Located in Bolivar and Delta Amacuro states, the 3.2 million-hectare Imataca Forest Reserve [124] represents the largest reserve where logging is taking place, and wood from the reserve comprises 11 percent of Venezuela’s total timber production. [125] Created through ministerial resolutions No. 47 of 1961 and No. 15 of 1963, Imataca was declared an area of permanent forest production in 1981, and the first timber concessions were awarded in 1982. While forest reserves are generally created by decree, Imataca was created before such a practice was required under the Organic Land Use Zoning Law of 1983.
Currently, there are 12 timber concessionaires operating in the reserve, in an area equivalent to 1.2 million hectares. The reserve also overlaps with the state’s primary gold mining districts, and significant deposits of gold and diamonds have been identified within its boundaries. In fact, in 1965, a portion of the reserve was declared open for mining, according to Decree 375. [126] Since then, the southern portion has been a key site for mining activities, both by small-scale miners and formal mining concessions. There are at least 300 concessions and contracts in the Imataca Forest Reserve, most of which were granted by the CVG, but the exact number is under debate. Most of these are in the preliminary exploratory phase. [127]
In May 1997, the administration passed Decree 1850, establishing a zoning plan for the Imataca Forest Reserve, which dedicated almost half of the reserve to mining. The plan was initially developed in December 1996 by a team of forest engineers and geographers within the Ministry of Environment. The approved zoning plan designates five management zones in the reserve for forest management, management of the floodplain, special investigation, protection, and mixed management. As is evident from Management Zones in the Imataca Forest Reserve and Permitted Activities, the zones indicate little variation in the designation of permitted activities.
Mining appears to have been given high priority in the zoning plan. Not only is this the primary activity on almost half of the reserve, but any concessions previously granted outside of the mixed management zone are legalized in Article 39 of Decree 1850. [128] Furthermore, as is shown in Figure 8, the management zones appear to have been established primarily on the basis of existing concessions rather than specific ecological or social criteria. An analysis of the zoning plan raises technical issues:
- Public consultation and participation. Venezuelan law requires that the government hold a public consultation before approving management plans. On May 7, after three cancelled public hearings, the Ministry of Environment scheduled a consultation in the region. Those present at the meeting requested an extension until the end of the month to prepare comments, noting that they had received necessary documents only a few days before the meeting. Despite the fact that the extension was granted, one week later, on May 14, the zoning plan was approved by the President’s Council of Ministers. [129] On July 3, 1997, hundreds of citizens protested the Imataca Zoning Plan in downtown Caracas, including 89 Pemon indigenous peoples. [130]
- Weakly defined protected areas. The Imataca Forest Reserve contains 14 different forest ecosystems [131] and 11 endemic plant species. [132] However, the zoning plan defines only two protected zones that comprise less than 4 percent of the reserve. These are open for timber extraction and are isolated from one another. [133] Such a designation appears to be inconsistent with Venezuela’s policy for protected zones in forest reserves, which Decree 2214 defines as those areas “deemed to contain fragile ecosystems which merit absolute protection without allowing any modification in the natural environment. Thus, there should be no human-related activities or public use allowed in this zone.” [134] In 1994, a project carried out under the Venezuelan Forest Service defined a protected forest corridor for the reserve, which apparently was not taken into consideration in the development of the Imataca zoning plan (See An Alternate Proposal for a Primary Forest Corridor in the Imataca Forest Reserve).
References and notes
124 Figures for the size of the reserve differ. Decree 1850 refers to the forest reserve as an area of 3.6 million hectares, while the ministerial resolution creating the reserve (no. 15) refers to an area of 3.2 million hectares.
125. W. Franco et al., “La situaci˘n actual de la reserva forestal Imataca y propuestas para orientar su ordenamiento,” (Ministry of Energy and Mines: Caracas, 1997).
126. GOV, Decree 375 (Gaceta Oficial, no. 27,802: Caracas, Aug. 3, 1965).
127. The number of concessions and contracts varies depending on the report, and appears to be between 300 and 400. See Comisi˘n Permanente de EnergĦa y Minas de la C mara de Diputados, “Informe de la Comisi˘n Permanente de EnergĦa y Minas sobre el cuestionario minero en relaci˘n con los contratos y concesiones mineras otorgados en la reserva forestal de Imataca,” (Caracas, 1997).
128. GOV, “Decreto 1850: Plan de Ordenamiento y Reglamento de Uso de la Reserva Forestal Imataca,” (Gaceta Oficial: Caracas, Venezuela, May 28, 1997).
129. “Decreto 1850 es ilegal,” El Universal (Caracas, 30 June 1997).
130. V. Davies, “IndĦgenas pemones vinieron a Caracas a rechazar apertura minera en Imataca,” El Nacional (Caracas, June 25, 1997).
131. O. Huber, “Mapa de la vegetaci˘n de la Guayana venezolana (1:2,000,000). (Edici˘n Tamandu : Caracas, 1995).
132. L. Hern ndez et al., “Consideraciones sobre el plan de ordenamiento y reglamento de uso de la reserva forestal Imataca,” report written for the Environment Commission of the House of Deputies (Caracas, July 1997).
133. Modern conservation biology has shown that connecting protected areas is critical for maintaining biodiversity and minimizing habitat fragmentation. See, C.I. Shafer, Nature Reserves: Island Theory and Conservation Practice (Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1990).
134. GOV, “Decreto 2214,” (Gaceta Oficial: Caracas, 23 April, 1992), Article 5.
- Weakly defined protected areas. The Imataca Forest Reserve contains 14 different forest ecosystems [131] and 11 endemic plant species. [132] However, the zoning plan defines only two protected zones that comprise less than 4 percent of the reserve. These are open for timber extraction and are isolated from one another. [133] Such a designation appears to be inconsistent with Venezuela’s policy for protected zones in forest reserves, which Decree 2214 defines as those areas “deemed to contain fragile ecosystems which merit absolute protection without allowing any modification in the natural environment. Thus, there should be no human-related activities or public use allowed in this zone.” [134] In 1994, a project carried out under the Venezuelan Forest Service defined a protected forest corridor for the reserve, which apparently was not taken into consideration in the development of the Imataca zoning plan (See An Alternate Proposal for a Primary Forest Corridor in the Imataca Forest Reserve).
