After signing, there will be 60 days to present the Environmental Management Plan, says Minister Gustavo Manrique. The debt swap is expected to be expedited.
The President of the Republic, Guillermo Lasso, will sign the decree that formalizes the creation of a new protected area in Galapagos on January 14. It will do so from the archipelago and together with the inhabitants of the islands, indicates the Minister of the Environment, Gustavo Manrique, in an interview with EL UNIVERSO.
After signing, there will be 60 days to present the Environmental Management Plan. Meanwhile, the arrival of international figures, which the Government had planned to invite, for the event would be in doubt due to the increase in COVID-19 cases due to the omicron variant and the measures that the National Emergency Operations Committee has arranged as the reduction of capacity. “Even without international guests, the world will celebrate the decree.”
Almost two months have passed since announcement of the creation of a new protected area in Galapagos. The presidential decree that makes the area viable is expected. When will it be signed?
On January 14, the presidential decree is signed in Galapagos creating the new marine reserve with the legal structure. With that begins the race for the debt swap destined for nature, which will take a while, but will be completed during 2022. First the legal structure is created and then comes the debt swap process.
Is the ministry already working on the Environmental Management Plan for this new area? Usually, this issue always gives problems when creating protected areas.
Undoubtedly. The presidential decree instructs the Ministry of the Environment to create the marine area in some macro-characteristics: 30,000 square kilometers of no take and 30,000 of no longline, 60,000 in total. Also, locate addresses and coordinates. The decree must be accompanied by a technical and a legal report. The decree also instructs the ministry to create a ministerial agreement that is accompanied by a management plan, and we are working on this and the decree gives us 60 days to have it ready.
It had been said that for the signing of the decree, highly renowned international figures who are linked to conservation would be invited. Is the list already defined?
There is a wide schedule of guests, but (the variant of COVID-19) omicron kicks the board a bit and, furthermore, due to the COE’s own regulations we will have to do something more discreet, but without a doubt we will hold an act with the inhabitants, the Galapagos residents. However, just like when the news of the creation was communicated from Scotland, we believe that the world will celebrate the signing of the decree, regardless of whether or not guests arrive.
The creation of this area is one of the most relevant environmental efforts of the Government, but how do you evaluate these seven months of administration?
They have been positive. The creation of the new marine reserve has demonstrated the environmental leadership of this Government. Another issue was the call made by Ecuador together with Germany, Ghana and Vietnam to combat plastic pollution in the oceans. 140 countries came to talk about it and the next meeting is in Nairobi, Kenya, to talk about binding public policy to control this pollution. There is also the adherence of Ecuador to the agreement to reduce 30% of methane gas by 2030.
In terms of water, we have gone from 10 to 15 areas of water protection. In other words, we went from 18,000 to 62,000 hectares of water protection. Seven new species have been discovered in natural heritage. In wildlife, we have rescued more than 2,800 specimens and released 2,200. We seized more than 7,000 cubic meters of wood. We have suspended activities in 25 mining companies, we initiated 12 criminal proceedings, 23 administrative proceedings. In forests we received a contribution from Norway of $ 24 million.
In protected areas we went to 66, before there were 61, we added more than 137,000 hectares to the National System of Protected Areas. On climate change, we have signed the national decarbonization pact so that greenhouse gas emissions are reduced in the main public sectors. We launched the Zero Carbon program to which 135 companies joined.
We signed the ministerial agreement for the recycling of lead batteries, from next year it is obliged to recycle 80% of the batteries that are put on the market. And we have dispatched almost 30,000 procedures in these seven months. We have not come to heat the position.
What are the objectives that have been proposed for 2022?
In the first months of the year we will have modern regulations for the regulation and control of environmental impact studies. During the course of the year we will implement automation software that allows us to give controls and speed to these studies. With regard to natural heritage, we are going to create 400,000 new hectares of protective forest, we are going to incorporate 286,000 hectares to the Socio Bosque plan, we are going to reduce annual deforestation by 6,000 hectares, and restore 30,000 hectares of forests.
Seven new protected areas will be created, seven water funds. We will go to 180,000 hectares of water protection. We also work in a biodiversity exhibition center in the building where Unasur used to be. We will have the regulations for the Zero Carbon program. Some of these goals will take more than a year, but the vast majority start on January 1.
In the previous administration, the weakening of the environmental authority was criticized because technical personnel, forest rangers were fired. But you are talking about creating new protected areas, reducing deforestation, how will you protect these areas?
The agreement with Norway is basically that they give us resources not to deforest. Why does someone deforest the forest next to their house? Due to the lack of resources and they see, in most cases, the forest as the only way to bring food to their homes. When another alternative is generated such as bio-enterprises, programs such as Socio Bosque or the State comes and gives it a grant to conserve nature, preservation is achieved.
Now, in effect, there is always a deficit of park rangers and if we are going to increase the protected areas we will require more rangers or more technology. Today there is technology that can be implemented for this issue, part of the strategy is to incorporate satellite technology, radars, etc. (I)
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