Latin American States Protect Second-Largest American Rainforest As The ‘Great Mayan Reserve’

Latin American States Protect Second-Largest American Rainforest As The ‘Great Mayan Reserve’

Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala have announced the creation of a “biocultural” reserve to protect a trinational area corresponding with the borders of the classical Mayan empire.

The second-largest intact tropical rainforest in the Americas, the Maya Region stretches tens of millions of acres through southern Mexico and her two Central American neighbors.

Its treasures are many and varied, from towering temple pyramids to as-yet undiscovered ruins, and from the Maya’s living descendants who practice traditional craft, sport, and ritual, to the native wildlife like jaguar, tapir, and quetzal birds which live alongside them.

Covering 600,000 hectares in Belize, 2.7 million in Guatemala, and 2.4 million in Mexico, (more than 14 million acres in total) the reserve encompasses the lands and homes of 2 million people, and 7 million plant and animal species.

“We should be proud to be able to tell the world [that] we have united our will to preserve and restore the legacy of this extraordinary biological and cultural wealth,” Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said in a statement. “We are not only protecting an ecosystem, but also honoring the legacy of the civilization that once flourished in these territories.”

“Today’s agreement is historic and beautiful. Thank you, President Arévalo, and thank you, Prime Minister Briceño,” she said, referring to the heads of state of Belize and Guatemala.

The agreement was signed at the Grand Mundo Maya Calakmol Hotel, built in Mexico in recent years following the completion of the Great Maya Train Project.

La Jornada reports that the design and governance of the reserve will be overseen by a council of individual protected area authorities appointed by the three member states. Issues and dangers such as transnational crime, logging, and other issues will be addressed collaboratively through cooperative forest monitoring and capacity building projects.

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Belizean Prime Minister Johnny Briceño described the project as “a bridge to a future where sustainable development, regenerative tourism, and ancestral wisdom guide our path.”

For his part, Guatemalan President Bernardo Arevalo was more poetic, saying that by signing the agreement, his nation was committing to a shared future.

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“We are also located in the heart of one of the natural lungs of the world. The great Mayan jungle is living history, cultural heritage of all humanity and natural heritage of humanity. This territory is an invaluable, infinite and diverse source of life.”

Commitment to Protecting A Large Chunk Of The Western Hemisphere…