Issues to Watch 14.8.13 An 18km stretch of highway in Brazil, the Caminoho do Colono (Settler’s Rd), which runs through the Iguaçu National Park is set to be reopened after being closed for some ten years - and locals are not impressed. It was closed a number of times since Iguaçu Park was designated a World Natural Heritage site by UNESCO in 1986 and was finally closed for good in 2001. Now the region’s lawmakers are fast tracking its reopening through the Senate so that the highway can be used a tourism conduit to the breathtaking Iguazu Falls. On hearing this, over 1 000 Brazilian organisations wrote to UNESCO an intervention saying that, “… the highway will promote preservation, environmental education and sustainable regional development.” According to Assis do Couto (the bill’s designer) the road will mean greater access for local communities. But biologist Apolonio Rodrigues says the local people do not need another road in the region and that it is only going to be a shortcut for outsiders who want to view the falls. "If we consider the importance of the park for humanity, there is no justification for opening the highway to benefit a small group of people," he said. “[Also, reopening the highway would lead to the fragmentation of the ecosystem, it could serve as an entryway for exotic species, and its use could lead to the sedimentation and degradation of the waterways," Rodrigues warned. globalissues.org/news/2013/08/13/17253
Posted on: Wed, 14 Aug 2013 06:50:20 +0000
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