Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Proposal to Compensate National Park for Water Supply

By - - and IPS Correspondents Reprint | | Print |

TEGUCIGALPA, Oct 31 2011 (IPS) - This November the Honduran Congress will study a bill aimed at authorizing payment for environmental services to La Tigra National Park, the main green area and source of water for Tegucigalpa. Under the system proposed by the draft legislation, households that consume drinking water supplied by the national park will pay the equivalent of a dollar and a half extra on their water bills to contribute to its protection and preservation, Dolores Valenzuela of the environmental organization Amitigra told Tierramérica.

La Tigra is the source of water for five municipalities in the central department of Francisco Morazán, including Tegucigalpa.

Covering a total of 243,406 square kilometers, the park is home to broadleaf forests, six endangered fern species, white-tailed deer, ocelots, pumas and quetzals.