SMA PROGRAMS: Biocultural Conservation:
The Life, Death, and Resurrection of the Sierra Tarahumara Biosphere Reserve

The canyons and highlands of the Sierra Tarahumara form one of North America’s most spectacular and biologically diverse regions, comparable to the landscape of the Grand Canyon and clearly the one of the world’s greatest natural treasures. This region is truly one of the world's great cultural and natural heritage sites, however the magnificent canyons and highlands of the Sierra Tarahumara have no official designation or protection that is universal for other natural wonders of the world. Travel maps indicate a Canyon de Cobre National Park, which does not exist.

In June, 2004, a chance meeting between the President of the National Commission for Natural Protected Areas (CONANP) and the Governor of Chihuahua resulted in an agreement to plan a large-scale Biosphere Reserve in the Sierra Tarahumara. Later that year, SMA approached CONANP with a report on our progress in the Barranca Sinforosa region, and an understanding was reached to conduct a survey of local interest in forming a Biosphere Reserve which included the three major canyons (Sinforosa, Urique, and Batopilas) as well as part of the Upper Rio Conchos.

This region is truly one of the world's great cultural and natural heritage sites. However, the magnificent canyons and highlands of the Sierra Tarahumara have no official designation or protection.

Since the administration of President Vicente Fox was quickly coming to an end, CONANP suggested conducting a rapid survey of indigenous leaders, municipios, and NGOs to measure the feasibility of a Biosphere Reserve declaration.  SMA and our Mexican partners accepted the challenge under the conditions that indigenous rights would be protected, and that once the Biosphere Reserve was declared, the reserve management planning would proceed ejido by ejido, pueblo by pueblo, over several years. An agreement between the NGOs, Indigenous leaders and CONANP assured protection of indigenous rights within the proposed Biosphere Reserve, including the right to traditional use of natural resources in core protected areas in the reserve.

During a three-month period in 2004, workshops were held with dozens of Tarahumara governors and eventually 100 signed letters of support for the reserve. Eight of ten municipio presidents in the regional also signed letters of support, understanding that the Biosphere Reserve declaration would enhance tourism and investment in the region.  In addition, 26 nongovernmental organizations  endorsed the proposal.  Since 2004, over 2000 Tarahumara, ejido and municipio authorities have attended local and regional diagnostic and planning workshops for conservation and community development planning co-sponsored by SMA, CONANP, and CESTAC.

To reassure the ejidos and logging industry, the Biosphere Reserve plans guaranteed that the reserve would not affect existing logging plans, which are determined on an ejido by ejido basis. Incentives were also discussed to protect endangered old growth habitat and other areas of conservation importance. The mining sector was only to be marginally affected by the Biosphere Reserve; nonetheless CONANP accepted an agreement drafted by the mining industry in 2005 to assuage mining concerns.

Despite the concessions to logging and mining industries, the proposed reserve had tremendous potential to attract needed resources to enhance community conservation in the region. The reserve proposal promised to finally recognize the Barrancas of the Sierra as a world-class biocultural treasure and a center for megadiversity, and it would promote the spectacular landscapes that attract hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. The NGOs working on the proposal also felt the reserve designation and planning process would strengthen indigenous rights in the region. However, the fast-track approach soon complicated the planning process.