Ecobreves – ARGENTINA: Historic Ruling Defends Wetland

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BUENOS AIRES, Mar 10 2008 (IPS) - A 20-kilometer embankment constructed by an agri-business firm in the Esteros del Iberá wetlands, in the eastern Argentine province of Corrientes, must be demolished, says a court order. In an unprecedented decision, the Corrientes Superior Court of Justice upheld the ruling of two lower courts in a case filed in 2005 by a resident when the embankment was just 1.5 km long.

“It is an historic ruling. It was a completely illegal project because it was inside the reserve,” Jorge Cappato, an activist with the environmental group Fundación Proteger, told Tierramérica.

Along with the recently enacted Forestry Law, this decision is “one of the two best news items in recent years for Argentina in the area of sustainable development,” he added.

Esteros del Iberá is a freshwater wetland extending over 1.4 million hectares and holds a vast array of plant and animal species, including many that are endangered.