Officials are struggling to keep up with an increasing wave of deforestation in one of Guatemala’s largest protected areas, where squatters are clearing the rainforest to make room for settlements, roads, cattle ranching and airstrips for drug planes. Sierra del Lacandón National Park, which sits on the Mexican border, has lost thousands of hectares of […]
GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala – A controversial bill that would merge Guatemala’s protected areas council and lake watershed management agencies into the country’s environmental ministry has sparked sustained pushback from environmental organizations, while affected institutions have highlighted significant legal gaps in the proposed law. The potential takeover of the National Council of Protected Areas (CONAP) by […]