ENVIRONMENT

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Rio Patuca:
A protected but threatened waterway
The Patuca River, which stretches from the Mosquitia coast to Olancho and whose tributary the Guallambre continues into El Paraiso, is the king of eastern Honduran rivers. It is navigable for more than 200 miles by canoe and cuts through three large protected areas: the Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve, the purposed Tawahka Asangni Biosphere Reserve and the Rio Patuca National Park. Full article by Wendy Griffin

We had travelled for two hours from Tegucigalpa toward El Chile Mountain and were now on a good dirt road running east from Guaimaca. The pine forests seemed immense and the biological reserve we were to visit loomed on the horizon like a sleeping giant. We had crossed crystal clear rivers and brooks and had stopped several times to make video shots for a documentary for the National Institute for Environment and Development (INADES), a private non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of El Chile and other reserves. We had seen few cars and houses and the closer we got, the more optimistic I felt. Suddenly, not one but two huge trucks appeared, carrying beautiful but dead old pine trees. They almost drove us off the road, but I got good video pictures of them before they disappeared down the road. The men riding on top of the logs looked away from the camera with a shy, guilty gesture or stared back with a menacing look. Full article by  JORGE FLORES MCCLELLAN

Foundation helps to improve environment of San Pedro Sula
In Honduras, most environmental protection work is done by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that are responsible for certain areas. The NGO that has taken as its task the protection of the environment around San Pedro Sula is Fundacion Ecologista Hector Rodrigo Pastor Fasquelle. Full article by Wendy Griffin

NGO working for sustainable development of Mosquitia

MOPAWI has developed special projects for Miskito women.
(Photo courtesy the Norma Love Foundation.)

As the environmental non-governmental organization responsible for the protected areas or parks of the Mosquitia, MOPAWI'S work as a development agency is often overlooked. Yet this is the origin of MOPAWI, an acronym that means Moskitia Pawisa or Development of the Mosquitia. Full article by WENDY GRIFFIN in Environment

Most Mosquitia protected areas still await legal approval

The Mosquitia, a rain forest and tropical savanna area located in the department of Gracias a Dios, is shown on maps with six protected areas: the Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve, the Laguna de Caratasca Wildlife Preserve, the Rio Cruta Wildlife Preserve, the Tawahka-Asagni Biosphere Reserve and the Rio Patuca National Park. Of these, however, only the Rio Platano Reserve has full legal approval, says Oswaldo Mungia, director of the Organization for the Development of the Mosquitia (MOPAWI). Full article by Wendy Griffin

EcoTravels website celebrates 5th year
Half ecology, half travel and all of Latin America -- it's the popular EcoTravels in Latin America website (http://www.planeta.com) now in 5th year on the Internet. Full article

Neoliberalism has brought unhealthy changes to forestry policy
Honduras' economic policies vary according to dominant theories in vogue in Latin America. Currently, Honduras is forced to accept neoliberal policies as a condition for receiving loans from international lending institutions such as the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). Full article by Wendy Griffin

Forum on Patuca dam project held in Teguz
TEGUCIGALPA -- The National Environmental Coordinator (CNA) on Tuesday (June 9) hosted a forum on the Patuca II Hydroelectric Project which included the introduction of the Patuca II Critical platform at the Hotel Plaza. Full article by MARIA FIALLOS

Less destructive sites have been identified for dam projects
Although Honduras has an immediate need for new sources of renewable energy, the Patuca River dam project is not the only potential hydroelectric site in the country. ENEE, the state-owned utility, has identified over seven other hydroelectric sites with a combined capacity of 350 MW. The majority of these sites are located on developed rivers near centers of energy demand. Unfortunately these numerous, less destructive sites are being ignored by the promise of large profits from this destructive large-scale dam. Full article

Solar oven bakeries possible solution to deforestation
Around the world, the problem of firewood shortages is worsening. Firewood is believed to account for 90 percent of the wood cut in Honduras, according to the Association for Wood Energy Development of Honduras (Pro-Lena). Sometimes even forest fires are set to turn trees to charcoal. Thus firewood is the number one cause of deforestation in Honduras. Full article by Wendy Griffin

Ron Mader's El Planeta Platica, The Earth Speaks

Congress stonewalling creation of Patuca National Park

With an area of 2,220 km², the proposed Patuca National Park would be located along the border with Nicaragua between the proposed Tawahka Asangni Biosphere Reserve in Honduras and the existing Bosawas Natural Reserve in Nicaragua. The establishment of the Patuca National Park is extremely important for conservation in Honduras and Central America since its location makes it an essential link of the Central American Biological Corridor. Full article by Alexix Aguilar

Ecologists open Bio-Center to public in San Pedro Sula

Ecology buffs in San Pedro Sula should visit the Jorge Milla Oveida Bio-Center, an eco-museum set up by the Rodrigo Pastor Fasquelle Ecological Foundation. Full article By RAYMOND GUTT

NGOs join forces to protect environment

JICARO GALAN -- It is said that the 21st century will be the century of the environment. Ecologist and university professor Dr. Becky Myton warns, "Current environmental problems are of such a grand magnitude that if we do not pay more immediate attention to them, the world could collapse." Climate changes, loss of biodiversity, ozone depletion, desertification, deforestation, air and water contamination, and poverty are a few of the more serious negative impacts of environmental degradation. Full article by Telisha Williams

CRY ME A RIVER
The Rio Patuca hydroelectric project: boon or bane?

Prof. Adalid Martinez Perdomo calls it "an atrocity schemed to profit politicians and speculators with a personal stake in petrochemical exploration and electric generation."

Jorge Mauelshagen believes that "it might be a blessing in disguise and give tourism a badly needed boost." Full article by W. E. GUTMAN

Pech healers teach rain forest medicine

A tea made from the flowers of siempre viva, which is grown near houses,
is used for coughs, gas, nerves and bleeding between periods.

By WENDY GRIFFIN

After reading the book "The Witch Doctor's Apprentice" or seeing the Sean Connery movie "The Medicine Man" (Curandero de la Selva), it sounds exciting to go into the rain forest and study with traditional healers. If this is your dream, you should visit the El Carbon Reserve in Olancho, home of about one third of Honduras' Pech Indians. Full article by WENDY GRIFFIN

Honduras offers many plants for jangled nerves

This medicinal plant seller near HONDUTEL in San Pedro Sula recommends camomile for nervios. (Photo by Wendy Griffin)

Under the World Health Organization's new definition of serious illness, depression has now been raised to the status of being one of the most serious diseases in the world. In Honduras, few people would say that they suffer from depression. Instead, they say that they are suffering from "nervios." Full article by WENDY GRIFFIN

Coastal parks provide food and protection to migratory and local seabirds, as well as being the breeding grounds for many marine species.

TELA -- Several North Coast parks and wildlife refuges include lagoons, coral reefs, and the open sea as far as three to five miles off shore. Part of the reason these areas are protected is because they are breeding grounds for shrimp, crabs, some varieties of fish, manatees, and dolphins. This also makes the areas very attractive to commercial fishermen who are looking at short-term gain rather than long-term sustainability. Full article by WENDY GRIFFIN

FUCAGUA: watching out for the ecology of Trujillo Bay

TRUJILLO -- Although the care and maintenance of national parks in many countries is financed with government funds, taxes, hunting and fishing licenses and user fees, Honduran parks receive very little money from these sources. They must therefore find other ways to keep themselves in operation. Full article By WENDY GRIFFIN in Environment

Bay Islands survey reveals truth about ecological awareness

A recent survey of 230 Bay Islanders revealed that only one third of the islands' inhabitants knew or guessed that the yellow naped parrot is found only in the Honduran Bay Islands.

The survey was taken by the Bay Islands Conservation Association to gauge local knowledge about the bird. While it is related to similar parrots found on the Honduran mainland, the yellow naped parrot is found only on Roatan, Guanaja and Barbareta.Full article

SAN PEDRO SULA -- When one thinks of eucalyptus trees, images of Australia and the cuddly koala bear come to mind. While it is necessary to go to Australia to see a Koala bear in action, you only have to go to central Honduras to find eucalyptus trees. In the late 1960s, 300 hectares of eucalyptus trees were planted in Honduras.

The most common species is called Eucalyptus camaldulensis. This particular species grows to a maximum height of 125 feet. Eucalyptus leaves are known for their medicinal value. They have a distinctive bitter but refreshing taste. Eucalyptus is used in cough medicines because it contains natural cough suppressants.

Eucalyptus can also be mixed with alcohol and formaldehyde to make an excellent aromatic disinfectant. The wood from the tree is very hard and durable and is resistant to pests such as termites. This makes it a good choice for construction material, as well as for wood floors. In Panama, eucalyptus wood is used for making a variety of arts and crafts.

These trees are also used as windbreakers and as decorative plants. Deep, solid roots from the tree serve to prevent soil erosion that is a major problem in the nation's stripped forests. The roots help maintain the water on the ground surface instead of running off downhill.

While many trees can help prevent soil erosion, there are very few that offer the medical benefits of the eucalyptus tree. With hundreds of acres of eucalyptus trees in Honduras, can the koala bear be far behind?

An International Conference on Medicinal Plants Conservation, Utilization, Trade and Cultural Traditions was held in Bangalore, India Feb. 16-20 at which Honduran biologist Dr. Sonia Lagos-Witte presented a paper titled the "Conservation of Medicinal Plants in Central America and the Caribbean."

Dr. Lagos Witte, Regional Coordinator for TRAMIL (Traditional Medicines in the Islands), presented an overview of the types of ecosystems and bio-diversity found in Central America, and outlined the efforts of TRAMIL in classifying and protecting medicinal plants which have been used for centuries in the area.

The greatest threat to plants diversity in Central America is the disappearance of the forests. In 1950, 60 percent of Central America was covered with forests. In 1970 only 49 percent of the area remained forested and in 1980 the proportion had dropped to 41 percent. According to Dr. Lagos, "At this rate the remaining forests could disappear in the next 15 years. With luck, national parks and natural reserves would be left."

Latin America and the Caribbean have some of the greatest plant diversity in the world. Many important plants originated in this part of the world, including the potato, avocado, common beans, rubber, pineapple, cacao, as well as many other species that are primarily used locally.

TRAMIL is trying to protect the forests and their diverse plant life in several ways. The principal goal of TRAMIL is to help communities meet their health care needs through use of natural medicines in a sustainable way. The program also carries out pharmaceutical testing of locally used medicinal plants, and is trying to encourage the protection and sustainable use of 178 species of medicinal plants native to the Central American region, through information, legislation and coordination of study programs.

For more information on what is being done to protect medicinal plants in Central America and the Caribbean, contact TRAMIL, PO Box 64, Managua, Nicaragua.

Honduras signs reef protection treaty with regional neighbors

TEGUCIGALPA -- During a whirlwind trip to Mexico this week, President Reina joined the leaders of Mexico, Guatemala and Belize to sign the Tulum Declaration, a document in which the four nations promise to protect the coral reef system that they share. Full article By BLANCA MORENO

Honduran cat's claw has potential to grasp herbal remedy market

Native to the tropical rainforests of Central and South America, the plant known as una de gato in Spanish and cat's claw in English has a long list of curative properties. Its anti-inflammatory effects have been used to treat everything from rheumatoid arthritis and prostate swelling to respiratory and gastrointestinal diseases. Mexican actor Andrés García even claimed recently on international television that una de gato cured him of an advanced cancer. Full article by RICARDO P. MADRID Special to Honduras This Week

Lancetilla   Botanical Garden is under the organization's protection.

TRUJILLO -- The Jeanette Kawas National Park, better known as Punta Sal, is one of Honduras' largest protected areas. It has a myriad of different eco-systems, including lagoons, estuaries, wetlands, mangroves, and 5 miles of coastal waterways. This is only one of four protected areas under the administration of PROLANSATE, an environmental.

PROLANSATE stands for the Foundation for the Protection of Lancetilla, Punta Sal, and Texiguat. In addition to these areas, PROLANSATE also works with the proposed national park at Punta Izopo to the east of Triunfo de la Cruz. This newly proposed park is designed to protect mangroves, areas for migratory and local water birds, and a breeding ground for fish. Full article by Wendy Griffin

TEGUCIGALPA -- I get off the Regal Voyager in Puerto Cortes and bum a ride to San Pedro Sula with a kindly old couple. No sooner settled into the cramped rear seat than I hear a thrashing sound behind me, accompanied by a low-pitched, otherworldly utterance of pain and rage, a lament so woeful and intense that I spin around, the hair on the back of my neck standing on end. .Full article By W. E. GUTMAN

Joint project will examine and protect Guanaja reefs

At the invitation of the Posada del Sol resort, researchers from Texas A&M University at Galveston are taking a full-scale look at the coral reefs surrounding the easternmost Bay Island of Guanaja.

Last month marked the beginning of a year-long pilot program that
organizers hope will stretch into a long-term project lasting well into 1988. TAMUG's Caribbean Research Team first heard about the problems plaguing Guanaja's coral reefs -- problems like coral bleaching, pollution and human contact -- when Posada del Sol owner George Cundiff approached them about a joint project to analyze the damage that has already been done to the reef and propose mechanisms to keep it from getting any worse.

Full Text article

The Christian Organization for the Integral Development of Honduras (OCDIH) is trying to prevent further damage to Copan's soils through its Sustainable Hillside Agriculture program.

Copan NGO seeks to avert second ecological disaster

By WENDY GRIFFIN

The Copan Valley is one of the places with the richest soil in Honduras. This is because the Copan River has changed courses through the valley several times. One of the theories on why the Maya abandoned Copan is that the deforestation of the hills surrounding the valley caused them to erode, filling the lower farmlands with soil that was inappropriate for agriculture

Today this process is being repeated. Looking at the hills on the way to the Guatemalan border, it is easy to see that were once cleared for crops and remain bald today. These hillsides look like erosion waiting to happen. Some experts say that if Honduras put a monetary value its topsoil, losses due to erosion would exceed the export value of bananas.

Full text article

Solar energy brightens rural Honduras with low cost alternative

The towns of Chusmuy, La Labor and Talgua in La Paz, Ocotepeque and Lempira departments, may not be geographically close to one another, but they have at least two things in common: all three are located in rural Honduras and all three have benefitted from projects by the Solar Energy Development Association (ADESOL).

Full article By SUYAPA CARIAS

Scientists confirm fireball in N.W. Honduras was meteorite

TEGUCIGALPA -- When Pedro Mejia, a young campesino from the village of Pena Blanca in Copan Department, talks about the unusual event he witnessed in Honduran skies on Nov. 22, he says something like this: "It moved like a string of pearls with colorful balls of fire... blue, yellow, red and purple, all blinking on and off." Curiously, Mejia's metaphor coincides with one the famous astronomer Shoemaker made when he witnessed impact of the Shoemaker Levy comet with Jupiter.

Full article By ROSIBEL de GUTIERREZ

Iguana's Farm: learning to love our scaly friends

TEGUCIGALPA -- When was the last time you caressed an iguana? Many of us may find the mere idea of petting a reptile shocking. But for Honduran biologist Olvin Andino and his family, iguanas are a part of everyday life. They take care of 300 of them, in fact, right in their yard in Tegucigalpa's Aldea La Joya.

Full Article by SUYAPA CARIAS

Thousands of insects on display at new museum

More than 5,000 butterflies and moths from Honduras are currently on display at the new Butterfly/Insect Museum in La Ceiba. The museum, which opened in April 1996, also contains 2,000 other insects and 600 butterflies from 18 countries. Visitors can admire this natural beauty in air conditioned comfort as well as see a video about insect life on a large screen stereo television. The walls are covered with over 120 insect display cases. Floor stands also include many educational posters, maps, bait traps and night collecting equipment. With hand held microscopes, visitors can view tiny insects magnified 50 times.

Emphasis is put on the need to conserve the habitats of Honduras where these beautiful creatures live.

The Butterfly/Insect Museum is located in Colonia El Sauce, 2nd etapa, casa G-12, La Ceiba. Hours are 8-12 in the morning and 2-5 in the afternoon, Monday through Saturday. The museum is closed Wednesday afternoon. A small entrance fee of Lps. 10.00 for students and Lps. 15.00 for adults is charged to help cover operating costs.

The collector, Robert Lehman, has been working in Honduras for the past 25 years. In 1987, he donated a large collection of butterflies and moths to the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, D.C. The donation consisted of 4,250 spread specimens and 5,000 papered Lepidoptera of Honduras.

For more information, write Butterfly/Insect Muesum, Box 720, La Ceiba, Honduras cp 31101; Tel: 42-2874; email: rlehman@ns.gbm.hn; Homepage: http://www.gbm.hn/museo

Ala de Angel

A group of slow-forming stalactites have combined to form what appears to be "Angel's Wing" in the caves of Taulabé located about 30 kilometers north of Siguatepeque on the left side of the Northern Highway. Discovered 23 years ago during the construction of the highway, the caves are quite extensive and have not been fully explored.

Friends of Celaque web site launched

Goal is to bring world attention to deforestation in
Celaque mountain National Park

At 27,000 hectares (66,700 acres), Celaque Mountain National Park is the third largest protected natural area in Honduras. At its core is an outstanding cloud forest rich in animal species such as monkeys, tapirs, toucans, quetzals, jaguars and deer. Many rivers have their birth in Celaque including the Arcagual -- the highest river in Honduras, supplying life-giving water to approximately 100 nearby communities.

Celaque has a rustic but comfortable visitor's center with running water and bunk beds where one can spend the night for a nominal sum. Dona Alejandrina, the park caretaker's mother, lives a short walk away and will prepare an inexpensive delicious meal complete with fresh tortillas and coffee.

Lumberjacks down mahogany timber despite moratorium

The people of Palacios wonder why laws exist if no one follows them

By WENDY GRIFFIN

People in the La Mosquitia village of Palacios are worried about recent logging activity on the Paulaya River. Palacios is the starting point for many tourists visiting the Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve. Located in a biosphere buffer zone, there has been a moratorium on the cutting of mahogany there for the last three years. Full story by Wendy Griffin

Choluteca conference will examine ways to save mangroves

By CAPTAIN TERRY CLYMIRE

Honduras has more native mangrove forest than any other country in Central America. To help make sure this remains the case, the Foundation for the Defense and Development of the Flora and Fauna of the Gulf of Fonseca (CODDEFFEGOLF) will hold a conference titled "Shrimp Farms and Mangroves" at the end of September in the South Coast city of Choluteca.

With the cooperation of Greenpeace International and NGOs from Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, greater Latin America and as far away as Asia, conference participants will examine the problems of the massive destruction of the Honduran mangroves -- due largely to large-scale shrimp farming -- and devise specific written strategies to urge the shrimp industry to prevent further environmental damage by examining current unsustainable cultivation procedures.

La Tigra is a quick escape for Tegucigalpa residents

By JUDITH C. SHAFFER

La Tigra National Park is an excellent option for Tegucigalpa residents hungry for a taste of Mother Nature. Just 45 minutes from the capital, the park is far enough away for visitors to forget their city woes, but not so far that chronic urbanites get the shakes for lack of civilization.Full text article

Traffickers feed illicit U.S. demand for iguanas, other wildlife

By LARRY LEE
SAN LORENZO, Valle --

Last week during a routine traffic check, soldiers here next to the Gulf of Fonseca found a couple taking hundreds of baby iguanas to the Salvadoran border.

From there they were to be shipped to the United States to become pets.

The pair had about 1,300 iguanas. The animals were stuffed into cloth bags and the bottoms of backpacks with clothing piled on top. Despite that and the intense heat, fewer than 50 had died.Full text article

Cusuco National Park

By JÖRG MAUELSHAGEN
Special to Honduras This Week

Looking west from any part of San Pedro Sula you will have a view of the green foothills of the Merendon mountain range.

Invisible from the city, however, are the highest peaks of the range, which form Cusuco National Park.  Full text article

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Harnessing wood energy

By LARRY LEE

With 90 percent of the wood that Honduras consumes going up in smoke, PROLEÑA thinks it has a better way.

The group wants to turn the deforestation nightmare of leña, or firewood, into a renewable energy source -- one that will also help the Honduran economy by providing incomes for farmers and firewood distributors.Full text article

Eco-Lago to build environmental research station

The Foundationand for the Ecological Preservation Sustainable Development of Lake Yojoa and its basin, commonly known as Eco-Lago, is planning to develop a Tropical Eco Center for the Study of the Environment and Biodiversity.

In July 1996, the organization received a donation of 20 manzanas (about 14 hectares) located on a pine-covered hill overlooking the lake, where the center will be created. An additional 100 manzanas (70 hectares) will be added to create a wildlife refuge, which can also be used for field research...

Full text article

Tallest peak struggled to become park, yet still losing trees

By LARRY LEE

GRACIAS, Lempira -- If you take the considerable time and effort needed to visit many of Honduras' protected areas, you might think once you arrive that you're on top of the world.

And that's exactly where you'll be at Celaque National Park. They don't call it a cloud forest for nothing.Full text article

The Pride of Olancho

By JUDITH C. SHAFFER

La Muralla National Park is the self-proclaimed Pride of Olancho. And well it should be. Home to three-toed sloths, source of crystal-clear waters and major eco-tourist magnet, the people of Olancho know the park is something special. If you make the 3½-hour trip from Tegucigalpa, you'll know it too.

The nice thing about La Muralla is that the trip there is as enjoyable as the park itself. Whether you drive or take the bus, it's a slow wind east along the highway to Olancho, a roadway that is notably less frenetic than the crazy-driver-filled Carretera del Norte between Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula. Full text article

  Follow the footsteps of the forest dwellers

By LISA VILLELA
Special to Honduras This Week

Guatuza or agouti

This pretty animal is frequently observed as it forages on the forest floor. Guatuza or agoutis are small mammals with orange brown fur that resemble a cross between a squirrel and a rabbit, or at least that's what old time residents of the Bay Islands must have thought because they call these secretive animals "rabbits." They are actually rodents, that is, they belong to the same group as the common rat but are more closely related to the tepezcuintle (paca) and the South American giant capibara. Full text article

Cloud Forests

By JORGE SALAVERRI
Special to Honduras This Week

Because of its mountainous topography, Honduras has more cloud forests than any other country in Central America, boasting nearly 40. The largest cloud forests have been made into national parks. Others are wildlife refuges, biological reserves or simply water protection areas. Of the 13 national parks located in Honduras, 12 are located in highland cloud forests.

These cloud forests are the source of life for the rest of Honduras. They are veritable pure water factories. Trees, mosses, bromeliads and the humus of the forest floor work as a huge sponge to collect rainfall and release it slowly. Full text article

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