Pristine Belize Threatened by Dam Plan
By Sharon Guynup

BELIZE CITY, Belize, April 6, 1999 (ENS) - One of the
richest rainforest habitats in Belize is being threatened
by a proposed hydro-electric dam project. The Chalillo Dam
would flood 1,100 hectares (2,718 acres) of pristine
forest, engulfing the valleys of the Macal and Raspaculo
rivers.

This would destroy river-valley ecosystems that are the
country's most productive "wildlife factory," according to
biologist Sharon Matola, director of the Belize Zoo.

Nestled between the Central Maya mountains near the
Guatemalan border, these remote jungle valleys are one of
the last large havens for the wealth of biodiversity that
thrives there.

Certain species require its wide open spaces to survive,
like the jaguar, which travels vast distances each day in
search of food.

The area is home to endangered Central American tapirs,
southern river otters, and Morelets crocodiles. Many North
American migratory birds overwinter here.

It is one of the only known nesting sites for a rare
sub-species of scarlet macaw whose numbers have dwindled
below 200 in Belize. Over most of its range, the scarlet
macaw is endangered, many have been taken in the pet
trade.

"We are gambling with our natural resources, treasures
that are not duplicated anywhere else in the region," said
Matola, a vocal opponent of the project.

Bruce Miller, a biologist with the Wildlife Conservation
Society, called the region the singularly most unique for
wildlife in Belize.

The dam's flood waters would also bury the many remnants
of ancient Maya civilization that remain there. The region
was an outlying district, or suburb of Caracol, an
important Maya city of 180,000 people dating from the 5th
century A.D.

Opponents argue that there are other, less damaging
answers to the country's energy needs, such as better
energy collaboration policies with neighboring Mexico.

A 1992 Environmental Impact Assessment produced by Agra CI
Power Ltd., estimated that "over 90 percent of riparian
(riverine) habitat would be destroyed," if the dam were
built. The report, by a subsidiary of Agra, Inc., a
Canadian based international engineering, construction and
technology company, predicted that serious environmental
damage would occur downriver from the proposed dam site,
impacting the lives of people who depend on the river for
sustenance.

The Agra assessment found that the dam could kill fish by
generating sulfide gases as vegetation rotted in the
reservoir, and by changing seasonal river flows.

The assessment also raised the issue of possible impact on
the marine environment. The Macal River feeds the Belize
River, which empties into the Caribbean Sea. Off-shore
stands the largest barrier reef in the Western hemisphere.

Tourists from around the world come to Belize for its
famed jungles and reefs. The country has been a world
leader in environmentally conscious tourism strategies,
using ecotourism to help fund conservation initiatives and
to fuel the country's economy. Forty percent of the
country is now protected as parks and reserves. Tourism is
currently the largest contributor to the country's Gross
National Product.

The Belize government says it is "committed" to the
project, but an Environmental Impact Assessment, headed by
Pepe Garcia, the president of Belize Audubon, is underway.
The final decision rests in the hands of the government
and the power company, Belize Electricity Limited.

"It took millions of years of evolution for this habitat
to reach its current unique state. It is unacceptable to
trade that for a dam, which under the best of
circumstances, would provide electricity for perhaps 50
years. This is environmental crime of the highest degree,"
warned Matola.

Source: Environment News Service (ENS) 1999.


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