Universities and environmental groups requested his decree in Guyana
Environmental Emergency in the Guayana region

Text: Fritz Sanchez
Photos: Courtesy CIEV
As part of the forum "Minera Caura and the Problem", representatives of NGOs, environmentalists and universities spoke and asked the national and regional executive order the Environmental Emergency in the Guayana region, with the numerous cases of illegal environmental being generated in the south-east.
The proposal was made by Nalu Silva, an anthropologist and researcher at the Universidad Nacional Experimental de Guayana (UNEG) and Alejandro Lanz, director of the Center for Ecological Research of Venezuela (CIEV), which won the support of environmentalists and environmental organizations, present in the event.
In the event, it was established that the Caura mining problems is one of the most important to the environment affectations Venezuela.
"Today more than a thousand illegal miners are devastating the Upper Caura, a problem reported steadily over the past 4 years, without the state or the armed forces have intervened decisively to stop this activity that began in 2006 with several hundred miners and now already exceed five thousand illegal in the area protected under environmental 5 figures, "said Lanz.
Also, environmental studies indicate that the river-tributary to the Caura Yuruaní-are contaminated with high levels of mercury, while its banks ecosystems have been cleared and removed all the topsoil in the "washing" of land for extract gold ore.
"The intervention of the Caura is causing an irreversible loss of biodiversity and forest areas and affecting water quality, including reducing their cause by diverting water bodies," warned the director of CIEV.
Meanwhile, social problems, not less important, has led to the displacement of communities in the area yek'wanas, intimidation and violation of human rights and denounce those who resist the mining intervention in their habitats and food theft, curiaras and outboard motors.
"Although the communities of El Caura, ended more than two years ago with the processes of self-demarcation of indigenous lands and habitats, government bureaucracy has continued to advance the process that is in default at the constitutional level, as expressed in the Act Demarcation of indigenous areas, "said Lanz.
In this regard, he noted, the proposed creation of a national park, as a safeguard of the basin of the Caura, becomes utopian and even naive, since the area already has five legal forms and environmental protection by the State Venezuela.
"Additionally, we are asking the Environmental Emergency decree as in other national parks are also devastating natural resources (...) In the western sector of Canaima illegal mining is being developed for several years, as in the headwaters of Caroni River in Icabarú sector, and has recently intensified the work of diamond mining in the Caroni half Urimán zone without military and executive authorities are given by insiders, despite complaints that have been published media in various regional and national, "specified Lanz.
MASSIVE DeForest
Similarly, the massive deforestation that are associated with mining practices are another reason why the decree is requested Environmental Emergency.
Although both issues are linked, Bolivar state, to be executor of large forest areas, has created a network of forest mafias and operates only with this resource.
"This is the case Imataca Forest Reserve and the same in the lower Caura, two reserves that while they have no rules for use by the state, provide a set macro security and operating within the parameters of sustainability, which currently are not met, "says the director of CIEV.
However, in the Guayana region, not only in Bolivar, but also in Amazonas and Delta Amacuro, the illegal timber industry has developed to such an extent that today the CIEV estimated that thousands of cubic meters are extracted without any permits and re-planting programs with native tree species, forested areas in the region.
"There are many cases of farmers in the municipalities Piar, Padre Pedro Chien, Sifontes, Sucre, Cedeño, Gran Sabana, in areas of tuna, and upper Orinoco Atabapo Amazonas state, wooded lots and Delta, which have been deforested thousands of hectares without control (...) we must understand that the entire ecoregion Guyana is one of a series of interconnected ecosystems and degrade and fragment a part of it, all the ecoregion is affected and with it, all biodiversity living in it, "he said.
Venezuela currently leads the ranking of countries with highest rate of deforestation in Latin America, exceeding by two to Brazil.
BODIES OF WATER POLLUTION
Also, mercury contamination from mining product which is conducted primarily in Bolivar and Amazonas competes with sewage pollution in major water bodies throughout the Guayana region.
"We reiterate that the involvement of interconnected environment degradation of natural resources as a whole (...) for example, mining generates loss of biodiversity, ecosystem destruction, river pollution, smuggling of licit and illicit evasion taxes, violation of human rights, displacement of indigenous communities, among others, if these unsustainable practices, we add the lack of cities in the ecoregion as water treatment plants served, the picture becomes alarming, "said Lanz .
The Orinoco, the main body of freshwater in the nation, gets its way through the three states of the Guayana region, since its birth in the Amazonas, Bolivar and desenvocando through the Atlantic Ocean through the Delta, continuous discharge of sewage (...) also the levels of mercury in fish presents the Caroni River make them unfit for human consumption, "he said.
In this regard, the strategies of food sovereignty and sustainable development of the country are only in political discourse to the reality of the country.
"The CIEV was one of the first organizations that issued the support of national and regional executive as to the campaigns of Mission Energy Saving Tree and because we work to improve the quality of life of Venezuelans in the base and proportion of the environmental quality of the nation and its eco-regions, "said Lanz, for whom the environment is an asset of humanity without distinction of ideology or even borders.
"The Latin American Parliament, chapter Venezuela, called to promote the Declaration of Environmental Emergency in the context of the Planet of the final declaration of the First International Parliamentary Summit on Climate Change, Global Warming and the Charter of the Environment for Latin America and the Caribbean signed in Caracas on April 22, 2008, as well as President Chavez has reiterated its commitment to the planet's climate change summit, so to declare an environmental emergency in the ecoregion Guayana, which we believe should be the first step recognition of environmental problems in Venezuela, in order to generate public policies that tend to curb environmental degradation at an early stage, and then improve their status with the participation of communities in use second stage ", said the owner of CIEV.
Matches ecologist with President Chavez, that it is impossible to think about improving the quality of life for humanity, if we degrade and pollute the planet for interest, whether commercial or any type, so the application of people and organizations in Guyana, in enacting the Environmental Emergency in the ecoregion immediately, and the commitment of environmental institutions in contributing to the national government in advising and developing inclusive public policies that generate a collective awareness and environmental use sustainable natural resources.
In this regard, adding that an important part of the Environmental Emergency in the region also goes by poor generation and disposal of municipal solid waste, pollution generated by the basic industries of Guyana, the extraction of nonmetallic minerals (sand, stones, beads and ) underground mines, as created in the river in the municipality Heres Orocopiche in Bolivar state.

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