Fire threatens oldest protected area

A FIRE  that started at noon on Friday, February 16, in the municipality of the Macaracas landfill in Los Santos is threatening the El Colmón forest, the country’s oldest protected area created 100 years ago.

Strong breezes and intense heat moved the fire throughout the afternoon.

Juan Martinez, mayor of the Macaracas district, said that the municipality’s staff, firefighters and officials of the Ministry of the Environment (Miambiente) are working to control the fire reports La Prensa.

The municipal landfill of Macaracas is located within the El Colmón protected area, characterized by a rich flora and fauna in a tropical dry forest.

Several of the 14 protected areas created in the provinces of Los Santos are identified as vulnerable to wildfires during the summer season.

The most vulnerable are the La Tronosa forest reserve,  Caña Island, in the Tonosí district, the Cerro Hoya National Park, between the provinces of Los Santos and Veraguas and La Loma Flores, El Joaquín Arriba and El Colmón.

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