| Other Reserves in Los Tuxtlas |
| Aside from the Los Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve, which in essence is a reserve in name only, considerable other areas are being protected by private individuals, communities and other Mexican government organizations. Of the highly threatened nuclear parts of the Biosphere, only about 9,700 of 29,721 hectare are owned by the Biosphere. The remainder is private or ejido property. The 1937 decree protecting the watershed (cuenca) of Laguna Catemaco is still in existence, but from day one of its publication, has been ignored. Since then several other "reserves" have sprung up. |
| Community Reserves |
| Before the advent of cattle ranching, local indigenous communities did not need to set aside protected areas. Since the preservation. That trend was unfortunately not followed by the other mostly mestizo communities. In the early 1990´s Mexican federal academics started pushing ejidos to set aside some of their land as reserves to ultimately promote ecotourism as a sustainable development alternative. With varying success, several communities actually did so. Please click here to read about ecotourism in Los Tuxtlas. There is one article about the status of the Los Tuxtlas campesinos in the Biosphere that says it all. Jornada 2004 - Los Tuxtlas, donde hacer milpa es un delito. |
| Private Reserves |
| 2 private property owners on the edge of Laguna Catemaco in the early 1990's declared their land nature reserves combined with the development of tourist facilities. Nanciyaga has become a solid success, while La Jungla lingers on. Other minor acreages sport nature reserve signs, and the land is allowed to stay fallow. |
| Proyecto Sierra Santa Marta |
| Geographically this organization does not occupy any hectares or even an office in Los Tuxtlas, Nevertheless - what the University of Mexico´s Estacion Biologica Tropical Los Tuxtlas did for worldwide knowledge of the Volcano San Martin Tuxtla area of the Sierra de Los Tuxtlas, this project has done on a smaller scale for the Sierra Santa Marta Driven by a handful of meagerly funded investigators they have amassed hardcore data on the plight of the region and have provided some interesting alternatives. Proyecto Sierra Santa Marta, A.C. website |
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| Veracruz, Mexico |
