Summary of Protección forestal en México

00:00:00 - 00:25:00

This video discusses the importance of forestry protection in Mexico, with a focus on the work of Juan, a forestry technician. Juan has played a vital role in firefighting and has seen devastated parcels increase in recent years. He regards this initiative as a way to teach young people to take care of their forests responsibly, and to certify their forestry practices. This initiative also helps to regenerate woodlands that have been depleted by deforestation.

• 00:00:00 The Mexican Sierra Madre is one of the longest mountain ranges on Earth, with 1200 kilometers of abrupt slopes occupying a sixth of Mexican territory. Their forests of coniferous and oak trees are essential to the country's wood production, with over half of the wood harvested from Mexico coming from these forests illegally. Dozens of ejidos in Durango have banded together to form the certification agency Protección Forestal, in an effort to protect their forests from illegal logging. Juan Corral is a forest manager, who is responsible for ensuring that logging is done in a responsible way. He has been fascinated by his grandfather's work as a forest keeper, and has enjoyed walking in the forests and watching the natural scenery. Juana Pastrana, a 54-year-old forester, has been working in the Pineda de Granados for three decades, implementing the system of certification created in 2001. Her main task is to delimit the areas that can be logged, respecting the conservation of the natural environment and social aspects of the forest. Primi Vela, one of the owners of the Pineda de Granados, trained Juan to implement the certification system. This NGO was formed in 1993 by government, commercial, and environmental organizations to
• 00:05:00 In this video, Juan realizes his inventory of the forest, which he calls "measuring the forest." The importance of correctly identifying which trees have been damaged is emphasized as trees that have been affected by fire must be selectively removed. Failure to do so can lead to the destruction of trees that have no history of fire or have not been grown to their full potential. This is due to the high value of Endemic Tree Species and the importance of ensuring their full protection through integrated forest management. This motivated Primi to invest in water collection and water management projects in this landowners' land, which has enabled them to remain in their land after living in the US for three years. Juan says that the people he fears the most are the pumas and snakes, but that he is more afraid of the intense cold and winter snowfall. He believes that the trees talk to him at night under their branches. If the Durango forest could speak, it would tell us that its foremost enemies are wildfires. So far this year, 100,000 hectares have been burned, the most in the state.
• 00:10:00 In Mexico, deforestation continues to be a major threat, with exploitation of forests by 23 companies in the fourth region with the highest mineral production. Luis Corral knows first-hand the impacts of mining because he worked three years in a mine, one of the most desirable employment opportunities for young people. It was a drastic change but also healthy, as my health deteriorated when I left work and when I worked here, but it improved as I stopped seeing the clean air before. We need to be careful, because the money we see is only a mirage if we don't protect the environment. Luis is building cabins to attract visitors to his park, which is an alternative employment opportunity because not all people have the opportunity to work in the mountains. This is a bread-and-butter job for a whole family, and it's also a place for recreation for the whole family. Local businesses also benefit from his sales of organic oil and other forest-related products. The Salto de Camellones community has achieved water cleanliness and Louis was able to return to his farm to engage in shrimp farming, an activity with the objective of diversifying the activities in this case with the development of ecotourism. He has only been working
• 00:15:00 In the 28 years since the Sustainable Forest Management Certification (SFC) was created, it has grown to 80 countries. One of the reasons it was initially restricted was that European countries did not want to cooperate in deforestation. Since then, FSC has realized that it is necessary to differentiate between the wood used in their products and wood that originated from deforested areas. 20% of Mexico's forested area is authorized, and it has the world's second-largest area of certified forest, behind Brazil. Despite this, Mexico still has one of the lowest rates of forest certification (65% of the country's forests are unprotected). FSC engineer, agronomist, and native from the extreme south of Mexico, César Rubí, has turned his focus to finding sustainable ways to manage Mexico's native forests. One way this is being done is by partnering with small-scale farmers to capture and sell carbon credits from their forests. The Mexican Army has a strong presence in the drug-dominated stronghold of Santiago Papasquiaro, but is not responsible for combating deforestation. Mexico's majority of wood is imported, most of it from plantations. When wood comes from plantations, it is easier to trace its origins and ensure that it is not contributing to
• 00:20:00 This video discusses the importance of forestry protection in Mexico, with Ruby, a female forestry technician, as a case in point. Ruby explains that, before, she and other female technicians were buying lumber from third parties, but now they have managed to produce their own adhesive on their own. In that line, César, who is aiming to achieve self-sustainability, was the first Mexican company to install a wood-energy plant in 2019. This project reduced energy bills by 200,000 pesos and increased the production of wood-based products by almost 100%. Juan, a forestry technician, has played a vital role in firefighting and has seen devastated parcels increase in recent years. He regards this initiative as a way to teach young people to take care of their forests responsibly, and to certify their forestry practices. This initiative also helps to regenerate woodlands that have been depleted by deforestation. However, while many conservationists support sustainable forestry practices, such as not cutting trees, this approach is not feasible in some areas due to the high cost of labor. Juan has found a workaround by training his son to monitor and assess the forest's resources. This is what has motivated him to become a forestry technician and to return to his rural community to apply his knowledge.
• 00:25:00 This video talks about the importance of protecting forests in Mexico, and how the people there feel about it. The song played in the background is meant to show the importance of the forest to the people there. The trees in the forest are important to them, and they will do anything they can to protect them.