PS 21-39
Forest regulations : Belize as a key for forest conservation of Santa Elena Mayan Community
Belize, located in Central America, is a multicultural country in which the indigenous Mayan people live. They collectively make up 11% of Belize's population. All the Mesoamerican cultures, including the Mayans, have been known to use the forest for their benefit and survival. The research has two areas of focus: 1) the case study of Santa Elena’s Mayan Community and 2) an overview of Belize forest regulations. Santa Elena (SE) is located in Southern Belize in the district of Toledo and is mostly an isolated tropical forested region. The case study is based on SE community perceptions about the forest resource. The method used was semi-structured interviews, administered to 13 Mayan descendants, to gather data regarding general perceptions of the forest, the uses, and forest management. Also, the research pursues to understand how the forest regulations from the Forest Department of Belize protect this ecosystem used by the indigenous communities. This data is collected through literature review from the government and different conservation agencies. Forest coverage in Belize accounts for 62.7% of the total land area [1], and efforts from the government can improve the sustainability and traditional relation of Mayan culture towards forests.
Results/Conclusions
The semi-structured interviews helped identify participants’ knowledge of the importance of the forest, the principal uses - most commonly mentioned as logging and farming - and reasons for conservation. In Belize, the cases of rapid urbanization, illegal logging, and agriculture are currently increasing the deforestation rate to twice that of Central America (2.3% vs. 1.2% annually) [2]. Interviewed people from the community confirmed that the forest has changed because of the population growth which, in effect has increased logging and agriculture. The Forest Department has embarked on the process to revise the Forest Act as a measure to reduce the deforestation. We expect to find how the change in the Forest Act assists the needs of the indigenous community. Knowledge of the relationship of the law application in favor of the protection of the environment and forests can help the scientists better understand how to move forward and how to protect the descendants of the Maya in order to continue coexisting among us.
Bibliography
[1] Rancharan, J., & Fabro, I. (2011). National Enviromental Summary: Belize 2011. Retrieved from http://www.pnuma.org/publicaciones/NES%20Final%20March%2019%202012-%20FINAL.pdf
[2] Young, C. (2008) Belize's Ecosystems: Threats and Challenges to Conservation in Belize. Retrieved from http://tropicalconservationscience.mongabay.com/content/v1/08-03-03-Young.htm