Andean Humid Cloud Forest in DANGER: Iliniza Ecological Reserve, Ecuador, South America

Andean Spectacled Bear (tremarctos ornatus), Deer (odecoileus virginianous ustus), Fox (psudapex culpaeus) and Puma are also found in this forest, but not for long. It is now extremely rare to sight these large mammals. When they are seen by the local population, they are tracked and hunted. Their skins and meat have been sold for a few dollars at the village market. This unique cloud forest habitat is being encroached on and exploited by roads. There was a Puma and Fox sighted in the area in 2005.

My wife and I live in rural Ecuador and have built a small eco-friendly guesthouse called The Black Sheep Inn. Since moving here in 1994 we had the desire to preserve this forest. We don’t live in the heart of the forest and we have been very busy establishing our ecolodge, so this project had been put on the back burner. In 1996 we were excited when INEFAN (the Ecuadorian equivalent to the National Park Service) declared this area "The Iliniza Ecological Reserve". The reserve, 149,000 hectares (357,000 acres), includes the Iliniza Twin Snow Capped peaks, a section of the Rio Toachi Canyon, high altitude paramó grasslands and enormous tracks of cloud forest. Elevations range from over 5200 meters down to 900 meters (17,000 feet to 3000 feet).

Although we were hopeful when the area was declared an ecological reserve, we must admit that the destruction to the forest has intensified since that declaration. All reserves and parks in Ecuador are now administered by the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment. There has been an ongoing economic crisis in Ecuador, and the small resources the government once had, have dwindled to almost nothing. There have been no educational projects, no controls or guards set up, not even signs posted so that people know when they are entering the reserve.

Back in April 1995 we visited a pre-Incan Ruin site (called Chorro or Pucará) high in the cloud forest. I distinctly remember going through thick forest vegetation and coming out on top of the world, having a spectacular view over the forest. I went up to the same site recently, and the area has been cleared. People are planting potatoes between the burnt stumps. It reminded me of the Dr. Seuss story The Lorax.

Of the small section of cloud forest that I am familiar with, 70% has been cleared in less than 7 years. This is just the fringe of virgin cloud forest. It scares me to think of how this forest is being encroached upon from other locations.

This is a sad story if you value ecosystems, the environment, and unusual species of plants and animals. It is also a sad story of how human progress is defined. The people in this area are extremely poor. The ones who have moved into the cloud forest are in essence pioneers. Yet their primary concern is immediate; food, shelter and clothing for their families.

100 Pound Sacks of Charcoal

Illegal to Produce without a Permit

Used to Cook Chicken, Rabbit and Guinea Pig in the Cities

Occasionally I too have participated in the destruction by buying wood boards for construction, yet construction is not my business, so I am not buying the wood for resale or profit. I asked one of the guys I was buying from if he would finish off the forest in his lifetime and he answered, "Claro", of course. Every day people cut down trees to make boards, charcoal for cooking, and graze land. This has quickly become their way of life, and yet it clearly is not sustainable. Because of difficult access, the cloud forest was virtually untouched less than 20 years ago, and now with improved chainsaw technology, its' destruction is exponential.

In December 2000, I revisited the cloud forest of The Iliniza Ecological Reserve. The village of Chugchilan has been trying for years to carve a road through the cloud forest. The village government committee (Junta Parroquial) required that all members of the community participate in building a camp for the drivers of the bulldozer.

The proposed road through the cloud forest reserve will connect Chugchilan (elevation 3200 meters or 10,400 feet) to another small community called Pucayacu (elevation 600 meters or 2000 feet). Chugchilan is high in the Andean Sierra and Pucayacu is on the Coastal Plain. Both villages are about 100 km (60 miles) south of the equator and less than 25 km (15 miles) apart. However their cultures and climates are strikingly different.

Chugchilan has a cool spring-like climate. People farm steep slopes and open spaces growing potatoes, fava beans, corn, squash, cultivated lupines, barley, wheat and root vegetables. At these higher elevations there is more diversity of livestock such as sheep, goats, and llamas. Houses in the sierra are traditionally built of thick adobe walls with Spanish tile or straw (paramó grass) roofs to insulate against the cold nights. The people of the sierra are mostly indigenous, and are very quiet and reserved.

Pucayacu, which is nestled at the base of the western cordillera on the coastal plain, has a tropical climate. Main crops are bananas, oranges, tangerines, rice, yucca, naranjilla, coconuts, sugar cane, corn, fish, and dairy products. Because of the jungle-like climate, crops grow faster. Houses on the coast traditionally are open to the air and built of bamboo, wood and palm thatch. The people are primarily mestizo (mix of Spanish and indigenous) and livelier.

Ecuador Cloud Forest Destruction
People Selectively Cut the Most Valuable Wood

Between the two villages is the cloud forest, the last mountain range on the western Andes. Heading west across the equator, it is the last mountain range until Indonesia. Hot humid equatorial air crossing the Pacific Ocean rises up this mountain range bathing it in moisture and thus forming the cloud forest or Andean Humid forest.

Historically a trail climbing through the cloud forest was a trade route that connected the two communities. Sunday market in Chugchilan was a big event, both economically and socially, to exchange products and cultures of the two neighboring communities.

Fifty years ago a road was built from Latacunga to La Mana. This road passed through the Hacienda Zumbahua in the Sierra and dropped down to La Mana and Quevedo on the coastal plain. The Hacienda Zumbahua is now a developed market town and Chugchilan in contrast has become isolated.

The people of Chugchilan and Pucayacu want a road connecting the two villages. They want to recapture the commerce that has been lost to Zumbahua. A bus from Chugchilan to Pucayacu, through Zumbahua, takes 6 hours+. But on the proposed road, a bus from Chugchilan direct to Pucayacu would take half that time or less. With this new ‘artery’ direct to the coast, the old trade route would be reborn.

Ecuador Cloud Forest Destruction
Then they burn the forest to make charcoal and clear it for pasture or farming.

With each visit to the forest, I am struck with conflicting feelings. One is a feeling of elation. I am amazed at the beauty and magic of the extreme biodiversity of the jungle environment. I am shocked that it exists so close to where I live, literally less than 4 kilometers away as a bird would fly. I think about how it would be great to bring tourists in to see this pristine beauty. True natural areas are so rare on this planet. I am reminded of my visit to the Bellavista Cloud Forest Reserve just two hours from Quito where a tourist facility has been established. The Bellavista supports over 600 hectares of reserve land in the heart of the cloud forest and is world renowned for birding.

The other feeling I have is depression. As I pass through a large area of cleared forest, I realize how much of the beauty and magic has already been destroyed. I pass by stacks of lumber, sacks of charcoal, cleared graze-land and mule trails that are solely for the purpose of hauling out wood boards. The people here are incredibly hard workers and haul the wood by hand. Road access multiplies the ability and incentive to cut and sell wood. The ROAD is the culprit!

When I visit the forest, I bring in an outsider’s perspective, one that sees the value of keeping the forest intact. I immediately think of the work that needs to be done in order to preserve this forest. Somebody needs to be educating the community about what is legal and illegal within the ecological reserve’s boundaries. A native species nursery for reforesting is needed. Alternative income sources need to be implemented. The people need to learn what their forest represents in terms of biodiversity and the attracting of rains and wet weather to the entire region.

I have many ideas to help the local people with sustainable alternative incomes. Studies of this bio-diverse region could yield more products and stimulate commerce: a marmalade factory for the harvest of wild berries, harvesting wild herbs for tea and medicinal use. Other forms of income could be ecotourism, especially for birders; or using the cleared areas of the paramó for Alpaca habitat and selling the wool and hand-knit products. It would be beneficial to reforest with fruit trees, native trees and trees that are good for animal fodder. Ideas are easy to come up with, but we need help to implement these ideas.

URGENCY – The longer we wait to do something, the more trees will fall. Many locals tell stories of how beautiful the forest was 15 to 20 years ago. They fondly recount the adventurous journey from the coast up to the market in the sierra. They tell me of the wildlife that they used to see all the time. Even though they realize the importance of the forest, economic reasons force them to dig deeper. Now is the time to ACT and figure out a solution that sustains the wildlife and provides a livelihood for the local people.

UPDATE – Some progress has been made, or at least some contacts have been made. We have been in touch with the Peace Corps and have worked with volunteers working with INEFAN for the Iliniza Ecological Reserve. They have placed two signs in the area announcing the existence of the reserve. Unfortunately both signs were written in English and not placed on the border of the reserve. Both of the signs has since fallen. Locals in Chugchilan still do not understand the significance of an ecological reserve.

We are now working with a NEW Peace Corp volunteer to put up a series of signs in Spanish along the paramó limits. We have also started a small Native Tree Nursery on our property.

The Peace Corps has been a good contact. They sponsored a five-day conference on Ecotourism and Ornithology, and invited two youths from Chugchilan. This conference was an introduction and training on how to be bird guides in the cloud forest. With the new PCV, Laura Schreeg, we have started training local guides. She has also started a small native tree nursery on our property.

We have also been in contact with a member of the board of directors of the Sierra Club USA. Our first cloud forest letter landed on his desk in Quito, and he came out to visit the Inn and see the state of the cloud forest. With his help we have tried to get a Forestry Graduate Student Intern from Yale University to do a long-term study within the reserve. We received quite a few inquiries, but never an actual student. This has become an outdated contact.

In June 2005, Phillipa Batty and Jaime Paneque Galvez did there research for their dissertations in the Iliniza Ecological Reserve for their MSC in Remote Sensing and GIS at Aberystwyth University in Wales. They had satellite imagery of the forest dating back to 1979 and went out daily to take samples along with GPS readings.

As of 2007, logging has been restricted in this area!

In January 2001, we helped direct the filming of a documentary on "The Endangered Spaces of the Cloud Forest" produced by SesTV (Saving the Endangered Species TV www.cinamour.com) from Burbank CA. The half hour documentary was primarily filmed in The Iliniza Ecological Reserve. It has been sold as part of a series of 45+ ecological documentaries that were shown in Europe and in the USA. The documentary came out quite well, but has not helped to prevent the destruction of the cloud forest.

On October 20th, 2001 we were invited to a meeting with two NGO conservation groups, Jatun Sacha and Proyecto Paramó, and representatives from INEFAN, the Ministry of the Environment and the local Municipal Government of Sigchos. This meeting was great, but there was absolutely no follow up.

We still need help. See our Proposal for Preserving The Iliniza Ecological Reserve. The cloud forest needs help, but not just in the form of money. It needs an infrastructure for protection; an organization that can promote education, alternative methods of income for a large population, patrols, guards, tree planting, signs, and then perhaps volunteers.

We can help spread the word and share the information we know about our own back yard, but the necessary programs are beyond our means. Please advise if you can help, or if you know organizations or NGO's that specialize in this form of environmental protection.

Endangered species and endangered spaces are a worldwide issue. The more habitats we destroy, the greater the chance that species themselves will disappear. What rights do we, as humans, have to disturb the balance of nature, if even only by accident? We need positive action.

We hope that this is truly a beginning in the process to save this Cloud Forest. Please write to us if you would like an update or would like to help. Go to www.ambiente.gov.ec and "cry wolf". Tell them about destruction in the reserve in the Chugchilan and Sigchos area. Let us know if this link is still active.

Save the Andean Cloud Forest - Ecuador

Cloud Forest in DANGER: Iliniza Ecological Reserve, Ecuador