19 Jun 2007 - La Lima,
Honduras – A memorandum of understanding
signed today between WWF and palm oil producer
groups in Honduras outlines ways to better
protect the Mesoamerican Reef, the biggest
coral reef system in the Americas and the
second largest in the world.
The agreement, signed with Palmas de San
Alejo (PALSA) and Agropecuaria Tornabé
(AGROTOR), will also benefit local communities
living in the area and the region's natural
resources.
“The agreement will ensure that better
agricultural management practices are adopted
thereby reducing the environmental impact
on the reefs caused by the surrounding oil
palm plantations,” said José Vásquez,
WWF Central America’s agriculture officer.
These practices include better management
for disposing empty agro-chemical containers,
increasing plant cover to avoid soil erosion,
and reducing use of herbicides and fertilizers,
especially nitrogen.
Oil palm is grown on about 68,000 hectares
along the coastal plains of Atlántida
and the Sula and Aguán valleys in
Honduras. In Atlántida, the oil palm
plantations are located along the Caribbean
coast where several large rivers flow down
from the Nombre de Dios mountain range.
“The steep mountains and the region’s strong
rains make agriculture a threat to the reefs
as large amounts of sediment and agrochemicals
flow down to the sea,” Vásquez added.
“Best management practices on agricultural
plantations are vital for watershed protection
and to minimize the transport of contaminants
to the corals. It is important that measures
are taken to control such contamination.”
Established in the 1950s, Palmas de San
Alejo and AGROTOR employ over 500 workers,
drawn mainly from the 14 communities living
around the plantations. The companies produce
23,000 tons of oil annually — about a third
of Honduras’s palm oil production — mainly
for preparation in food products. There
are plans to produce palm oil biodiesel.
“We have accepted WWF’s invitation to carry
out studies on how the oil palm plantation
can be better managed,” said Danny Gabrie,
Vice-President for Agroindustrial Operations
of the Jaremar Group, to which both Palmas
de San Alejo and AGROTOR belong.
“We have oxidation lagoons to collect the
wastewater which we then use to produce
electrical energy in the processing plant.
This helps to minimize the agricultural
impact on the reef.”
WWF continues to work with different agricultural
sectors in the region with the aim of improving
benefits for the health and conservation
of the reef and the communities that depend
on its resources.
END NOTES:
• The palm oil production studies in Honduras
are part of an initiative sponsored by various
organizations including WWF, the Summit
Foundation and the International Coral Reef
Action Network (ICRAN), an alliance that
addresses the conservation needs of coral
reefs and the well-being of local communities
who depend on the reefs. Other funders of
the initiative are the United Nations Foundation
(UNF) and the US Agency for International
Development (USAID).
• The Mesoamerican Reef (MAR) is the largest
reef system of the Americas, and the second
largest reef in the world after the Great
Barrier Reef in Australia. Shared by four
countries, it extends some 1,000km from
the northern tip of the Yucatan Peninsula
in Mexico, past the barrier reef of Belize
and the Caribbean coast of Guatemala to
the Bay Islands/Cayos Cochinos complex adjacent
to the northern coast of Honduras.
Cinthya Flores Mora, Communications Officer
WWF Central America
