CENTRAL AMERICA                                                   

Guatemala  
Guatemala is a country south of Mexico which is made up of plains, highlands and Pacific lowlands.  Agriculture is a major source of economic income for the inhabitants of Guatemala.  However, the country is also made up of many forests which boast cedrela and mahogany trees, among others. Thus along with many other Latin American countries, Guatemala also deals with deforestation due to it's rich source for logging companies and due to farmers needing to clear land for crops and other such agriculture.  As with other countries, if Guatemalans can get a good price for exporting their crops then they will see it as more profitable to clear forests for fields than to preserve those forests.  
  
  

El Salvador  
A small country located between Guatemala and Honduras, El Salvador is composed of coastal lowlands, a central region and further interior highlands.  The economy of El Salvador makes most of its profit through agriculture because of the extremely fertile soil found in that region, although small deposits of gold and silver can also be found in El Salvador.  

Honduras  
Honduras’ geography is made up of mountains, two coastal areas and a plain.  Honduras’ main agricultural crops which are the major exports of the region are bananas and coffee.  Because of the country’s dependence on farming, deforestation and habitat subsistence are major environmental issues.  Honduras deals with soil erosion and water pollution on a daily basis. The indigenous peoples must continually fight for soil rights so that they do not lose the environment upon which they have traditionally been do dependant.  Historically, however, the indigenous peoples are not allowed many land rights and thus their mere way of life is being threatened by the envirnmental destruction going on in Honduras.  

Links:  
TED Case Studies: Honduras and Deforestation http://gurukul.ucc.american.edu/ted/HONDURAS.HTM  
This informative site explores the case of deforestation within the protected area of the Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve (RPBP).  This are is being logged mainly for its mahogany trees.  The reserve is home to many animal species which survive only within these tropical and pine forests.  The indigenous people living in the area are fighting to keep the forest in tact.  

Honduras This Week  
http://www.marrder.com/htw/special/environment/  
This online magazine explores issues related to the environment in Honduras such as dam projects, NGO protection propositions, commercial fishing problems, mahogany and mangrove destruction and endangered species living in Honduras.  

Honduras: Adventures in Nature  
http://www2.planeta.com/mader/ecotravel/center/honduras/hond.html  
This site lists environmental contacts for Honduras in government, environmental groups, academic circles, and the media as well as international environmental contacts.  

EI Projects (South America)  
http://www.envintl.com/south-america.html  
This site lists projects which Environment International, Ltd. is taking on throughout South America.  Some of the countries mentioned are Honduras, Costa Rica, Argentina, Bolivia and Brazil.  This company deals mainly with environmental training and seminars in these various countries which deal with such issues from pesticide use to environmental law.  
  
  
The Tigra National Park  
Courtesy of: http://www.ctcd.cc.tx.us/students/student08/index.htm  
  

Nicaragua  
Nicaragua, a country with two coastal regions as well as highlands has many farmers because of its fertile soil.  Its main agricultural crops are cotton and coffee.  Because of Nicaragua’s fertile soil it has many forests and thus their biggest environmental concern is logging.  
Many logging companies are vying for rights to log particular areas of Nicaragua because of the wealth of trees found there.  Although thus far the government of Nicaragua has carefully reviewed the logging policies of these companies to be certain that they are environmentally friendly (regarding use of chemicals, pollution and reforestation), many logging companies do not have policies which live up to these standards.  This is a good thing for the forsets in Nicaragua, but it is certain that desperate logging companies will one day have a compromise with the governments will not be able to pass up.  The government of Nicaragua has already been offered large sums of money to deplete their national debt if the loggers would be allowed to cut down large areas of forest.  One day in the future the offer may be too good to resist and although the plans for reforstation may not be as adequate and the government hopes, they may jump at the offer.  Thus there must be legislation put in place should that situation ever arise which protects these forests and sustain the habitats within them.  

Links:  
Preserve Rainforests, Stop Logging   
http://www.nativeweb.org/saiic/actions/urgent17.html  
This site deals with the Indigenous response (as of 1998) to logging which is taking place in rainforest lands which the Sumo and Miskito Indian traditionally used.  However, the Indians do not actually own these lands, and until they do the government may do whatever they choose with the forests.  The main concern with the logging company is the uprooting of the Indian communities and the pollution of the water from the chemicals the loggers use.  

Nicaragua Wood Sale to Taiwan   
http://gurukul.ucc.american.edu/ted/NICARAG.HTM  
This site is actually a case study of another logging company trying to get a hold of the wood in Nicaragua.  The opposition to the deal are again the Moskito Indians who live in the proposed area.  The appeal the government had to the deal were the 4,000 jobs it would have created in the area (which has a rate of unemployment at 80%), the US$15 million to be invested in the country during the project and the loan of US$30 million from Taiwan to help Nicaragua with its foreign debt.  Although this plan was rejected, it raises the problems which face all sides of the argument: the government needs money and to boost the economy by providing jobs, the Moskito Indians are upset by the government’s ignorance of heir rights, and environmentalists are concerned with major deforestation.  

The Nicaragua Canal Proposal  
http://gurukul.ucc.american.edu/ted/NICCANAL.HTM  
This case study explores the possibility of a canal being built through Nicaragua.  The US must give control of the Panama Canal to Panama by December 31, 1999, and there are concerns over the political aspect as well as the size of the canal which even now does not allow for certain sized ship to pass through.  Although other options are still be debated at this point, Nicaragua seems like a likely solution to the many issues at hand with the canal.  However, the construction of a canal would mean more deforestation, mixing of water from the Atlantic, Pacific and Lake Nicaragua which would negatively affect ecosystems, and pollution as well would become a problem.  
  
  

Costa Rica  
The geography of Costa Rica is made up of highlands, lowlands, and coasts.  Deforestation is a major problem because from the fertile soil poring up great forests.  The inhabitants of Costa Rica depend heavily on farming and exporting items such as bananas, beef, cacao and coffee, so clearing land for crops is a major problem in Costa Rica as well.  
Like Guatemala, Costa Rica gets great prices for the exports of its agricultural crops, which include beef.  These monetary offers from countried like the United States seem much better than the money the peoples of Costa Rica could make preserving their land and lending it out for enterprises such as ecotourism.  Although ecotourism is in thory a viable option for Costa Rica because of its extensive rainforests, it is also an unrelable source of income.  Until another option becomes just as lucrative, farmers in Costa Rica as well as other countries will continue to depend on farming and agriculture for their cash.  
  
   

Links:  
TED Case Studies: Costa Rica Beef Exports  
http://gurukul.ucc.american.edu/ted/COSTBEEF.HTM  
This case study explores the impact of the expansion of cattle ranching on deforestation.  Because of the price countries like the US will pay for beef, Cattle ranching has become a profitable source of income in Costa Rica. Thus expansion of these ranches became profitable and soil erosion has become a problem.  Various solutions are examined in this case study as well.  

TED Case Studies: Pesticide Hazard in Costa Rica  
http://gurukul.ucc.american.edu/ted/COSTPEST.HTM  
This case studies the effect a pesticide DBCP is having on the people and environment in Costa Rica.  A pesticide banned for the use in the United States, DBCP was exported to third world countries.  However, many environmental problems have been reported and 1,500 workers in Costa Rica have reported sterilization form using the product.  These workers are suing the US companies for compensation for the damage the product caused.  

  
Image courtesy of: Costa Rica Tours at http://www.costaricatour.com/  
Conservation  
http://photo.net/cr/moon/conservation.html  
This website explores logging and commercial agriculture’s effects in Costa Rica.  It tells how, although the export of many trees were banned, at night these trees are sneaked out of the country anyway.  The site also explores various governmental attempts at reforestation and other policies including eco-tourism.  
  
  

Panama  
Panama depends primarily on the Panama Canal and its center of trade.  Made up of central highlands and coastal lowlands, agriculture is maintained by about a quarter of the population for subsistence.  Panama, like many South American Countries, faces deforestation as its major environmental problem.  
Deforestation often leads to soil erosion, a major problem in Panama.  Once the forests are cleared away, the soil underneath (since it is used to being sheltered for so long, the topsoil is only a very thin layer of nutrient-rich soil), is easily washed away once the rains come.  And although at first the soil is very good for planting crops, eventually the top soil will be eroded away and the farmers will have to clear another plot of land to yield better results.  

Panama Canal Watershed Under Strain   
http://www.foreignwire.com/canal.html  
This article deals with deforestation and its effect of soil erosion, which allows silt to get into the drinking water and dams to be backed up, and the fact that farming in the only mainstay for may people, and clearing what is left of the land to do so.  

  
Image courtesy of: Panamá: Places, Folklore, Festivals, and Museums at http://gringo.ent.ohiou.edu/%7Emedina/panama.html  

Sources:  

The Lonely Planet  
http://www.lonelyplanet.com.au/dest/cam/graphics/map-gua.htm  
  
The Lonely Planet  
http://www.lonelyplanet.com.au/dest/cam/graphics/map-els.htm  

Honduras  
http://city.net/maps/view/?mapurl=/countries/honduras  

The Lonely Planet  
http://www.lonelyplanet.com.au/dest/cam/graphics/map-nic.gif  
Costa Rica  
http://supersite.incostarica.net/centers/info/maps/  

Latin Synergy  
http://www.latinsynergy.org/panamamap.htm