The Alto Purus Reserved Zone combines a traditional national park, a communal reserve for indigenous communities, and a territorial reserve that will increase protection of the land rights of an indigenous group, the Mashco-Piro.

The announcement is the culmination of five years of work by the Peruvian government, representatives of Peru's indigenous federation, and World Wildlife Fund (WWF). Some of the most pristine and biologically diverse forests on Earth have been protected, while respecting the rights of indigenous communities. "The voices of the Mashco-Piro and other indigenous groups have been heard at the highest levels of the Peruvian government, allowing them to live in peace and effectively manage their territories," stated Kathryn Fuller, former president of WWF.

The indigenous peoples of Alto Purus rely on forest resources to maintain their cultures and livelihood. The Mashco-Piro are especially vulnerable to diseases for which they have little resistance. The group's few hundred members have chosen to avoid all contact with the outside world in order to safeguard their centuries-old culture.

The 6.7 million acre protected area, an intact forest the size of Massachusetts, is home to rare animals, including the jaguar, harpy eagle, scarlet macaw, giant river otter, and black spider monkey. The new protected area completes a massive conservation corridor of 81.5 million acres of tropical forest, stretching for nearly 700 miles in the southwest Amazon through Brazil, Bolivia, and Peru.


This is a summary of an article published by World Wildlife Federation, FOCUS, July/August 2005, Volume 27, No.4.

To learn more about WWF's efforts to protect the Amazon rain forest and indigenous rights, go to:   http://worldwildlife.org/amazon

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