Centro Americas's Forest

                                                                 Lab # 3

                                                               

                              Central America's largest forest under siege by colonist.

"Four years ago, people peasants that live in the area of Bosawas have destroyed 150,000 hectares ( 370,000 acres of rain-forest in Nicaragua’s Bosawas Biosphere Reserve, according to the Mayanna and Miskito indigenous people who call this forest their home.  Even though Nicaragua was recognized the land right of the indigenous people in 2007. The tribes say that the government have not done anything to keep it illegal. This is the largest forest in Central America/ The Bosawas  Biosphere Reserve covers around 7 percent of Nicaragua’s land area and is home to several species of wildlife.

Forest have been cut and burned largely to produce part of the reserve into a sort of wild west. Last month a Mayanna community leader was shot dead when an indigenous scouting party found that illegal settlers clearing forest.

Peasants have called for land reform, but the land in question is already held by indigenous groups. 
Bosawas Biosphere Reserve covers around 1.8 million hectares (4.4 million acres) on the border of Nicaragua and Honduras. It is believed to be home to some of the largest populations of jaguars, giant anteaters, pumas, Harpy eagles, and tapirs in Central America. Researchers estimate that the park is home to some 150,000 insect species and 600 species of birds."(Jeremy Hance, 2103)

 I am interested in this topic because is a rain forest of Nicaragua and it is very important , and now some areas of it have been deforested.

Jeremy Hance, Central America's Largest Forest under siege by colonist. 2013 available on 

http://news.mongabay.com/2013/0506-hance-bosawas.html

Cattle in Bosawás Biosphere Reserve. Photo courtesy of: Independent Mayangna Nation of Nicaragua. 
Read more at http://news.mongabay.com/2013/0506-hance-bosawas.html#UwidxVuiweTH2JG5.99

        Indigenous, Colonist, and Government Impacts on Nicaragua's Bosawas Reserve

"A study was made in Bosawas Nicaragua about the impact colonist which are two groups of indigenous residents. The groups consist  Miskitu and Mayanna managed by Marena Ministry of Environmental and Natural Resources on the international Biosphere reserve of Bosawas, the groups subsist on the natural resources of Bosawas and is the responsible in protecting the area from deforestation . By using geostatical procedures and land slat images at three different times they have compared the deforestation and boundaries stabilization in areas with colonist and areas with indigenous people. They also have examined that the Mayanna was less deforested  than the Miskitu even though the government has defended the Bosawas boundary against the advance of the agricultural frontier. They also have analyzed the distribution of land uses between the reserve and the indigenous area and a supervision of the classification. The indigenous demarcations protected the forest successfully, the Bosawas boundary didn't inhibit the colonization and consequent deforestation. Also the indigenous farmers deforested the areas but less than the colonist, and the two groups Bosawas didn't differ their effect on the forest. The results shows that indigenous common-property institution, and the indigenous of homeland have been factor very powerful that protects Bosawas and that the difficult evolution of a nested cross-scale governance system in Bosawas and under pressure from indigenous people is probably the key to the forest survival." ( STOCKS, A., McMAHAN, B. and TABER, P. (2007).

Methods

Investigators used geostatical procedures and land slat images at three different times to compare the deforestation and boundaries stabilization in areas with colonist and areas with indigenous people

Results

The results shows indigenous common- properly institution and the indigenous of homeland have a been a powerful factor to protects Bosawas.

Conclusion

Investigators have realized that cross-scale governance system in Bosawas is the key to the forest survival.

 Citation

STOCKS, A., McMAHAN, B. and TABER, P. (2007), Indigenous, Colonist, and Government Impacts on Nicaragua's Bosawas Reserve. Conservation Biology,  vol 21, Available online http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1523-1739.2007.00793.x/abstract