Citizen and ecologist groups have accused the Honduran government of failing to take an interest in the environmental problems afflicting the northern department of Colón. This has come two weeks after activist Mario Munguía began an ongoing hunger strike in protest against the deterioration of the area's forests and watersheds.

“We feel solidarity with our brother, and we deplore the government's indifference to attending to the needs of the forests and other environmental issues in Colón,” Ana Pineda, director of the Democracy Without Borders Foundation, told Tierramérica.

Covering 8,875 square kilometers, Colón is one of the more vast forested areas in Honduras. It is divided into 11 municipalities and is home to about 218,000 people.