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Report 1 (of 5): Going, Going,
Gum! - Guatemala
Introduction
The Mayan Biosphere Reserve, located
in northern Guatemala's largest region, Petén, is
the principal intact tropical rainforest in Central
America, also containing savannahs and wetlands. Established
in 1990 by the Guatemalan government, the 1.7 million
hectare (4.2 million acre) reserve was created to
conserve natural biodiversity and cultural values
and to stop uncontrolled deforestation. Guatemala's
natural resources and rich historical wonders are
not just for the tourists; for Guatemalans, areas
of biological diversity represent unique income generating
opportunities.
Uaxactún is an ancient archaeological
site in the heart of the Mayan Biosphere Reserve,
popular with tourists for its ancient ruins. Uaxactún's
140 mestizo (mixed) and indigenous families primarily
subsist on non-timber forest products (NTFPs) such
as edible fruits, gum resin and palm leaves. These
are renewable resources that can be harvested without
killing the trees or destroying the forest. Concessions
for the community to extract forest products have
been granted for 25 years by the government in an
attempt to stop deforestation. This enables the locals
of Uaxactún to live off the land while contributing
to its preservation.
Sustainable Management
In order to manage and conserve the
forest around Uaxactún sustainably the Organización
de Manejo y Conservacion, or OMYC, was created to
represent residents of Uaxactún. It pays a concession
fee for extracting forest products from more than
84,000 hectares (207,500 acres) of forest. In return,
sustainable management and business plans are produced
to supervise the use of the forest. Gaining rights
to the area in which they live has provided the community
with an opportunity to protect the forest and maintain
their current lifestyle.
An 80-year history of forest use with
no dependence upon timber enables the community's
extractive activities to complement conservation.
In order to pay concession rents, OMYC is supported
by the local branch of the Wildlife Conservation Society
(WCS), a US organisation. The WCS helps the community
to improve their ability to manage the forest based
on NTFPs, ecotourism and a minimal impact use of timber,
as well as to conserve game species upon which they
depend.
The concession's management plan clearly
establishes where and how resources can be harvested.
Areas have been set aside for harvesting traditional
renewable resources. The plan allows logging, but
community members are limited to a selective harvest
of 162 hectares (400 acres) per year within a specified
8,000 hectare (19,280 acre) area of their concession.
The management plan also identifies critical habitat,
which must remain untouched.
Harvesting Forest Products
The removal of incentives for timber
and relocation within the Reserve by the government
has allowed more focus to be placed on sustainable
extraction rates. Densities of xate, chicle and allspice
in this region are relatively high due to low overall
species diversity. This higher density helps to increase
harvest efficiency, together with the durable and
easily transported properties of products such as
chicle. Three important non-timber forest products
in the region play an important role in the future
of the Biosphere Reserve: xate palm fronds, an understorey
(beneath the forest canopy) jade palm used for greenery
in floral arrangements, chicle latex (used in chewing
gum) and allspice provide employment for over 7,000
people in Petén and represent an annual income of
approximately US$47 million.
Chicle gum
Chicle gum is the tree latex of the
chicozapote, chicle, or sapodilla tree (Manilkara
zapota). Traditionally, the Mayan Indians of Mexico
and Central America chewed the raw chicle latex, but
more recently it is used as the elastic ingredient for
chewing gum.
The chicle tree is the most abundant
in the jungle of Petén. In some places it is possible
to find over 30 trees in a single hectare. Chicle
harvesters or chicleros, collect the latex
during the rainy season from July to February because
the latex flows more easily. Using a sharp-edged machete
or small pocket knife, chicle collectors make zigzag
cuts from the base of the tree trunk up to its first
branches. The latex drips down these grooves and is
collected in a bag attached to the tree at the bottom.
Tapping wounds are generally placed at 16-inch (40
cm) intervals, and usually require between two and
five years to heal.
The raw latex is boiled to coagulate
it into crude white chicle that is moulded into blocks.
This boiling process takes skill to gauge when the
chicle is at 33 per cent moisture content and needs
to be poured off. Crude chicle comprises resin, gutta,
arabin, calcium, sugar, and various soluble salts.
The blocks of chicle are shipped to the USA to be
used as the base in chewing gum.
Latex is not the only product the
chicle tree has to offer. Many harvest its edible
fruits, considered one of the best fruits in tropical
America. The rough brown fruits are 3-4 inches (7-10
cm) wide with yellowish-brown flesh that is translucent,
very sweet, and wholesome.
Xate palm leaves
Xate (pronounced 'shah-tay') is an
ornamental palm leaf collected from three understorey
palms of the genus chaemadorea. It is the most
important economic activity in the community because
it takes place all year round. The leaves can be harvested
sustainably with no harm to the plant if only a few
leaves are removed from each palm. Each xate plant
produces up to five harvestable leaves over a two
to four month period. Xate harvesters or xateros
walks many miles daily through the forest, removing
palm leaves. Once picked, the leaves are sorted into
bundles or manojos of approximately 45 marketable
fronds which contractors carry to processing warehouses.
Xate palm leaves are collected from
the forest for export to florists in the USA and Europe.
Xate palm is popular in wedding floral arrangements
in the USA.
Allspice
Allspice comes from the fruits of
a small tree, Pimenta dioica, or pimienta
gorda. Allspice is so-called because it smells
like a combination of spices, including cloves, juniper
berries, cinnamon and pepper. The pimenta tree is
related to the clove tree, and the oil of the two
spices has the same principal element, eugenol.
Allspice harvesters or pimenteros
prune the branches of the trees bearing sufficient
fruit, remove the berries, and dry them over an open
fire or under the sun. The trees re-grow after pruning
and can be harvested again after six or seven years.
After a brief drying in a jungle clearing, the berries
are sent to a collection point where they are usually
boiled to avoid mould. They are then dried further
before shipping.
Ripe fruits collected from pimenta
species trees growing in tropical South America are
then exported to USA, Russia and Europe for use as
a culinary and pickling spice, or in the making of
essential oils. Whole allspice berries are a staple
of mixed pickling spice, and are frequently used in
commercial sweet-pickle preparations. Ground allspice
is used in such blends as pumpkin pie spice, apple
pie spice, seafood seasoning and curry powder, and
is present in many sausage and pickled meats or fish
products. It is also often used in sweet baked goods,
puddings and fruit preparations.
Biodiversity and poverty reduction
The Uaxactún organisation, OMYC, has
been effective in addressing poverty reduction through
the sustainable use of forest resources. Sustainable
forest management has enabled the community to reap
the benefits of their knowledge of the forest in which
they live. Harvesting these products can be achieved
without damaging the forest because they depend on
the existence of the intact forest.
The local community uses the forest
resources sustainably and, as a result, have made
a big impact on preserving and regenerating the environment.
Benefits of harvesting xate, chicle and allspice include:
- There is a viable alternative to
cutting down the forest and raising cattle or growing
corn, which would destroy the land.
- The new management plan has stopped
over-exploitation of forest resources.
The livelihoods of the locals have
been improved as a result of harvesting and selling
forest products. Xate and allspice collection in particular
requires little by way of specialised skills, equipment,
or investment. The planned management of the reserve
has also had a positive impact on poverty reduction:
- Equitable access and benefit sharing
to all is now ensured.
- Many family incomes have increased
to twice the minimum wage.
- The community has gained entry
into the state social security system.
- Women are now actively engaged
in OMYC's executive committees, giving them a recognised
role in the community.
- Ecotourism is being developed as
a source of income for the Uaxactún villagers, who
receive 5 per cent of all net earnings from any
ecotourists taken to or through Uaxactún.
- Income generated has been invested
in community projects such as a women's craft project
and the local school.
Uaxactún villagers live without basic
services such as running water and electricity, but
have take immense pride in the freedom of their forest
lifestyle. Creating alternatives to timber and non-timber
product extraction has been important in ensuring
long-term sustainability.
The Future
Resource management is being taken
very seriously in the community. Key areas of the
biosphere not yet surveyed are being monitored, together
with plans to build a research station to provide
crucial information on all aspects of Uaxactún and
the surrounding area. A xate palm reforestation project
managed by families is also under way, which will
ensure the palm can be harvested in the future.
Along with a recent influx of ecotourism,
proceeds from the harvest of xate, chicle and allspice
account for most families' income in Uaxactún. Their
knowledge of the species and how to harvest them has
now been strengthened by the working partnership between
OMYC and WCS-Guatemala. This shows how collaboration
can be an effective tool for fighting biodiversity
loss and poverty. The partnership is developing an
integrated vision for resource management in Uaxactún,
helping to diversify the local economy and protect
the natural resources upon which local people depend.
For further information, please contact:
Rocael Quim Peña
Organización Manejo y Conservación (OMYC)
Comunidad de Uaxactún, Flores, Petén
Guatemala
Roan Balas McNab
Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS)
Avenida 15 de marzo casa #3 Ciudad Flores,
Petén
Guatemala
Tel: 502-861-258
E-mail: wcspeten@secmas.guate.net
Website: wcs.org
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Information on Non-timber Forest
Products
Raintree Nutrition, Inc.
10609 Metric Blvd, Suite 101
Austin
Texas 78758
Tel: +00 (512) 833-5006
Fax: +00 (512) 833-5414
E-mail: info@rain-tree.com
Website: http://www.rain-tree.com/
The Raintree website contains
all the information you need on rainforest
products, including a rainforest plant database,
information, facts and sustainable products
for sale. The website is available in six
different languages: English, Spanish, Portuguese,
German, Italian, French and Norwegian. |
World Rainforest Movement
(WRM) HQ
Maldonado 1858
11200 Montevideo
Uruguay
Tel: +598 2 413 2989
Fax: +598 2 418 0762
E-mail: wrm@wrm.org.uy
Website: http://www.wrm.org.uy/
WRM is an international network
of peoples' groups of North and South involved
in efforts to defend the world's rainforests.
This site has up-to-date information on the
latest issues and has many useful links to
other organisations. |
Websites
www.fao.org/forestry/FOP/FOPW/NWFP/new/nwfp.htm
The FAO's Non-Wood Forest Products (NWFP) website
has information on every aspect of NWFP, from activities,
publications (some listed below), country information
and links to other sites of interest.
Further Reading
Books with underlined titles can be
downloaded for free from the website shown. Others
can be ordered from the relevant organisation.
EarthPrint Books
Income generation from non-wood
forest products in upland conservation
US$11, FAO Conservation Guides, ISBN: 9251038465
Marketing information systems for
non-timber forest products
US$14, FAO (2000), Part of Community Forestry Field
Manual Series
IUCN - World Conservation Union Books
Economic Value of Non-Timber Forest
Products in Southeast Asia
Second edition, Jenne H. de Beer and Melanie J. McDermott.
ISBN 90 75909 01 2, 1996
Non-timber Forest Products: Value,
use and management issues in Africa, including examples
from Latin America
Edited by S. A. Crafter, J. Awimbo and A. J. Broekhoven.
ISBN 2 8317 0317 4, 1997
Based on a pan-African workshop that was held in Naro
Moru, Kenya, on 8-13 May 1994, to analyse the viability
of extraction of NTFPs in Africa and improve knowledge
and understanding of the role and potential of NTFPs
in forest conservation. It gives a synthesis of workshop
discussions, and also includes country overviews of
NTFP use from 15 countries.
Non-Timber Forest Products from
the Tropical Forests of Africa: A bibliography
Compiled by Harry van der Linde and Esther van Adrichem.
ISBN 90 75909 03 9, 1997
Provides an overview of available literature on non-timber
forest products in the tropical forests of Africa
which include the tropical lowland forests, swamp
forests, montane forests and mangroves of West, Central
and East Africa and Madagascar.
Indigenous and traditional peoples
and protected areas: principles, guidelines and case
studies
Javier Beltran
£16.50, IUCN, 2000, ISBN: 2-8317-0547-9
This publication provides a framework for developing
partnerships between indigenous and other traditional
peoples and protected area managers. It contains a
number of case studies giving examples from different
parts of the world on successful experiences.
Food and Agricultural Organisation
(FAO) Books
Flavours and Fragrances of Plant
Origin
Part of the non-wood forest products series
US$14, FAO, 1995, ISBN: 92-5-103648-9
Non-wood
forest products for rural income and sustainable forestry
(www.fao.org/docrep/v9480e/v9480e00.htm)
Part of the non-wood forest products series
This volume outlines the approaches for assessing
the non-timber potential of a particular area. It
is mainly addressed to policy-makers, researchers,
local extension workers, NGOs and others professionals
to identify and pursue possibilities for better management
of NWFPs. An outline of the kind of technical, institutional
and policy support required to promote NWFP activities
is also provided.
US$16, FAO, ISBN: 92-5-103765-5
Unasylva
Unasylva is an International journal of forestry and
forest industries published in English, Spanish and
French.
Website: www.fao.org/forestry/FODA/UNASYLVA/unasyl-e.stm
E-mail: Unasylva@fao.org
Acknowledgements
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