Selva el Ocote Biosphere Reserve, Mexico, July 2022
The Selva el Ocote Biosphere Reserve – a natural site declared a biosphere reserve by the Mexican government in 2000 – has been part of UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere (MAB) programme since 2006. It lies in the state of Chiapas and covers parts of the municipalities of Cintalapa, Ocozocoautla, Jiquipilas, and Tecpatan. It is one of the two regions in the country with considerable high- and medium-altitude forest, characteristic of the Mexican humid tropics.
Deciduous tropical forest, the main ecosystem on the Reserve, is typically found in regions with heavy rainfall for part of the year, followed by a pronounced dry season. These forest formations are dense and lush during the rainy summers but turn dry in winter, when most of the trees lose their leaves.
Tropical deciduous forest is affected by drought, fires, farming, and overgrazing. The project aims to encourage farmers and herders in the region shift towards silvopasture – a sustainable practice that combines forestry and livestock farming objectives. By planting 117,000 trees, local livestock farmers can maintain an income-generating activity that better respects the environment and protects the neighbouring Selva El Ocote Biosphere Reserve.
The project activites started in January 2022 with the selection of beneficiaries – small producers who own their land and are developing cattle rearing activities on the fringes of the Reserve.
Five communities will benefit from the project, mainly Tzotzil people living in poverty in the highlands of Chiapas. A total of 110 beneficiaries, 60 men and 50 women will be participating directly. Staff from the Reserve and the project beneficiaries are together locating the planting sites in the five communities. Some plots will be used for planting forage tree species, others for forest trees.
From January to May 2022, the local team monitored seed production of forest species native to the region. These forest species were collected directly from mother trees and are produced in a community nursery set up by the project. The collection process included extraction by pulping, breaking of pods or capsules, drying and cleaning, to obtain seeds ready to germinate in the nursery. A community nursery was set up to produce the native tree species. Basic infrastructure like shade fencing and seedling growth trays with production capacity of at least 100,000 trees has been installed. The seed germination process already began in May 2022 to obtain the trees to be used for restoring the forest plots.
Finally, 50kg of Caoba, 5kgg of Cedro, 2kg of Hormiguillo, 15kg of Matilisguate, 5kg of Mulato, 3kg of Cocoite (Gliricidia sepium), and 15kg of Guanacaste (Enterolobium cyclocarpum) were collected for the first planting wave.
In May 2022, fodder tree seeds were requested from Mexico’s Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMAHN). The following fodder species will be planted during the project: Guach (Leucaena leucocephala), Cocoite (Gliricidia sepium), and Quebracho (Acacia milenaria). The young trees will be delivered once the planting activities have started.
In addition, the project is tackling the issue of water shortages during the prolonged dry season: it will introduce a rainwater collection and storage system to ensure a year-round water supply for livestock. The locations were identified together with the beneficiaries and CONANP staff.
The next steps in the project are as follows: June to September 2022 – planting forest and fodder trees; October to December 2022 – training beneficiaries.
