1

Introduction ………………………………………………….. 1Getting to know Sierras La Giganta and Guadalupe

1 Natural Wealth ………………………………………………..4 1.1Life in the middle of the desert 1.2A complex evolutional history 1.3 Extravagant vegetation wealth

2 Values ……………………........................………………. 7 2.1 The petrified voice of Sudcalifornia past 2.2 Rancher culture

3 Problems and challenges …………………….……….. 10 3.1 Social 3.2 Environmental

4 Development and Conservation Strategies ….……... 15 4.1 Biosphere Reserve 4.2 Legal mechanisms for land conservation 4.3 Technology transfer 4.4 Community Land regulations

Conclusions …………………………….………………….. 19Bibliography ………………………..………………………. 20

O C E A N O P A C I F I C O

G O L F O D E C A L I F O R N I A

Perímetro o Contorno - Extensión total 16,242 km2

Pico de la Giganta: a 1,650 msnm

Norte:1,750 msnm

Centro: 1,250 - 750 msnm

Sur: 700 - 500 msnm

Carretera

Terracería

Comondu

Mulege

Manantial

Oasis

LagunasEstacionarias

Borrego Cimarrón

Águila Real

Puma

Venado Bura

Reptiles

Misiones

Pinturas Rupestres

Ordenamiento Territorial Comunitario

Atención Médica

Escuelas y/o Espacios Educativos

SitiosRamsar

Mezquital

EncinalLa Paz

Loreto

Co

nte

nts

2

Behind a beautiful and majestic silhouette, the sier-ras La Giganta and Guadalupe, hide the secrets and natural wealth that makes them the back-bone of Baja California Sur. They form a land-

scape that is not only biologically rich but also have a cul-tural and economic strength that is very important for our State’s development.

What today is known as Baja California was formed thousand years ago, when the huge tectonic plate of the Pacific crashed with North America’s tectonic plate, gener-ating a movement that caused that the land mass of the peninsula, that was already separated from the continental mass, leaned in a way that the west side immersed and the east side arose together with the Comondú formation, cre-ating a monumental cliff all along the California Gulf: a spi-nal cord of rocks that gradually falls into the Pacific Ocean.

Tectonic movements, erosion and biological evolution have formed a very particular landscape in the peninsula, a mountain region consisting of two sierras with a height of 1,750 meters above sea level, which goes from the north of La Paz County through Comondú and Loreto to finally reach Mulegé County.

Just a land fissure with a gap separates sierra La Gigan-ta from the sierra Guadalupe, a geological gap that has

different nuances of pink, brown and gray and can be seen on its wall layers or the different maze forms that erosion has caused, these creates a spectacular view every sunrise and sunset and through them the sierras can show us their greatness of thousands of years.

A biological gap, since the sierras have high levels of endemic life, which mean they are the habitat of unique animal and plant species in the world and that can only be found in this region.

A hydrological gap, because they are the main source for the aquifers that supplies 3 of the 5 counties of the State.

And an environmental gap that nature grants us to show us one of its biggest mysteries: life in the middle of the desert.

INTRODUCTION

Getting to know Sierras La Giganta and Guadalupe

3

The Giganta goes from the North of La Paz bay to the North part of Baja California Sur State, where it changes its name to Sierra Guadalupe.

It is form by 4 of 5 counties of the State: La Paz, Comondú, Loreto and Mulegé.

It has 320km long and about 35-55km wide.

A population of 4,420 citizens. 485 places, which 86%are unknown ranches.

Environment and socio cultural representation of the Sierras La Giganta and Guadalupe:

- Aquifer refill that provide three of the four counties of the

state.

- Oxygen production / Carbon capture.

- Wood and medical plants production.

- Important habitat for protected species.

- Maintenance of the soil.

- Conservation of archeological

remains.

- Sustain rural communi-ties that represent

sudcalifornia identity.

- Keep cultural traditions.- Landscape beauty.

- Environmental qualities that attract

tourism.

4

1 NATURAL WEALTH:

1.1Life in the middle of the desertIn a barren zone as our State, the sources that generates

water as the sierras La Giganta and Guadalupe, acquire a VITAL importance for all species that live in them.

The vegetal cover of the sierras protect the soil from the impact of the drops of rain facilitating water infiltration through cracks or rock fractures, generatingunderground or superficial flow cells of water.Without the canyon dense vegetation, the rain water would go directly to the sea and then the aquifers wouldn´t receive their vital refilling.

Thanks to the massive topography and marked relief, the sierras create their own weather, keeping the acquired humidity in the tops, the green mountains where life grows in shape of springs ofcrystal-clear water that supplies the fertility in the canyons where we can find the oasis just down road.

The oases are one of the most striking and important en-vironments from a biological and landscape point of view in the peninsula of Baja California. They are main places where a wide variety of life finds its sustenance in order to survive the harsh droughts of the desert.

These ecosystems contain endemic population of spe-cies adapted to this environment, which contain water per-manently, humidity and abundant vegetation in middle of a rough and dry, known as mésicos.

They are also ancient vegetation relicts that in the past predominate the peninsula of Baja California, they perform as important refugee for endangered species and many endemic species; also they are resting areas for migratory birds and is the only water source for the human population.

Another humid environment that give life to the sierras are the seasonal or autumn lagoons, basins in which plains body of waters are formedafter the summer rain, endorheic basins because the contained water has no way out to the sea.

The most noble and important role of these sierras, is the harvesting

of rainwater, in order to gradually disperse it in form of spring, oasis

and humidity, in a region of first importance in Baja California Sur.

“

”

These sierras provide water to:

- 1,100 areas corresponding to the

48.5% of the state total.

- 95 thousand of people corresponding to the

18.5% of the state total.

- Agricultural region where the 76% of the state is planted and harvest.

5

1.2 A complex evolutional historySometimes life is generated in a shy or extravagant way

around the presence of water bodies in a desert and semi-desert ecosystem; this is why there are unique species in these sierras, which are not found in any other place, since they follow the local evolution rhythm in isolated conditions.

Some of the species that have been restricted to these life islands in middle of a sea of desert scrubof Sudcalifornia are:

The presence of birds and the birds passing, local and migratory,cover terrestrial, aquatics and marine species. One emblematic and majestic species that dominates the sierras’ sky is the Golden Eagle.

Follow by other night birds such as: the red-tailed hawk, theosprey, the peregrine falcon y yellowthroat, endemic from the body of sweet water of the state. Night birds such as: owl, horned owls, elf owl and the tapacaminos.

The oases are the engine and shelter of the life in the sierras, they host a great variety of animals like: the axolotl and stripped axolotl, endemic sardine, and the fresh wa-ter fish, stripped snake, the hare and black squirrel, juancito (desert squirrel), the raccoon, the coyote, the badger and the babisuri (racoon).

Also there are big mammals that live in the sierras, such as the puma, wildcat and the mule deer, but it is worth no-tice an important species that is a head-turning for locals and foreign, it is: the bighorn sheep.

The endemic subspecies of the peninsula, the bighorn sheep (Oviscanadensis),is a species in danger, it represents a great economic value for the region, but the hunting ac-tivity has to be regulated and supervised in order to have a better and responsible use that benefit the locals, the eji-datarios and the land owners in the sierras La Giganta and Guadalupe; This sierras represent one of few places in BCS with habitat possibilities for the bighorn sheep.

Most coveted trophy, the bighorn sheep,can only be found in places higher than

300meters above sea level, it is threatened by the poaching

and the loss of its habitat thanks to the fragmentation due to the

selling of land.

“

”The sierras La Giganta and

Guadalupe are an example of life in an environment that

shows hostility and infertility like the desert itself but if only we look deeper we can see it is full

of life but in a different way from other ecosystems.

“

”

6

1.3 Extravagant vegetation wealthIn the sierras La Giganta and Guadalupe the diversity of

vegetation is due to the ecosystems that live in them, such as the following.

1- The vegetable community of the Matorral Sarco-caule characterized by the presence of bushes with thick stems, mostly twisted, and some cactus species.

2- The Matorral Sarcocrasicauale hosts different kind of vegetal life such as: palo adán, cardón pelón, copalquín and candelilla.

3- The mezquital is a specific ecosystem of the sierra La Giganta that represents large population of bitter mezquites and palo fierro.

4- The encinales are a kind of rare vegetation because the dry surroundings, even they are a small portion of the sierras and its presence decrease, its conservation value is very high due to being located in areas of high rain water capitation.

5- In the oases of the sierras La Giganta and Guada-lupe184 different plants are identified, which mean a rare wealth in the middle of the sudcalifornia desert. The most outstanding species are: Royal palm, Dates palm, the pet-atero tule, the white lomboy, palo fierro and huizache.

6- The sierras represent a kind of vegetation known as Matorral Xérico del Golfo de California, one of the largest and well maintained area of the arid systems in México, that holds the palo fierro (Olneyatesota), the oldest tree of the desert and legumes like the mezquite (Prosopis sp.) both have a high ecologic value in the arid systems.

(1) (2)

(3)

(4)

(6)

(5)

native reptile species

endemics

3233232727

12 12 393939

vertebrate species

are endemics

7

2 VALUES

2.1 The petrified voice of Sudcalifornia pastOver time, human presence has also formed part of the

landscape in the sierras La Giganta and Guadalupe. The na-tives who left their mark in these sierras were: cochimís to the north and guaycuras in the center of the State; adventurous Spanish and Jesuit missionaries came after.

San Borgitas paintings have been dated around 7,500 years b.c. Murals of 50m and 10m long , drawings with ani-mals and humans in the front but with feet and women breasts to the side, mostly divided vertically in half, one side color red and the other side color black. The identity of the artist is a mat-ter of controversy.

This paintings come from the inhabitants of the central territory of the peninsula, that lived at least 10 thousand years before the American conquer.The groups that lived in the si-erra build around the oases an important wealth of values and symbols; and established a symbiosis between man and nature, passed generation over generation which helped them survive through thousands of years. Flexibility was the main characteristic of the peninsular natives organization, since the rituals and other social activities depended of the changing humidity conditions, for which the community was subject to a concentration-dispersion mechanism determined by the rain.

These sierras show signals of efforts made by the first groups of sudcalifornia people in or-der to shape and adapt the environment to their needs and wishes. A lot of the permanent sources of water, important for hunters-harvesters, have kept to this date traces of the strate-gic techniques that this society practiced. This important ar-cheologicalheritage has been classified by the INAH (National Institute of Anthropology and History) and it’s under its custody and management.

It’s been almost 17 decades since the peninsula discov-ery and the first mission foundation, in 1697 dedicated to the Virginof Loreto.

Before the arrival of the Jesuits, agriculture and livestock

farming were unknown in Baja California, that is why this is one of the few regions that can have a date and place of the first harvest: August 1700 in Viaundó.

These paintings represent one of the most ancient traces of

prehistoric expression of men and they are considered the highest ancient cave art from the

western hemisphere.

“

”

8

In the sierras La Giganta and Guadalupe we can find 7 of the 18 missions that form the Jesuit California.

In order to satisfy the production needs of the missions, it was necessary to increase the labor force, which was why the Jesuits promote the immigration of the clergy settlers to the peninsula, this generate the population around the missions and oases called ¨Ranchos¨ (ranches).

The nativesthat survived the illness and the change of life were incorporated to the social circle of work with the ranch-ers. The coexistence between natives and ranchers created a cultural fusion that has European traditions inherited from the Spanish, as well as the relation between man-nature from the natives.

This union created a strategy of natural resources use, which the ranchers have done since.

The ingenious irrigation systems for the agricultural activities of the communities in the sierras, are one of the richer and most interesting in Mexico, because they have been working for 300 years, some of them can be seen in practice, for ex-ample in San Javier’s mission.

Besides from the agriculturaland livestock farming, there were alternative activities in the ranches, such as artisanal ac-tivities were it was produced cotton and wool fabrics, cheese, candy, grape wine and olive oil. Everything was used from the cows: bones to make utensils, the bait to make candles and soaps, and the skin to make sandals, saddles, and bags among others. Even the saddlery is an adopted activity from Europe,it has been improved creating magnificent pieces that are part of an essential cultural legacy.

With the Jesuit missionaries’ expulsion from all the national territory in 1768, the ranchers’familieswill create a pioneer and permanent population of Baja California.

The current number of inhabitants of the sierras is about 5 thousand people, which look like a low number, but this population is established in small ranches and towns. The life of these communities goes from a mixture of use and habits inherited from the past, such as livestock farming, small crops and hunting for consumption.Since the ranchers are the re-sult of a mixture with the natives, are also carriers of traditional knowledge, such as the botanic.

The ranches and ranchers, are now a bridge between the past and the present, a complex cultural network of interac-tion between society-environment that has prevail generation after generation, where survival is possible thanks to a balance between use and conservation.

Jesuit missionaries were the first outsiders able to achieve the challenge that represent the deadly duet: aridity-isolation in the sierra of

sudcalifornia.

“

”

9

2.2 Rancher cultureIn the historic-cultural aspect the sierra of Baja California Sur is full of surprises; it has millenary voices such as ancient cave paintings and the missions that are of high cultural importance, since it represents the transition of the hunter-harvester population to the sedentary lifestyle, through the Jesuit evangelization.

The cultural wealth that the sierras La Giganta and Gua-dalupe have, are manifested in rural traditions applied to all kind of life style in the sierra, it has been kept almost in-tact due to the isolation, an example of the possibilities that the human create for its survival, since development and human settlement is almost impossible, it is inevitable the emergence of economic and productive activities.

The love for the land, perceived by the adaptation to the complex environment, like their traditions’ continuity gen-eration after generation, it talks not only about a physical appropriation but a symbolic one.

The saddlery is an activity that has been developed widely in these sierras, a magnificent quality without any technol-ogy. The cowboys have been disappearing, since there are no plots of lands, the livestock farming is very particular and every year there are less people interested on being a cowboy.The linguistic inheritance is an asset that can still be seen in the inhabitants of the sierras.

The most important practice in the productive and eco-nomic activities from the sierra is the livestock farming, since the livestock has a large field for action and sustain-ability for the man.

The hunting of the bighorn sheep is a real thing in the sier-ras, and if it is not regulated properly, it can be dangerous for the natural balance of the species and can cause an irreparable damage.

Coal production through the burning of palo fierro tree, generates a very high quality coal which is why foreign mer-chants are interested.

The sale of some palm trees as ornament also generates a small economic income as well as the marketing of dates and its products.

Also in a less amount the tourism generates an economic activity in certain places depending on the location; which promotes the sale of handcrafts and food from the region.

“ This coexistence between natives and colonists has had

as a result a prevailing culture: Rancher culture.

”

=

The economic value of the livestock can be seen in:

10

3 PROBLEMS AND CHALLENGES

3.1 SocialAlthough human presence generates economy and de-velopment in the use and adaptation of the nature, it also generates disturbances, damages and risks that are need-ed to be treated in order to protect the natural and cultural inheritance. There are issues that should be treated right away.

The population from the sierras has been responsible of protect and use the natural resources of the sierras, if this population is modified or keep in oblivion, like it has been, the natural resources they protect will be affected too

The isolation of these populations is a paradox, because their difficult access is why they have been well conserved, biologically and culturally speaking, as well as the rancher culture and the ecosystem from the La Giganta and Gua-dalupe. But at the same time, the access to basic services is complicated due the difficult roads and long distances between populations.

Although the isolation is a main point regarding the social conflicts, nowadays there are unfavorable circumstances for the sierra communitiessuch as:

“ We cannot disregard one of the most

important assets of this complex of sierras:

their people.

”

11

a) Less jobs more migration::The lack of productive sources with important economic in-come for the locals leads to migration to urban places in the state, and this cause abandonment of ranches and the loss of ranches’ traditions and culture.

GARBAGEWhile in some towns there are limited services of clean-

ing and recollection of garbage, in the ranches it depends completely on the people that sometimes burn the gar-bage in order to get rid of it.

4,420Habitants

towns

Unknown ranches

D i s t r i b u t e d i n :

485430

Demographic changes represent a drop of the young population, it affects directly to the traditions and common activities of the sudcalifornia rancher, vanishing its identity and culture, leaving this only for the older generations.

b) b) Insufficient access to basic services:The insufficiency of basic services distribution like: health, water, energy, education and garbage disposal; leads to contamination and unsanitary life style for the people from the sierras.

The poor infrastructure for water distribution, the wrong gar-bage management and the excessive use of plastic bags are one of the many environmental problems identified by the people from the sierras.

WATER

56%

33%9%

Water access: Distribution:Contamination:

Wells

Nature

HosesMotor pumpsTrucksWater tank truckmanually carrying

County

Garbage in the streams Overpopulations of livestock that can create infectious diseases in the water sourcesExotic species like the velo de virgen(virgin veil) plant that uses large amounts of water, and the tilapia plant that has banished local species.

12

ENERGYEven this is the public service that has more distribution

in the sierras; it still needs improvements in order to imple-ment a more ecologic energy distribution.

c) Uncertainty over land tenure:The definition of private property or small livestock prop-

erty that together with the ejidos forms the structure of the land tenure in the sierras is divided as follow:

63%

23%6%

natural light

CFE (federal commission of energy)

Generators

Energy sources:

HEALTHThere are just a few health centers and for important

medical emergencies the habitants have to travel in their own trucks to the closest city (Santa Rosalía, Loreto or Con-stitución) because there are no ambulance services in any ranch.

EDUCATIONThe geographical dispersion of ranches makes more

difficult to have an effective education system, one option are the residential schools in central places, where students live from Sunday to Friday. Along the sierras we can find some residential schools.

In small communities with around 10 students from el-ementary school the education depends onhigh school students, they teach them how to read, write, and basic math; this high school students receive their education via satellite in the television-schools.

With this situation, education drop outs in the sierras hap-pens before finishing elementary school, the most com-mon causes are:

He

/she

did

n’t

like

to

stu

dy

The

re a

re n

o t

ea

che

rs in

sc

hoo

ls

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/she

ha

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wo

rk t

o s

upp

ort

th

e fa

mily

He

/she

ha

s e

co

nom

ic p

rob

lem

s

His

/he

r fa

the

r did

n’t

allo

w

him

/he

r to

stu

dy

Dis

tanc

e is

to

o lo

ng

He

/she

is g

oin

g t

o

ge

t m

arr

ied

.

Private ownership

Ejidal81%19%

In some places the problemsshow since there are a lot of intestate people, and they don’t know for sure whose land that is, because there are no property titles to prove the ownership. Most of the property titles are very old, with-out possession letter or outdated; this is why there are differ-ent opinions on the distribution of the hectares, causing the elimination of government programs benefits.

The problems between the ejidatarios and the owners are a regular matter, due to the owners leaving more than 40 years ago and their children return now to claim their parents’ land, or the division and sale of foreign realtors, and the poor regulation in the legal matters of the documents, all this have caused problems that even they haven’t got bigger, they should be considered as important matter to treat when the conservation plans are established.

13

d) Cultural heritage Oblivion:The neglect of the cultural heritage as the missions and

cave paintings are a reason to be conscious about the cul-tural importance of the sierras La Giganta and Guadalupe, and about all the life they host.

Balancing the influence between external develop-ments in the past generations and reinforcing the impor-tance of the cultural rancher’s aspects, we can avoid that young people quit the use, traditions and traditional Jobs. Even the opinion of people from the sierras regarding their social and natural environment is positive:

The

y va

lue

the

tra

nqui

lity

and

the

p

ea

ce

ful l

ife

Bein

g b

orn

the

re a

nd b

ein

g

clo

se t

o t

heir

fam

ily

The

y a

pp

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bre

ed

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th

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Sow

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land

Enjo

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ap

es.

3.2 Environmental The ancient natives, the Jesuits and the first ranchers un-

derstood well that all natural resources use should be bal-anced, as well as the current ranchers had understand that the communication with the sierra’s nature , is what makes possible its subsistence.

In the environmental field in some cases, the damages are obvious, since they have had a direct impact in the productive life of the people from the sierra, and even they are not definitive, they endanger the natural ecosystem balance, for example:

a) Invasion and y dominance of exotic species:One of the most important activities for the Sudcalifor-

nia’ sierra is livestock farming. Since it beginnings in the cen-tury XVIII it has been developed traditionally as a livestock farming “free of grazing” of:

This type of grazing creates competition for food and water between some mammals like the bighorn sheep and mule deer.

This doesn’t mean that livestock farming in the sierra

sheep

Goats

Pigs

Bovine

Horses

should be eliminated, it would be impossible, but it what can be done, is regulate it in order to create a balanced coexistence between species and a sustainable use of the resources, with the help of appropriate techniques and technology.

b) Overexploitation of the natural resources and natural disasters:One of the most recent economic activities is the pro-

duction of charcoal. People related to this activity make the charcoal with the use of local flora like: mezquite, palo fierro and cat’s claw plant; which makes a very high quality product with exportation possibilities.

The elaboration of charcoal without supervision, signifi-cantly affects to the vegetal species of palo fierro, because some production areas are not respected or this produc-tion has no permits.

At the same time, droughts are more frequent and last longer, which affects productive activities as livestock farm-ing and environment.

c) Poaching:According to some people from the sierra, the wild

fauna is still the same as some years ago, but some oth-ers have the idea that it has decreased due to poaching, from locals to outsiders. The habitants consider that cur-rently there are more deer because is a protected species, before it was forbidden it was more hunted; now the hare is more hunted.

The economic importance of hunting needs supervision on the synergic activity regulation, in order to have a good habitat management and sustainable resources use. Also it is needed to watch that the economic income stays with the people from the sierras and not with a third party.

The UMAs’ program (management units of conservation and sustainable use of wild life) was born in order to initi-

14

ate a program where the owners can use the wild life in a sustainable way, so it could become a traditional activities diversification, facilitating economic resources.

In the region of the La Giganta and Guadalupe there are a total of 12 UMAs: 8 for the bighorn sheep and 1 for other species like mule deer, puma and coyote.

Nevertheless there are technicians and synergic man-agers in the UMAs, but the training they have regarding the conservation and management of natural resources is not very often, which is why it is very important to facilitate the tools and proper training so the ejidatarios can be the man-agers and supervisors of the wildlife instead of being outsid-ers the beneficiaries .

The lack of organization and information in order to face collectively the social, economic and environmental challenges is one of the main shortcomings of the sierra’s communities. Taking care of this lack of organization and information would create a community strength with more information tools to defend and use their land in a sustain-able way, but above all it would strength the spirit of belong-ings in the new generations, so the idea to preserve the sierras would be a common willingness, they will value their culture as a treasure the desert has given to them.

Thus, the problems and their effects are:

15

4 DEVELOPMENT AND CONSERVATION STRATEGIES

4.1 Biosphere reserve of La Giganta and GuadalupeThe creation of a biosphere reserve combines the de-

velopment aspirations from their habitants with the natural heritage conservation that at the same time helps with the cultural identity of the region. Acknowledging this gives the possibility of generate sustainable ways of life for the habi-tants, besides it establishes a protection, management and development schema, which environmental, social and economic benefits will be for the sierras habitants.

The sierras La Giganta and Guadalupe, as well as the life they host, deserve to be recognized as a natural and cultural heritage that must be protected and preserve. This can be achieved through a natural protected area as bio-sphere reserve, this classification would give the area better opportunities since it would be registered and recognized as a natural treasure, not only the people from the sierra will be proud but all the habitants from BCS.

Since 2009 different organizations, institutions, associa-tions and researchers have made different efforts for the sake of development, conservation and protection of the sierras, such as:

“ The point in creating a Natural Protected Area categorized

as Biosphere Reserve is to conserve biological

and cultural diversity, as well as the connection

between habitats and the ecosystem that live in them.

”

San Diego Natural History Museum and PRONATURA – Movie ¨Marine Oasis¨ – Sierras La Giganta and

Guadalupe – promoted the public and scientific interest to value and conserve the

region riches.

2001

Niparajá and TNC – Integral conservation program – South

area of San Cosme-Punta Mechudo corridor – Studies

about: a)environment importance, b) socio

economic situation, c) treats to biodiversity, d)Seriousness of impacts in the areas and

e)identify the needed strategies and actions of

conservation.

2001

San Diego Natural History Museum – Bi-national investi-gation expedition – Sierras La

Giganta and Guadalupe – unknown information was obtained about the natural

riches of the sierras.

2004

San Diego Natural History Museum – scientific article

published – La Giganta – different arguments about the necessity to protect the biodiversity and endemic

plants of the natural protect-ed areas of Baja California.

2005

Niparajá – activities for the development of the

Previous Justification Study of the Biosphere Reserve in the sierras – community work

2009

CONANP – integrates the

sierras as Primary Area for the conser-

vation.

2012

SEMARNAT – issues the Biosphere Reserve

decree of the Sierras La Giganta and

Guadalupe – Regional Public

Consultation Process.

2014

RAMSAR – wetlands in the international importance list

– wetland of the sierra Guadalupe, wetland Los

Comondús, Oasis of the sierra del Pilar and Oasis of the

sierra La Giganta – through RAMSAR in Mexico.

2008

Contributors:

SIERRAS

COMUNIDADES SUSTENTABLES

ySIERRAS

COMUNIDADES SUSTENTABLESLA GIGANTA GUADALUPEy

16

4.2 Legal mechanisms for land conservationLand purchase is a conservation strategy. This is done in or-der to preserve the habitats, fauna and important ecologic processes. Since this is an expensive and complex process, it is used only when main lands are in the market and its conservation is in danger or when they are located in strate-gic places to guarantee the protection of a larger extension of land.

This strategy has been used by Niparajá AC so far, as own-ers, the AC acquire the responsibility of managing the prop-erty for a long term. In each property title, the regulations of land conservations are established.

These lands (4,664 hectares) currently have a federal certifi-cate and management program as voluntarily dedicated area for the conservation.

The main condition of Niparajá is that the land can’t be use for other than conservation, as well as to implement a long term management program.

How can the organization be sure that there would be no improper use of the land? There are intern and extern mechanisms that guarantee that the organization or its members won’t make improper use of the land, besides that the acquired land are registered in the National System of Natural Protected Areas with the purpose of being considered as private reserve, according to the article 59 of the General Ecologic Balance and Environ-ment Protection Law.

Which are some activities of the Management Plan? 1. Surveillance with a local park guard from a neighbor community 2. Neighbor community’s engagement 3. Signs 4. Fauna tracking through sensor movement cameras

What would happen to the land if Niparajá disappeared?Mexican laws are very clear on that subject, Niparajá assets would pass to an organization with a similar mission.

What happen to the people that live in the land that is purchased?There haven’t been purchased any land with habitants so far. If this happens Niparajá’s policy is to respect people’s ownership over the land.

17

4.3 Technology transfer

With the introduction of new technology in the sierras’ daily life, the environmental impact caused by the human presence decreases.

Currently there is a chance to decrease 50% of the firewood usage as food preparation material, thanks to technologies as the solar cooker and Patsari stove. Besides they also decrease the risk of respiratory diseases, burns, and eyesight problems caused by firewood.

When solar energy goes through a glass recipient and crosses with the black pan it creates heat, as a little green house.

in a sunny day, the solar cook boils 1lt of water per hour, it cooks about ¾ k of beans in 3 hrs and 2 k of chicken in 2 hrs.

Patsari Stove: in purépecha it means ¨the one that keeps¨, made by using metal moulds and easy-to find ma-terials, The Patsari stove is very efficient because it reduces the consumption of firewood (32%) for cooking in compari-son to traditional stoves. Thanks to its characteristics, it de-creases smoke contamination inside the houses.

Solar cook House hold Energy Inc, Energía Portátil SA and

FMCN

*The Mexican Fund for the Conservation of Nature A.C.

- Black pewter pan

- Foldable reflector

- Glass bowl with lid

Instructions:

1. Put the black pan with the food in the glass bowl and close it.

2. Place it inside the reflector facing the sun.

Burner Patsari Stove

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4.4 Community Land regulationsThe Community Land regulations are a planning tool

that determines the use of land in ejidos and communities in a short, medium and long term. Its purpose is to guide the productive activities in common use areas, to join the sustainable use of the natural resources and promote the conservation and protection activities for a sustainable de-velopment of the communities.

The Community Land regulations start from a traditional practice from the rural societies, in which, in the commu-nity’s meetings the use of lands according to each area purposes and the community needs are plane.

This tool starts creating a solid community organization (with representatives, work committee, agreements and regulations) in order to create:

-A plan for the common resources use, acknowledged by the habitants as such and with conservation needs-management of the land as a common entity -Foundations of decision making in community meetings.

Also the Community Land regulations become a valid tool for the solution of internal problems, because in the revision of the local problems and regulations making, the differences are exposed and come to an understanding in order to solve them.

The active participation of all community sectors, in-cluding women, neighbors and kids, helps the analysis and problem solutions.

Currently this model is practiced in the south area of La Giganta, specifically in Las Animas community, since 2010 until now.

Contributors:

“ With any conservation plan it is needed to have in mind the

social, economic and cultural outlook from the sierra’s

habitants: listen to the people who will have the benefits from the

protection of their environment as well as the non-regulated

exploitation that can destroy the sierra’s resources.

”

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Conclusions

Currently, ancient traditions coexist with new social and economic tendencies such as: livestock farming, cattle ranching, touristic development in near areas, sport fishing, coal production and migration to development centers of the state, among others. Which creates constant changes in different order: environmental, social, cultural and eco-nomics, this generates big problems and in order to keep a balance between men and his natural environment, some solution proposals expressed to face and solve this situation are: a) good organization and community participation, b) training and Access to key information, c) creation of eco-nomic alternatives, d) coordination and link between institu-tions e) proper management of garbage through training and awareness about the topic.

The main vision of work based on spreading hope and expectative in the men-nature relationship, in order to create sensibility and have a sustainable coexistence and to preserve the natural surroundings, is mainly men’s well-being.

“ Different habitants from the sierras have understood:

without a healthy and conserved sierra there is no future for

the region.

”

“ Currently our challenge is to adjust that delicate balance

between men-nature.

”

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BIBLIOGRAPHY:

-Estudio Previo Justificativo para el establecimiento de la Reserva de la Biosfera Sierras La Giganta y Guadalupe. Director César Sánchez Ibarra. Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas, México. 26 de junio de 2014.

-Sociedad de Historia Natural Niparajá AC. Estudio Pre-vio Justificativo. Propuesta de Creación de la Reserva de la Biósfera Sierras La Giganta y Guadalupe, La Paz BCS, 2011

-Olmos, García Francisco. ¨Tecnologías ambientales: Ollas Solares¨, Sociedad de Historia Natural Niparajá AC.

-Berger, Bruce y Ezequiel Ezcurra, ¨La Giganta y Guada-lupe¨, fotografía de Miguel Ángel de la Cueva, traducción Bárbara Córcega, Planeta Península AC - Niparajá AC., México, 2010

Photograpy:© Miguel Angel de la Cueva / Planeta Península

Cover photo: Ralph Lee Hopkins

Editorial Design:Atelier Taller Gráfico

For more information please contact:Eng. Francisco J. Olmos García

Land Conservation Programme CoordinatorSociedad de Historia Natural Niparajá A.C.

P. +52 (612) 12 2 11 71 ext. 107

folmos@niparaja.org / www.niparaja .org

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