Mexico triples its protected natural areas

By Nancy Caouette

MEXICO CITY (AA) – Mexico has tripled the size of its protected natural areas.

President Enrique Pena Nieto signed four executive orders Monday that protect 65 million hectares of land and marine zones during the opening ceremony of the thirteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP13) being held in Cancun.

“Mexico has now reached 181 natural protected areas, which together represent about 91 million hectares,” Peña Nieto said.

The orders aim to protect the Caribbean waters of Mexico, the Sierra de Tamaulipas, Pacific offshore and Pacific islands.

The Mexican Caribbean Biosphere Reserve covers 5.75 million hectares of the southeastern state of Quintana Roo, protecting 50 percent of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System.

The Sierra de Tamaulipas protects five types of wildcats while the Mexican Pacific Biosphere Reserve covers more than 59.7 million hectares in eight eastern states, protecting wildlife, plants and ecosystems.

Peña Nieto said his country has so far protected 23 percent of marine zones – far above the target of 10 percent of the treaty of Convention on Biological Diversity, and approximately 14 percent of land, just below the 17 percent target of the Convention.

“Today more than ever, future generations oblige us morally and ethically to assume a greater responsibility for the protection of the environment. New generations’ future depends on what we do now’’, he said.

The Convention on Biological Diversity, or Biodiversity Convention, is a United Nation’s multilateral treaty that opened for signature in 1992 and aims to develop national strategies for the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity.

The COP13 forum will be held until Dec. 17 and more than 190 countries are expected to sign agreements that protect the world’s biodiversity.

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