Buying land to save threatened tropical habitats
Our Mission
The mission of World Land Trust-US is to provide local conservation organizations around the world the financial resources they need to purchase and protect critical lands for biodiversity conservation. We specifically target lands that are critical for preventing immediate species extinctions and are exceptionally rich in biological diversity.
The Challenge Ahead
Fast growing human populations are deteriorating the biologically richest places on earth in ways that we have never seen before. In the 1990s alone, more than 200 million acres of forest - or an area greater than twice the size of California--were destroyed. Much of this destruction occurred in the tropical forests of Latin America, Africa and Southeast Asia, where more than 90% of the world's species exist. We are losing ecosystems and species at an unprecedented rate due to the devastating effects of:
The mission of World Land Trust-US is to provide local conservation organizations around the world the financial resources they need to purchase and protect critical lands for biodiversity conservation. We specifically target lands that are critical for preventing immediate species extinctions and are exceptionally rich in biological diversity.
The Challenge Ahead
Fast growing human populations are deteriorating the biologically richest places on earth in ways that we have never seen before. In the 1990s alone, more than 200 million acres of forest - or an area greater than twice the size of California--were destroyed. Much of this destruction occurred in the tropical forests of Latin America, Africa and Southeast Asia, where more than 90% of the world's species exist. We are losing ecosystems and species at an unprecedented rate due to the devastating effects of:
- the introduction of exotic species
- the illegal trade in endangered species
- poor agricultrual practices
- logging
- mining
- the construction of highways
- dams
- oil wells
Certainly the threats are grave, but by targeting the highest priority areas and taking these areas off the market for destructive development, we will be able to combat these pressures. Through the efforts of scientists and conservationists, we have been able to identify where biodiversity is concentrated and target financial resources at these areas to achieve the greatest conservation gains. For example, according to Conservation International's analysis of global priorities for conservation, there are 25 biodiversity hotspots that cover just 1.4% of the surface of the planet yet contain an amazingly high concentration of terrestrial biodiversity - more than 60%. Taken together with Major Tropical Wilderness Areas, they comprise less than 5% of the earth's surface but contain more than 80% of global biodiversity! In addition, scientists from several major international conservation organizations have recently joined forces to identify the highest priority sites necessary for preventing the immediate extinction of species. Through the list of sites that results from this "Alliance for Zero Extinctions," international groups will be able to target resources even more specifically at areas with endangered species in most dire need of protection.
Why Private Lands?
In global conservation priority areas, the primary natural resource protection method of the international conservation community has been to work with governments to create public protected areas. Although this strategy is vital, public lands represent only a portion of these critical habitats - the rest of these areas lie in private hands where there may be no restrictions on development. For example, four of the Latin American hotspots - the Chocóóó-Darien of Western Ecuador and Colombia, the Atlantic Forest, Central Chile and Mesoamerica (Mexico and Central America) are estimated to be more than 80 percent private lands. And, while these ecosystems continue to be destroyed, no major conservation organization has a comprehensive plan to protect the private lands portions of these areas.
Consider, for example, the Atlantic Forest Region of Brazil. With an estimated 250 species of mammals (55 endemic), 340 amphibians (90 endemic), 1,023 bird (188 endemic), and approximately 20,000 trees (half of which are endemic), the area is exceptionally important for biodiversity conservation. However, less than 8% of the original forest remains today, of which less than 3% is currently protected. More than 95% percent of the remaining unprotected habitat of the Atlantic Forest lies in private hands - indicating that the only way to protect what is left of this region is through securing private lands. Of the remaining Latin American Hotspots comprised principally of private lands, very little land benefits from any form of protection. Specifically:
- Chocó-Darien of Western Ecuador (6.3%);
- Central Chile (3.1%);
- Mesoamerica (12.0%)
Where protected areas do exist, conservationists continue to expand these
areas in order to preserve a region's key ecological process and biodiversity
composition. Although national parks and other public protected areas
can serve as anchors for these large areas, private lands typically occur between, within and around such areas. Thus, securing these private
areas is critical to allowing government protected areas to fill their
role.
For example, major conservation efforts are currently underway to create
a conservation corridor between the Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica, and the
Talamancas of Panama. This corridor is considered to be among the top
three highest priority corridors in the Mesoamerican Hotspot. Nonetheless,
two existing protected areas - Corcovado National Park and Piedras Blancas
- are insufficient to protect the biodiversity of the Osa Peninsula. Between
these two corridors and inside Piedras Blancas National Park are private
lands, which need to be protected through land purchase and other private
conservation mechanisms.
How We Work
WLT-US believes that the key to being successful at securing private lands is to work through locally-based conservation organizations. International conservation organizations, as well as concerned individuals, are limited from undertaking large-scale private lands conservation initiatives abroad because of issues of national sovereignty. It is also often difficult for international groups to secure private lands due to the high transaction costs of negotiating with several individual landowners on a very local scale.
To be successful, such transactions rely on local conservation organizations that are most familiar with the biodiversity of a given region and with the local situation (land ownership, threats), are trusted by local landowners, and have the highest legal and political insight. These groups exist and have been very successful to date at securing land. The limiting factor, however, is access to donor funds in the US. WLT-US' goal is to secure the funds necessary to allow local organizations to fulfill their mission - to purchase and manage critical lands for biodiversity conservation. As funding is secured from donors in the US, WLT-US helps build the capacity of local groups by bolstering their staff and infrastructure. We also monitor the project, through periodic reporting from local partners, so that we can ensure donors their funds are achieving the greatest conservation results. The role of the local partner in a given conservation project is to secure the land by purchase or other conservation means, such as conservation easements, manage the land and monitor and analyze the results of management.
By working exclusively through local conservation organizations, WLT-US is able to keep the size of our own staff and overhead costs extremely low and therefore direct nearly all donated funds to the places where they can have the greatest impact - to our local partners in the field.
How We Work
WLT-US believes that the key to being successful at securing private lands is to work through locally-based conservation organizations. International conservation organizations, as well as concerned individuals, are limited from undertaking large-scale private lands conservation initiatives abroad because of issues of national sovereignty. It is also often difficult for international groups to secure private lands due to the high transaction costs of negotiating with several individual landowners on a very local scale.
To be successful, such transactions rely on local conservation organizations that are most familiar with the biodiversity of a given region and with the local situation (land ownership, threats), are trusted by local landowners, and have the highest legal and political insight. These groups exist and have been very successful to date at securing land. The limiting factor, however, is access to donor funds in the US. WLT-US' goal is to secure the funds necessary to allow local organizations to fulfill their mission - to purchase and manage critical lands for biodiversity conservation. As funding is secured from donors in the US, WLT-US helps build the capacity of local groups by bolstering their staff and infrastructure. We also monitor the project, through periodic reporting from local partners, so that we can ensure donors their funds are achieving the greatest conservation results. The role of the local partner in a given conservation project is to secure the land by purchase or other conservation means, such as conservation easements, manage the land and monitor and analyze the results of management.
By working exclusively through local conservation organizations, WLT-US is able to keep the size of our own staff and overhead costs extremely low and therefore direct nearly all donated funds to the places where they can have the greatest impact - to our local partners in the field.