Tonight, there are questions surrounding a logging license that the government is considering awarding a furniture company.
The questions arise because the most senior technical officer in the Forestry Department has given an emphatic N-O to the proposals.
That was on May 7th - but when we spoke to the Minister today - he made it seem the proposal was still. Very live and on the table. Tonight, we have a baked copy of that report and the Minister's response:
The Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve is an area of mystifying beauty, it's towering pines, majestic waterfalls and many running waterways are a national treasure. But, while nature lovers may rush to it, timber companies also seek to exploit its deep forest.
The memo from the Chief Forest Officer Wilber Sabido covers an assessment of the Sustainable Forest Management License Proposal by a furniture company named Belize Woodmark Designs Ltd.
On its website the company boasts that their wood is sourced sustainably from the Mountain Pine Ridge area
But, with this proposal to extract timber across 5,646 acres of the Western Hardwoods area in The Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve, Chief Sabido says it's not sustainable or advisable.
According to Chief Sabido, this is an area which has never been logged.
And he explains that there is a good reason for that.
These western hardwoods have hydrologic, biodiversity and ecological values in the Macal River Watershed, regarded as the most biodiverse in CentralAmerica.
The Chief Forest Officer notes the importance of this area for the watershed catchment that provides water to the three hydro dams which account for collectively around 40% of the country's electrical consumption needs.
He also notes that It's an area of archaeological interest and ongoing study. The memo says there are, quote, "various archaeological sites of importance within the areas proposed by Western Hardwoods."
The Chief Forest Officer adds, quote, "A network of roads will need to be built from scratch, and which will require significant earth moving on the hillsides where the production forests have been identified. Any roadworks will disturb the soils which are highly erodible and will expose them to erosion and eventual sedimentation of the waterways."
He also quotes the MountainPine Ridge Forest Reserve Management Plan 2022-2026 which says "logging is not advisable in an area where the retention of ground cover and the prevention of erosion is of critical importance."
And then, Chief Sabido makes it plain:
"The Forest Department does not recommend the issuance of the Western Hardwoods for commercial logging purposes. Logging activities, even under a strict sustainable forest management regime will be a short-term gain with long term impacts to a sensitive and important forest ecosystem."
Signed and stamped by the head of the Forest Department and you might think that such a resounding clearly reasoned "no" would be the end of that, but, not so. Our sources say the license is being prepared. Today the Minister made it clear that the license is on the table:
Orlando Habet, Minister of Sustainable Development
"The license has not been granted it is being reviewed by the department the Forest department, like other long term forest licenses they have to look at the particular area, what resources are there and how it is going to be managed if a long term Sustainable Forest License is issued."
Reporter
"Is there some kind of rush or urgency to grant this license even against strict technical advice?"
Orlando Habet, Minister of Sustainable Development
"We have looked at the area, the area is an area in the Mountain Pine Ridge area there is a buffer area which is there because it borders the national park which is currently being co-managed. I think the name is the Elijo Panti national park. On one side I think it comes close to the border of some of the resorts like Blancaneaux Lodge and the others. All of the mountain pine ridge which is a reserve can go into logging license, but we have chosen for that area instead of giving out yearly logging licenses, that you give out if you give out for them to be sustainable long term forest licenses because they can be regenerated, the government can get back some revenues. And what has happened in this area particularly is a lot of illegal logging has occurred, so we saw it from that standpoint that if the logs are being stolen and the government isn't getting any revenues and it is being done in a way which we don't want it because it is not sustainable, then preferably look at it as a Sustainable Forest license."
The technical memo clearly says though "the pine areas are not suitable for logging in the near future,…and that the Forest Department also does not support the request for a license for these areas.
Tomorrow, we'll tell you about another proposal, this one for the public-private Management for Mountain Pine Ridge recreation sites including Pinol Sands, Rio Frio, Granite Falls and the Ballerina Area by a private company.
