• Corpoguajira with the support of USAID declared 21.042 hectares of tropical dry forest under legal protection, contributing to the conservation of the biodiversity of the country's most threatened ecosystem.
• The Serranía de Perijá Soil Conservation District seeks to promote sustainable development and conservation of natural resources of local communities.

 

The Regional Autonomous Corporation of La Guajira, CORPOGUAJIRA, with the support of the Agency for International Development (USAID) through the Natural Wealth Program, declared the Serranía de Perijá Soil Conservation District, legally protecting 21.042 hectares of tropical dry forest for the conservation of biodiversity and the sustainable development of the communities of El Molino, Villanueva, Urumita and La Jagua del Pilar.

Given the highly important ecological attributes of the area that provide important services for climate regulation, erosion prevention and water regulation in the region, the District becomes a key area for the protection of natural resources and agricultural production in La Guajira.

"With the declaration of this new protected area, we are moving towards the conservation of strategic ecosystems that guarantee water resources and species of fauna that are essential for the environmental balance of the region.". The Director General of CORPOGUAJIRA affirmed, Samuel Lanao Robles.

With this declaration, it is possible to protect ecosystems with low representation in the National System of Protected Areas and ecological corridors for emblematic species such as the jaguar, the marimonda, the yellow-faced parrot and the stone-topped curassow.

This process is the fruit of the work of CORPOGUAJIRA, USAID, local communities, National Parks, the Alexander Van Humboldt Institute, the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development and many other institutions and organizations.

Since 2018, USAID, through the Natural Wealth Program, has been working with CORPOGUAJIRA on the route of declaration of the Soil Conservation District as part of the support to the Government of Colombia and the territorial entities for the conservation of biodiversity and sustainable rural development.