VHeadline Venezuela News reports: Vice Minister of Environmental (MinAmb) management & administration, Merly Garcia, has revoked a permit fell thousands of trees in the Caura Forest Reserve and to use the cleared land in the La Broma sector of Cedeno municipality in southern Bolivar State for agricultural purposes. The permit, granted in 2007, had given authorizations to the Zamorana de Cedeno Mixed Cooperative Farming Association and the Jesus de Nazareth Small Business Association, according to regional Indigenous Legislative Councilor, Juan Linares, who is also a member of the Bolivar State Standing Committee on Environment & Territorial Development (CLEBER). He adds that the permits were given to the cooperative partnership based on the cooperative incorporation of 201 hectares of virgin rain forest for agricultural production in the planting, processing and marketing of rice.However, Deputy Juan Linares says the project, originally proposed by Hermes Luces Mendoza, president of the Jesus de Nazareth Small Business Association, was never followed through and was instead illegally transformed into commercial lumber exploitation. Joint investigations were undertaken by the Venezuelan Center for Ecological Research (CIEV) and the Environment Ministry (MinAmb) reporting to the Standing Committee on Environment & Territorial Development chaired by Deputy Juvencio Gomez who, along with Deputy Linares, created a joint committee with officials from the National Land Institute (INTI), to verify information also on complaints filed by residents of La Broma requesting that action should be taken to prevent environmental devastation.
In May this year, the joint committee found that in the designated area, as applied for by Luces Mendoza to undertake tree planting, nothing had been done. "There were no crops or planting of any nature ... rather, the cutting-down of timber far exceeded the originally authorized 201 hectares ... we also saw landfill obstruction affecting 10 ditches and drainage channels with decaying vegetation and other pollutants ... protected tree species such as Cedar, Saquisaqui, Drago and Araguaney were also torn down."
In addition to the severe deforestation, the joint committee identified a number of irregularities in the granting of forest clearing permits involving (corrupt) public officials. Former INTI coordinator Pier Damian Placcheta is accused of having illegally awarded the Zamorano Association a permit in 2007. Current regional environmental director Hugo Nunez is also alleged to have given authority to clear sections of the rain forest to the Jesus de Nazareth Agro-Forestry Cooperative that were NOT included in the original rice-planting proposal field by Luces Mendoza. Deputy Juvencio Gomez says "the regional environmental director had prior knowledge of clear inconsistencies and still went ahead ... for this reason, the commission decided to formally request Nunez' dismissal because of his proven involvement in illegal acts that undermine the interests of the Venezuelan State."
The Bolivar State Standing Committee on Environment & Territorial Development (CLEBER) has also found the two applicant organizations guilty of ecocide in the Caura and have recommended they be charged and given the highest penalties applicable under the law. Equally, the committee says both Hermes Luces Mendoza and Clayre Cervantes should be charged for their administrative, legal and criminal responsibilities in relation to the environmental crime.
Deputy Linares says that measures must be taken by competent law enforcement authorities in environmental matters, such as the Public Prosecutor, to deal with all perpetrators in this environmental crime. "Legal action must also be taken to ensure the safety of this important natural reservoir." Meanwhile the committee has recommended that lumber seized by law enforcement officers should be sold by the State and that resources accruing from the sale should be held in trust for the residents of La Broma.
Meanwhile the Venezuelan Center for Ecological Research has been asked to submit a reforestation project to the Environment Ministry to deal with the medium and long term ecological recovery of the affected area and Deputy Linares has called on Environmental Prosecutor III, Ana Gonzalez to secure the transfer of lumber from the protected forested area at the same time as she raises charges against the individuals and cooperative associations for the crime of ecocide. "Otherwise the responsibility lies with the commander of Army Operations Theater TO-5, Brigadier General Jose Gregorio Montilla Pantoja."
VHeadline Venezuela News
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