the protected area. But in recent years, the integrity of the Alto Purús has been threatened by the incursion into these territories of numerous groups of illegal loggers and poachers, which threatens the lifestyle and traditional culture that these groups have freely chosen for themselves.\” (1)
The recent declaration of the national park and the communal reserve is a great achievement for conservation in Peru. The fact that both areas have management plans practically from their beginning, represents a great advantage, and objectively defines the direction of work over the next five years.
(1) Plan Maestro Parque Nacional Alto Purús 2005-2010. Preliminary Version. February 2005.
ParksWatch-Perú, March 2005.