Peruvian Amazonia
Peruvian Amazonia (Spanish: Amazonía del Perú), informally known locally as the Peruvian jungle (Spanish: selva peruana) or just the jungle (Spanish: la selva), is the area of the Amazon rainforest included within the country of Peru, from east of the Andes to the borders with Ecuador, Colombia, Brazil and Bolivia. This region comprises 60% of the country and is marked by a large degree of biodiversity. Peru has the second-largest portion of the Amazon rainforest after the Brazilian Amazon.
Extension
Most Peruvian territory is covered by dense forests on the east side of the Andes, yet only 5% of Peruvians live in this area. More than 60% of Peruvian territory is covered by the Amazon rainforest, more than in any other country.
According to the Research Institute of the Peruvian Amazon (Instituto de Investigaciones de la Amazonía Peruana, IIAP), the spatial delineation of the Peruvian Amazon is as follows:
- Ecological criteria: 782,880.55 km2 (60.91% of Peruvian territory and approximately 11.05% of the entire Amazon jungle).
- Hydrographic criteria or basin criteria: 96,922.47 km2 (37,421.97 sq mi) (75.31% of Peruvian territory and approximately 16.13% of the whole Amazon basin).
Ecoregions and climate
The Peruvian Amazon is traditionally divided into two distinct ecoregions:
Lowland Jungle
The lowland jungle (in Spanish Selva Baja) is also known as
The jungle contains long and powerful rivers such as the Apurimac, Mantaro, Amazon, Urubamba, Ucayali, Huallaga, Marañón, Putumayo, Yavarí, Napo, Pastaza, Madre de Dios, Manu, Purus, and Tigre. The Apurímac River is the source of the Amazon River. The Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve, the Allpahuayo-Mishana National Reserve and the Tamshiyacu Tahuayo Regional Conservation Area are within the forest.
Highland Jungle
The highland jungle (in Spanish Selva Alta) is also called Rupa-Rupa region, Andean jungle, ceja de selva. This ecoregion extends into the eastern foothills of the Andes, between 1,000 and 3,800 m above the sea level. The eastern slopes of the Andes are home to a great variety of fauna and flora because of the different altitudes and climates within the region. Temperatures are warm in the lowlands and cooler in higher altitudes. There are many endemic fauna because of the isolation caused by the rugged terrain of the area.[1]
Within the Amazon rainforest there are several other types of forest but they all have one characteristic in common: abundant rains. Over the course of a year, a portion of tropical forest will receive between 1,500 and 3,000 mm of rain. This creates the typical tropical atmosphere of a rainforest, with an average temperature of around 24 °C or more.[2]
Biodiversity
The Peruvian Amazon jungle is one of the most
Taxa
|
Number of known species | Percentage of species | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
In the world | In Peru | In the Peruvian Amazon | Peru vs. world | Peruvian Amazon vs. Peru | |
Amphibians | 5,125 | 403 | 262 | 8 | 65 |
Birds | 9,672 | 1,815 | 806 | 19 | 44 |
Flowering plants | 250,000 | 17,144 | 7,372 | 7 | 43 |
Pteridophyta )
|
10,000 | 1000 | 700 | 10 | 70 |
Mammals | 4,629 | 462 | 293 | 10 | 63 |
Butterflies (Lepidoptera )
|
16,000 | 3,366 | 2,500 | 21 | 74 |
Fish (river fish) | 8,411 | 900 | 697 | 11 | 77 |
Reptiles | 7,855 | 395 | 180 | 5 | 46 |
Demography
Although it is the largest region of Peru, the Peruvian Amazon is the least populated. It is home to approximately 5% of the country's population. Many
inhabit the jungle, some in relative isolation from the rest of the world.The primary cities located in the Peruvian Amazon include:
- Lowland jungle
History
In the 1730s, Roman Catholic
Illegal logging
Over the last decades illegal logging has become a serious problem in the Peruvian Amazon. In 2012 the World Bank estimated that 80% of Peru's timber exports are illegally harvested.[6] This uncontrolled deforestation could negatively affect the habitats of indigenous tribes, the Peruvian biodiversity and contribute to climate change. Moreover, illegal deforestation might lead to more violent crimes. This has already been demonstrated on 1 September 2014, when four indigenous leaders were murdered, including the famous environmental activist Edwin Chota. These leaders were asking for governmental protection against illegal loggers, after being threatened several times. Partly due to this, illegal loggers are being blamed for the assassination.[7]
Emergence of illegal industry
In an attempt to support local incomes in the Amazon, the Peruvian government granted non-transferable contracts to some farmers to perform small-scale logging activities. Soon however, big
In 2000 Peru modified the Forestry and Wildlife Law in order to improve the logging sector.
Illegal logging with permits
Although it is understandable that illegal logging cannot be stopped easily in the Peruvian Amazons (an inaccessible area bigger than Spain), the illegal exportation of timber is supposed to be more difficult; the shipments are huge and there are very few routes from the Amazons to the coast. Nevertheless, until now it has been relatively easy for companies to ship and export illegal timber. Despite the fact that the Peruvian government claims that it does not know anything about the method used by these companies, it is common-knowledge.[15]
The Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) provided a clear picture of this mechanism in their report The Laundering Machine. According to them, the biggest flaw in the Peruvian system for years has been the granting of logging permits: 'Concessionaires submit for approval lists that do not exist in the real world, and complicit authorities approve the extraction of this non-existent wood'.[16] These permits allow companies to transport almost all sorts of wood (both legal and illegal) out of the country. There are only two ways to stop illegal loggers: catching them in the act, or, in case of controlling a shipment, environmental prosecutors have to prove that the timber does not come from the place written on the permit (which is only possible by going to this place). With not more than a hundred environmental prosecutors in Peru, it is not surprising that both methods are far from effective.
The American-Peruvian Free Trade Agreement
The international attention levels increased again in 2007, when Peru and the
On the other hand, the FTA caused a lot of social unrest as indigenous groups expected the FTA to 'give incentives for further and irreversible destruction of virgin rainforest'.[20] Local communities were not the only ones who criticised the agreement. In 2010 Public Citizen published an article, which stated that, despite all promises, 'environmental and labour conditions in Peru have deteriorated rapidly since the congressional passage of the FTA'.[21]
Notwithstanding who was right, the FTA has not prevented illegal timber trade between Peru and the US. At least 35% of the Peruvian timber exports to the US between 2008 and 2010, contained illegal wood.[22] This percentage however, only covers the trade in species that are regulated by the CITES. As only very few types of timber fall under this legislation, the real percentage of illegally harvested timber in Peru is assumed to be significantly higher.
Illegal gold mining
Illegal
More mercury is being imported into the country than ever before for mining purposes because of the price increase.[25] In mining, mercury is used to "amalgamate gold particles and then burned off – generally without even rudimentary technology".[26] The import of mercury for this purpose is shown through atmosphere and water pollution, directly impacting human, animal, and plant lives in the area and beyond[27] Much of this contamination is a result of lack of education by the people directly mining the gold in Peru.[citation needed] The harmful impacts of gold mining in Madre De Dios can be seen from space.[citation needed]
Illegal oil extraction
The plot of land where Camisea is located is on one of the most highly prioritized areas for biodiversity and conservation.[32] In addition, these oil extraction projects impact the country through: fish stock decline, deforestation, pollution, disease and death of indigenous people, and roads and migration.[33] The World Wildlife Federation concluded that the government has very little power over these oil sanctions, and there are countless loopholes in the policy, which makes stopping them in Peru extraction extremely difficult. Additionally, only seven percent of the oil blocs in the Western Amazon have been extracted, so there is potential for further illegal exploration in undiscovered areas.[34]
See also
References
- ^ Pulgar Vidal, Javier: Geografía del Perú; Las Ocho Regiones Naturales del Perú. Edit. Universo S.A., Lima 1979. First Edition (his dissertation of 1940): Las ocho regiones naturales del Perú, Boletín del Museo de historia natural, „Javier Prado", n° especial, Lima, 1941, 17, pp. 145-161.
- ^ "Oh no! The page you are looking for has gone extinct".
- ^ This table was elaborated by Edwin Jesús Villacorta Monzón, with data obtained among many sources from years 1997, 2001 and 2006.
- ISBN 978-0-8130-3378-5
- ^ "Atahualpa (Juan Santos) (1710?–c. 1756) | Encyclopedia.com". www.encyclopedia.com.
- ^ World Bank (2012) Justice for Forests. Improving Criminal Justice Efforts to Combat Illegal Logging. Washington, DC: Pereira Goncalves, P., Panjer, M., Greenberg, T. S. & Magrath, W.B.
- ^ Collins, D. (2014). Illegal loggers blamed for murder of Peru forest campaigner. [1]
- ^ Environmental Investigation Agency (2012). La Máquina Lavadora, p. 8
- ^ Environmental Investigation Agency (2012). La Máquina Lavadora, p. 20
- ^ Smith, J., Colan, V., Sabogal, C., & Snook, L. (2006). Why policy reforms fail to improve logging practices: The role of governance and norms in Peru. Forest Policy and Economics, 8(4), 466.
- ^ Environmental Investigation Agency (2012). La Máquina Lavadora, p. 20
- ^ Smith, J., Colan, V., Sabogal, C., & Snook, L. (2006). Why policy reforms fail to improve logging practices: The role of governance and norms in Peru. Forest Policy and Economics, 8(4), 463.
- ^ Naughton-Treves, L. Deforestation and carbon emissions at tropical frontiers: a case study from the Peruvian Amazon. World Development 32.1 (2004): 185
- ^ Environmental Investigation Agency (2012). La Máquina Lavadora, p. 6
- ^ Matalon, L. (2014). Building a Template for Sustainable Forestry. Revista: Harvard Review of Latin America, Peru 20-24.
- ^ Environmental Investigation Agency (2012). La Máquina Lavadora, p. 4
- ^ United States Trade Representative (2013). UNITED STATES – PERU TRADE PROMOTION AGREEMENT: STRENGTHENING FOREST SECTOR GOVERNANCE IN PERU. [2]
- ^ United States Trade Representative (2013). UNITED STATES – PERU TRADE PROMOTION AGREEMENT: STRENGTHENING FOREST SECTOR GOVERNANCE IN PERU. [3]
- ^ http://www.osinfor.gob.pe/osinfor/
- ^ Asociacíon Interétnica de Desarrollo de la Selva Peruanana (2007). Peru’s mahogany exports threaten survival of indigenous tribes and violate international environmental laws.[4]
- ^ Public Citizen (2010). A Year after Implementation of Peru Free Trade Agreement, U.S. and Peru Left with Broken Promises and No New Trade Model. Washington, DC: McArthur, T. & Tucker T.
- ^ Environmental Investigation Agency (2012). La Máquina Lavadora, p. 3
- ^ "Overview." Amazon Conservation Association, About,. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2015.
- ^ "Overview." Amazon Conservation Association, About,. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2015.
- ^ Swenson, Jennifer J. et al. “Gold Mining in the Peruvian Amazon: Global Prices, Deforestation, and Mercury Imports.” Ed. Guy J-P. Schumann. PLoS ONE 6.4 (2011): e18875. PMC. Web. 17 Feb. 2015.
- ^ "Overview." Amazon Conservation Association, About,. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2015.
- ^ Swenson, Jennifer J. et al. "Gold Mining in the Peruvian Amazon: Global Prices, Deforestation, and Mercury Imports." Ed. Guy J-P. Schumann. PLoS ONE 6.4 (2011): e18875. PMC. Web. 17 Feb. 2015.
- ^ "Oil and Gas Extraction in the Amazon: Camisea." WWF -. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2015.
- ^ "Oil and Gas Extraction in the Amazon: Camisea." WWF -. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2015.
- ^ "The Amazon's Oil Boom: Concessions Cover a Chile-sized Bloc of Rainforest." Mongabay. N.p., 3 Feb. 2015. Web. 16 Mar. 2015.
- ^ "The Amazon's Oil Boom: Concessions Cover a Chile-sized Bloc of Rainforest." Mongabay. N.p., 3 Feb. 2015. Web. 16 Mar. 2015.
- ^ "Oil and Gas Extraction in the Amazon: Camisea." WWF -. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2015.
- ^ "Oil and Gas Extraction in the Amazon: Camisea." WWF -. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2015.
- ^ "The Amazon's Oil Boom: Concessions Cover a Chile-sized Bloc of Rainforest." Mongabay. N.p., 3 Feb. 2015. Web. 16 Mar. 2015.
External links
- IIAP - Instituto de Investigaciones de la Amazonía Peruana (Peruvian Amazon Research Institution)
- www.peru.travel Peruvian Tourism Board with information about Iquitos and Loreto (English).
- Seasons in the Amazon and river levels
- Peruvian Amazon Travel Advisor Iquitos tourist information (English).
- Fundación Para el Desarrollo de la Selva-Universidad Nacional de San Martín
- Peru Cultural Society - The Peruvian Amazon Jungle
- Siamazonía - Sistema de Información de la Diversidad Biológica y Ambiental de la Amazonía Peruana (Peruvian Amazon Bio-Diversity Information System)
- WWF in the Amazon rainforest