The Federal Environmental Protection Agency (PROFEPA) and Pronatura Noroeste A.C. (PNO) signed a collaboration agreement to strengthen the surveillance, management, and conservation of biodiversity and ecosystems in the northwestern part of the country.
The signing of this agreement consolidates the inter-institutional coordination between the different agencies involved in protecting the region’s natural resources; in particular, it highlights the joint efforts of the Federal Government and civil society to assume joint responsibility for the protection of our great natural wealth.
In Bahía de Los Ángeles alone, a Natural Protected Area decreed in 2007, inter-institutional collaboration has resulted in an increase in PROFEPA’s presence at the site of 1,100% in 2013.
With 172 actions, 2013 was the year with the greatest presence of authorities since Bahía de los Ángeles was decreed as a PNA. This reserve covers 388,000 hectares of priority marine habitat, including beaches, estuaries, and fishing grounds.
The region is home to whale sharks, fin whales, five species of endangered sea turtles, commercially important fish, sea lions, and huge colonies of birds.
The agreement signed by Attorney Guillermo Haro Bélchez and the Executive Director of Pronatura Noroeste A.C., Gustavo D. Danemann, establishes the bases and guidelines for joint efforts, capacities, and resources, to carry out surveillance actions to protect and preserve the Natural Resources in Northwest Mexico.
Thanks to this agreement, surveillance actions will also be strengthened in the Sea of Cortez or Gulf of California, which is known as the “aquarium of the world,” where it is possible to find a large number of marine animals such as seals, whales, dolphins, sharks, and manta rays.
Among the objectives proposed by the parties is the development of work programs for the planning and evaluation of surveillance actions and the development of workshops and manuals for training.
