Protected Areas Management

Belize has 95 protected areas which are managed by different organizations.

In 1996, Belize was considered a pioneer with the passing of the PACT Act. Today, the protected areas landscape continues to take shape and expand. Currently there are 103 protected areas that form a vast national protected areas system (NPAS), with categories that encompass forest reserves, nature reserves, national parks, marine reserves, private reserves, wildlife sanctuaries, natural monuments, bird sanctuaries, spawning aggregation reserves and archaeological reserves.

In the twenty years since the Protected Areas Conservation Trust was established, PACT has been accredited national implementing entity (NIE) status for the Adaptation Fund as well as granted a fiduciary role for such agencies as the World Bank, the Meso-American Reef Fund (MAR Fund), the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the Belize Nature Conservation Fund (BNCF). In October 2015, the amended PACT legislation was passed and like the PACT Act before it, it represents a bold step in the direction of actualizing and accommodating the needs of the country’s protected areas system.
https://www.pactbelize.org/

Since its formation in 1969 the Belize Audubon Society (BAS) has been Belize’s foremost environmental organization protecting Belize’s precious natural resources while educating the public about their value and sustainable use. BAS has grown from an all-volunteer organization to a Society with a staff of more than 40 dedicated professionals.
http://www.belizeaudubon.org/




 

Conservation. What is It?

60% of Belize’s land surface covered by forests, a coastline bordered by the world's second largest barrier reef and a seascape dotted with some 450 cayes, Belize is a natural paradise that houses great biodiversity and natural resources. Thus the reason for conservation, which means  the official supervision of rivers, forests, and other natural resources in order to preserve and protect them through prudent management.  It is the careful utilization of a natural resource in order to prevent depletion.

 

What goods and services are provided by our environment?

 

Protected Areas

Protected areas constitute an important stock of natural, cultural and social capital, yielding flows of economically valuable goods and services that benefit society, secure livelihoods, and contribute to the sustainable use of natural resources. Protected areas are key to buffering unpredictable impacts of impending climate change.  It is important to create comprehensive, effectively managed and sustainably funded protected areas.