Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Debate on Trade and Protected Areas

By IPS Correspondents and - - Reprint | | Print |

TEGUCIGALPA, Feb 17 2003 (IPS) - Negotiations on trade under way between Central America and the United States, and the effects on the environment will be the focus of the First National Meeting on Protected Areas and Biological Corridors, Feb 19-21, in Honduras. Delegates from the government, environmental organizations and civil society will consider strategies to take advantage of trade liberalization without sacrificing the 101 protected areas that cover 27 percent of Honduran territory.

Nathan Pravia, a Misquito indigenous leader, told Tierramérica he thinks the meeting is important because it is the first time representatives from all sectors are gathering to discuss the issue.

In the northeastern area of Mosquitia, threatened by deforestation and drug trafficking, the priority is to conserve biodiversity, because the zone serves as the lungs of Honduras, Pravia said.