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Global Land Cover Network GLCN Country Profile : Bolivia September 2006 Compiled by: Mr Giuseppe Ottavianelli Disclaimer The following document has been compiled from inputs provided by different entities and individuals to provide an overview of current land cover activities of the country, the main stakeholders involved and the priorities that need to be addressed. Although every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy information and that all sources have been referenced, FAO, GLCN and its partners cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions that may have occurred, or for any damage that may result from the use of the information. We very much welcome your contributions to improving and broadening the content of this review. Please send your comments and inputs to the GLCN Secretariat ([email protected]). Contents LAND COVER ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED. GEOGRAPHY/ENVIRONMENT 10 SOCIAL/ECONOMY 12 REFERENCES 15 APPENDIX A CONSERVATION INTERNATIONAL BOLIVIA 15 APPENDIX B MUSEO NKM 16 APPENDIX C UNIVERSIDAD MAYOR DE SAN SIMÓN DE COCHABAMBA, CENTRO DE INVESTIGACIONES Y SERVICIO EN TELEDETECCIÓN (CISTEL) 17 2 República de Bolivia Short Name: Bolivia ISO-Country Code: BO Capital City: La Paz Official Language: Spanish FAO Member: Yes Population (millions): 8.8 (UNDP, 2005) Urban Population (% of total): 63.4 (UNDP, 2005) GDP (PPP US$): 22.8 (UNDP, 2005) Gini Index (%): 44.7 (UNDP, 2005) HDI [0 to 1]: 0.687 (UNDP, 2005) Land Cover Introduction Land cover activities in Bolivia are mainly oriented towards the specific application of natural resources management and sustainable development. They are officially led by the Ministry of Sustainable Development, Unidad de Ordenamiento Territorial, Centro Digital de Recursos Naturales para Bolivia (CDRNB). The main objective of this institution is to disseminate information on the Bolivian land planning and on the overall natural resources of the country. The Museo de Historia Natural Noel Kempff Mercado, Universidad Autonoma Gabriel Rene Moreno (Museo NKM), is also extremely active on the application of GIS and remote sensing for land cover studies and it acts as the national authority on land cover change. Two other centres from Universidad Mayor de San Simón de Cochabamba, Centro de Investigaciones y Servicio en Teledetección (CISTEL) and the Centro de Levantamientos Aeroespaciales y Aplicaciones SIG para el Desarrollo Sostenible de los Recursos Naturales (CLAS) also carry out landcover monitoring studies. Within the university they also organise educational programmes. Page 3 of 17 Institutions that Expressed an Interest in GLCN 1. Conservación Internacional - Bolivia www.conservation.org.bo/index.html Contact Person: Juan Carlos Ledesma GIS Coordinator Calacoto, Calle 13 N°8008 La Paz, 13593 Bolivia Tel: +591 706 37827 Fax: (591 2) 2114228 E-mail: [email protected] Second e-mail: [email protected] Conservación Internacional works on biodiversity conservation. Land cover mapping activities relevant to the objectives of GLCN include the integration and analysis of spatial data in order to produce maps for decision-making processes related to land use planning. Some of the activities related to GLCN are: integration and analysis of thematic maps and data, endangered species distribution maps, future land cover change prediction and modelling. They produce a variety of maps. As shown in Appendix A, a Conservation Status map is the product of the combination of population density, accessibility, deforestation, frequency of fires and pollution of rivers. This represents an approximation to the natural status of natural ecosystems with regards to the human influence on natural environments. It is used as a planning tool, and it indicates at a national scale those sites where human activities are located and where our biodiversity natural reserves most likely are. Other maps include: - A collection of several coverage maps developed by many institutions at different scales and with different objectives (populations, roads, rivers, vegetation, land cover, species richness, protected areas, topography, etc.); - Land cover change maps and projections for the future. These are maps produced from Landsat Images from several periods and from the observations we have tried to depict our future cover for the 2026; - Several land use and potential maps from the municipalities where we work, mainly related to National Parks. 2. Consorcio para el Desarrollo Sostenible de la Ecorregión Andina / Consortium for the Sustainable Development of the Andean Ecoregion (CONDESAN) http://www.condesan.org/ Page 4 of 17 Contact Person: Dr Hector Cisneros CONDESAN Coordinator Av. La Molina 1895, La Molina Lima 12, Peru Tel: (511) 3496017 ext. 3021 Fax: (511) 3175326 E-mail: address: [email protected] Second e-mail: [email protected] Within the overall aim of sustainable development of the Andean Ecoregion, CONDESAN has the following objectives: - Generate knowledge based on the synthesis, comparative analysis, systematisation and comparison of experiences and projects carried out in the eco-region; - Support the communication between the different parties involved in sustainable development; - Strengthen regional networks, multi-actors platforms and other communities in order to support information sharing and learning; - Strengthen local decision makers abilities (governments, social organizations and business) to design and implement programmes and projects and affect the public policies; - Promote citizens’ awareness of sustainable development issues and increase dialogue with policy makers. CONDESAN is a consortium in which various disciplines, approaches and prospects are represented. The effort of CONDESAN has always been associated with how to promote and to take advantage of the reflections and experiences of the members in order to generate new options of development in the Andes that articulate social equity, economic growth and environmental conservation. As such, CONDESAN has also been involved in the monitoring and mapping of the different environments of the Andean eco-region (highlands, the gorges and inter-Andean valleys, the foggy forests, the snowfalls mountains, the paramos and the glacials). This geography variety contributes to the ecological wealth in terms of landscapes and biodiversity. Previous work has involved the integration of Remote Sensing, GIS and Modeling for Land-Use Monitoring in the Arid/Semi-Arid Andes (DME-Sur) (see attached document: Bolivia_CONDESAN_Cisneros_01.pdf) It is important to underline that CONDESAN also has a Remote Sensing centre: ABTEMA. This stands for Asociacion Boliviana para Teledetección y Medio Ambiente. www.condesan.org/socios/abtema/a_uno.htm Page 5 of 17 3. Ministry of sustainable development, Unidad de Ordenamiento Territorial, Centro Digital de Recursos Naturales para Bolivia (CDRNB) http://rangeland.tamu.edu/bolivia/OT-main.htm http://rangeland.tamu.edu/bolivia/first.htm Contact Person: Mr Humberto Perotto-Baldivieso General Coordinator PO BOX 23360, San Juan, 00931-3360, Puerto Rico Tel: +1-787-764-0000 x. 4882 Fax: +1-787-772-14-13 E-mail: [email protected] Second e-mail: [email protected] The CDNRB was created thanks to an initiative of the Unidad de Ordenamiento Territorial (UOT), the Ministry of Sustainable Development and the Department of Rangeland Ecology and Management (RLEM), of the Texas A&M University (TAMU). The objective is to disseminate information on Bolivian land planning and on the overall natural resources of the country. The produce and distribute information on: - Country administration; - Biological and ecological resources; - Hydrological systems; - Risks and distaster monitoring; - Digital elevation models; - Satellite images. 4. Museo de Historia Natural Noel Kempff Mercado, Universidad Autonoma Gabriel Rene Moreno (Museo NKM) www.museonoelkempff.org Contact Person: Mr Timothy Killeen Scientific Advisor Av Irala 565, Santa Cruz Bolivia Phone: +591 3 336 6574 Fax: +591 3 33665748 E-mail: [email protected] Second e-mail: [email protected] The Museo NKM has a GIS and Remote sensing laboratory with a historical archive of Landsat and other images spanning 30 years. They essentially act as the national authority on land-cover change and provide the government with the corresponding information. They have recently produced a country-wide map of historical land- Page 6 of 17 use change (since 1976), showing LCC over 5 epochs (up to 2005). They have also carried out region-wide studies that show type of land-use (mechanized farming, ranching shifting agriculture). They provide research and consulting services to NGOs and the government pertaining to land-use zoning, biodiversity mapping, irrigation potential, land-cover change by region and social group. Currently they are conducting disaster planning and risk analysis related to flood plain dynamics of the Rio Grande floodplain. A new NASA-funded project in 2006 will map glacier shrinkage in Peru and Bolivia. The Museo NKM will conduct an annual study of land-cover change. This information will be able to be linked to the national system of forest plots and vegetation maps to refine carbon budgets for the country. The detailed social and economic stratification study will allow the identification of not only how much land-cover change is occurring in Bolivia, but also which social and economic group is responsible for that change. For additional information on the legend, please refer to Appendix B. 5. Republica de Bolivia Superintendencia Agraria Ministry of Sustainable Development and Ministry of Agriculture http://www2.entelnet.bo/si-a/ Contact Person: Erwin Galoppo von Borries Loayza, 233 piso 2 La Paz, Bolivia Phone: 591-2333338 Fax 591-2333338 Email: [email protected] Second Email: [email protected] The overall mission of the Superintendencia Agraria is to regulate proper land use and management, and monitor the change in land cover and land use. The Superintendencia Agraria has produced thematic cartographic maps on Land Cover and Land Use Potential at the scale of 1:1.000.000 for the whole country. This agency has also studied the submissions for individual farmland use proposals (Planes de Ordenamiento Predial) and has also been involved with land valuation. Page 7 of 17 6. Universidad Mayor de San Simón de Cochabamba, Centro de Investigaciones y Servicio en Teledetección (CISTEL) http://www.agr.umss.edu.bo/invest/cistel1.htm Contact Person (Participant in the Ecuador meeting): Mr Ramiro Iriarte Ardaya CISTEL Coordinator E-mail: [email protected] CISTEL has worked on theme maps of vegetation, biodiversity, landscape, land-cover, soils, and land utilisation, at scales of 1:50000 to 1:250000. LANDSAT, SPOT and Radar data have been used in producing remote sensing maps. The applications of these maps include: land use planning for municipalities; regions; departments and for the whole country and also in the management of natural resources. IKONOS images have been used to support activities for the sustainable development of farm land-use (at scales of approximately 1:10000). All land cover and land-use mapping activities are supported by onsite verification, as well as information from institutions and registers. The legends used vary, depending on the goals and work scale of the project. Please refer to Appendix C and the attached excel document (Bolivia_CISTEL_Ardaya_01.xls) for more information on the legends. 7. Universidad Mayor de San Simón de Cochabamba, Centro de Levantamientos Aeroespaciales y Aplicaciones SIG para el Desarrollo Sostenible de los Recursos Naturales (CLAS) http://www.clas.umss.edu.bo/general/gener.htm Contact Person (A Participant in the Ecuador meeting): Mr Ronald Job Vargas Rojas E-mails: [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] The main objective of CLAS is to promote, develop and facilitate programmes and prostgraduate courses at UMSS, on the topics of GIS and remote sensing for the management of sustainable natural resources. Partial funding is received from the International Institute for Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation (The Netherlands). Page 8 of 17 Following the GLCN South American Regional workshop, LCCS was formally introduced to the Centre and into the curriculum of the MSc course in Natural Resources Geo-information. Most of the work regarding LCCS concentrated on studying its application in different regions of Bolivia. This was made possible through the research theses of the MSc candidates. One thesis was finalized during 2005, the main objective was to produce an LCCS legend for an area for which a landcover map was produced, with the FAO-UNESCO legend. The results were of great interest, in that they indicated some discrepancies between both systems. Current work is focusing on deforestation, with the objective of generating a multi-temporal land cover map using LCCS. ASTER satellite images and Geovis software are being used to assist in the production of these maps. Another project is the translation of LCCS into Spanish. This task has almost been completed, at the time of writing. Future potential projects could include: - the translation into LCCS of the existing land cover map (generated in 2001) of Bolivia. - the promotion of a national initiative to map the land cover of Bolivia at larger scales, using the LCCS system. CLAS personnel are currently waiting for the new government authorities to provide financial support for new activities. Page 9 of 17 Geography/Environment Main sources of reference: World Bank - Country sections. www.worldbank.org/ Encyclopædia Britannica www.search.eb.com/ UNDP Human Development Reports http://hdr.undp.org/ Additional national specific websites. Location, Size and Border Countries Bolivia is located in the central-west part of South America, and has an area of 424,164 square miles (1,098,581 square km). Extending some 950 miles (1,500 km) north-south and 800 miles (1,300 km) east-west, Bolivia is bordered to the north and east by Brazil, to the southeast by Paraguay, to the south by Argentina, to the southwest and west by Chile, and to the northwest by Peru. Climate Although Bolivia lies wholly within the tropics, it possesses every gradation of temperature from that of the equatorial lowlands to arctic cold. In the Andes, contrasts in temperature and rainfall depend more on elevation and cloud cover than on distance from the Equator, and cold winds sweep the Altiplano year-round. The rainy season is from December to March, but precipitation varies greatly throughout the highlands. Average temperatures range between 45 and 52 °F (7 and 11 °C) during the day, occasionally reaching as high as 60 °F (16 °C), but temperatures at night are much colder and fall below freezing during the winter. In the north, however, Lake Titicaca has an important moderating influence, and in bright sunshine, winter temperatures may reach as high as 70 °F (21 °C). Cloudless skies and remarkably clear air bring distant Andean peaks sharply into focus, providing beautiful vistas across the Altiplano. In the winter the Andean skies are often a deep blue. In stark contrast, clouds of moist air from the Oriente fill the valleys of the Yungas throughout the year, leaving the humid atmosphere rich with the smell of vegetation. The mean annual temperatures vary between 60 and 68 °F (16 and 20 °C). Precipitation, which ranges up to 53 inches (1,350 mm) annually, occurs throughout the year, but is heaviest between December and February. The Valles have drier conditions and less precipitation than the Yungas, as well as somewhat warmer temperatures. On the low plains of the Oriente the climate is hot, averaging 73 to 77 °F (23 to 25 °C) or higher in the south and up to 80 °F (27 °C) in the north. Occasional cold winds called surazos blow from the south, lowering temperatures abruptly. They are laden with sand, high humidity, and dust and last for a few days. Annual rainfall ranges from about 40 inches (1,000 mm) in the south to 70 inches (1,800 mm) or more in the far north, with a pronounced summer maximum. Part of Beni suffers from extensive flooding, beginning in March or April, toward the end of the summer rainy season. Page 10 of 17 Terrain About 80 percent of the people of Bolivia live in the western two-fifths of the country. Here, the Andes Mountains extend from north to south in two lofty parallel ranges, the Cordillera Occidental to the west and the Cordillera Real (Oriental) to the east. Snow-clad peaks rise more than 21,000 feet (6,350 meters) in the western range blocking easy access to the Pacific Ocean, and several volcanoes are still active. The eastern range is more broken, providing access to the montaña, or eastern foothills, and to the lowlands. Between the cordilleras stretches the altiplano, or high plain, with an average altitude of about 13,000 feet (4,000 meters). It is about 500 miles (800 kilometers) long and 40 to 60 miles (65 to 100 kilometers) wide and is the largest plateau in the Andes system. Across the northwestern boundary of Bolivia and Peru lies Lake Titicaca. At 12,500 feet (3,810 meters), it is the highest large body of navigable water in the world with regular steamer service. Its fresh water drains through the Río Desaguadero to Lake Poopó, where much of it evaporates, causing that lake to be salty. The northern and eastern Andean slopes (montaña region) are cut with broad, fertile, cultivated valleys known as the yungas. The country's tropical and semitropical lowlands (Oriente), which make up about 60 percent of its area, form a broad crescent around the Andes. The northeastern plains are drained through branches of the Amazon River, while the southern plains, part of the Gran Chaco, drain southeasterly toward the Atlantic through the Paraguay-Paraná River system. Natural Resources Among Bolivia's most valuable assets are its mineral deposits, including petroleum and natural gas, and its renewable natural resources, such as agricultural and forest products, especially Brazil nuts. The country is a major producer of tin and gold, and, although its exports of zinc and silver are small parts of the world market, they account for a significant portion of export earnings. Bolivia also has reserves of antimony, tungsten (wolfram), lead, and copper. Land Use Until the mid ‘80, the production of tin and other minerals was the basis of the Bolivian economy. Nowadays, Bolivia is looking to other fields - in mining, livestock and fish farming, and the agricultural industry - to level its balance of payments. The agriculture sector contributes with 17% to GDP, but only 2% of the total surface area is arable land and 53% consists of forests and woodland. Natural Hazards, Environment Issues and Areas of Major Concern Bolivia is one of the few countries in the world which has a specific Ministry of Sustainable Development, Environment and Planning, which deals with all environmental issues. Environmental issues in this context must be seen in a broad sense, including both land, water, and air pollution, deforestation, land Page 11 of 17 degradation, and issues resulting from the (frequent) occurrence of natural disasters. Of particular interest is the occurrence of natural disasters in relation to the El Nino phenomenon, which causes droughts and floods. Due to its diversity in nature, climate, eco-systems, and population, different regions in Bolivia are confronted with totally different environmental problems. These include: - deforestation and national park encroachment in the Pando region (Amazon rain forest region), - flooding in the range lands of the Beni region (Wetlands region), - severe harvest reductions of soya in the Santa Cruz region, due to floods and droughts (Lowlands), - land degradation in the Tarija region due to erosion (Sierras en Valle region). Social/Economy Agriculture Products About two-fifths of the working population is engaged in agriculture (including small numbers in hunting, forestry, and fishing), but farming accounts for only about one-seventh of the gross domestic product. Although peasant markets have grown in the northern cities, in roadside towns on the Altiplano, and around Cochabamba, subsistence farming remains widespread in the Andes. Potatoes, which are available in many varieties, have been a staple in the Andes since pre-Columbian times, centuries prior to the food's introduction into Europe. Both potatoes and oca (another edible tuber) are indigenous to the northern Altiplano, where they are eaten mainly in the dehydrated forms known as chuño or tunta. The two important grains that ripen at this elevation, both highly nutritious, are quinoa and cañahua (cañihua). Other important crops there include barley, wheat, fava beans, and, around Lake Titicaca, corn (maize). Llamas and alpacas are raised in the Andean region and serve a variety of agricultural functions, although the use of the llama as a pack animal has decreased with the growth of truck transport. Included in the variety of crops produced in the Yungas are coffee, cacao, citrus fruits, bananas, avocados, pineapples, mangoes, papayas, melons, chili peppers, sweet potatoes (yams), and cassava (yuca). The cultivation of coca leaves, the raw material in the processing of cocaine, continues to play a major role in the economy. In the warm, agreeable climate of the Valles, corn, wheat, barley, alfalfa, grapes, flowers, strawberries, peaches, and vegetables are grown, and sheep and dairy cattle are raised. This fertile region, which is characterized as “the garden of Bolivia”, has grown further in importance as more systematic irrigation systems have been introduced and modern farming techniques used. In the Oriente around Santa Cruz, soybeans are the main crop, and sugarcane, rice (dry and paddy), and cotton are also significant, as is the raising of beef cattle. Soybean production grew dramatically from 81,000 tons in 1986 to 862,000 tons in 1996. By the end of the century, soybeans were Page 12 of 17 one of the most important sources of export earnings, and the area under soybean cultivation was increasing by 10 percent annually. Farther north, the Beni region is notable for its large cattle ranches. Tropical hardwoods are exploited in the forests of northern La Paz, Pando, Beni and Santa Cruz regions, although the logging of rainforests has become a matter of environmental concern. Main Industries The manufacturing sector has grown since the 1950s, but remains small, despite some stimulus from Bolivia's membership in the Andean Group and Mercosur, two regional trade organizations. Historically, mineral processing (including oil refining) and the preparation of agricultural products have dominated Bolivian industry. In the 1970s, manufacturing employed about 10 percent of the working population. This proportion declined somewhat in the 1980s but rose again in the '90s, with major investments in the processing of soybeans and in the manufacture of textiles, wood products and soft drinks. Textiles using alpaca, cotton, or synthetics are produced in modern factories in La Paz and exported to the United States and Europe. The manufacture of gold jewellery has also become an important industry in La Paz and El Alto. Food industries include flour milling, dairying, sugar refining, brewing, and alcohol distilling. Other manufactured products include machinery, shoes, furniture, glass, bricks, cement, paper, and a wide range of small goods designed to meet the needs of a limited domestic market. Although two-thirds of Bolivia's manufacturing industry was located in or near La Paz at the end of the 20th century, important new investments have been made in Cochabamba and Santa Cruz. Many Bolivian companies, however, have found it difficult to compete with imported Brazilian, Argentine, Chilean, Peruvian and Asian products that are often smuggled into the country. Social Issues More than half of the Bolivians are Indians, mainly of Quechua and Aymara language stocks. There are also about 50 tribes of Forest Indians. The Mestizos, of mixed Indian and white heritage, make up almost two fifths, while the remainder are of European descent, mainly Spanish. The vast majority of the population is Roman Catholic. Most of the Indians live on the bleak altiplano and on the brown, rocky slopes and eastern valley pockets above it. Others toil in the mines or do manual labor in the cities. Almost 40 percent of the work force makes a living by farming. This is difficult to do since there are few places on Earth where people farm in so high, cold and dry a region. Yet, centuries ago, the highland Indians of Peru and Bolivia learned how to make a living there. They domesticated a highland animal—the llama—to supply meat, milk, hides, fuel and wool. They also developed hardy food plants such as the potato, a staple in their diet, and the highland grain crops, quinoa and canagua. Irrigation canals brought water to their fields. Many Indian farmers still employ traditional agricultural methods. Often they use a foot plough to break up the soil, or they use oxen hitched to a wooden Page 13 of 17 plow tipped with steel. During the planting of crops the farmer is followed by his wife, who drops the seed. Children bring up the rear, adding fertilizer and covering the seed. At harvest time, in May or June, the family cuts the tough quinoa stalks with a sickle, flails the plant to thresh out the seeds, and tosses the seeds in the air to winnow out the husks. The women grind the seeds and make bread or gruel from the resulting flour. Another popular food is chuño, made from the potato. Spread on the grass in the early winter, the potatoes freeze at night and thaw in the day time until they become soggy. Members of the family then tramp them to squeeze out moisture and remove part of the peel. Next, the potatoes are left to lie in the sun and dry once again. They become small, hard pellets that will keep without spoiling for months, even years. The Indians use them in a stew with llama meat or mutton. In the spring, quinoa leaves are added to the stew. In this treeless land the Indians make small, windowless huts of stone and adobe clay with thatched grass or reed roofs. For fuel they use tola sticks, llareta and llama dung. The hut is cold and gloomy, and at night the people wrap themselves in a llama skin and may sleep on the earthen floor. Colourful clothing brightens the drab landscape. The men wear hand woven striped ponchos over shirt and pants and a knitted wool helmet, called a lluchu, which has flaps to keep their ears warm. Sometimes they wear a felt hat over the helmet. The women also wear felt hats, and their full skirts are dyed in brilliant shades of orange, purple, red, and blue. Frequently, they wear a shawl for warmth and for carrying their babies on their backs. Many go barefoot. About 20 percent of Bolivians are illiterate. In recent years, special efforts have been made to bring schools to the Indians and to other rural people. Bolivia has universities in Cochabamba, La Paz, Oruro, Potosí, Santa Cruz, Sucre, Tarija, and Trinidad. Spanish, Quechua, and Aymara are the official languages. Page 14 of 17 References UNDP (2005). Human Development Report. Accessed: January 31, 2006, from UNDP Official Web site http://hdr.undp.org/statistics/d Appendix A - Conservación Internacional - Bolivia Example of legend used Page 15 of 17 Appendix B – Museo NKM Information on legend used The Museo has information of all historical land-use change in eastern Bolivia from 1976 to 2005 in GRID format. It also has a collection of maps and grids developed internally or obtained by agreement with other many institutions at different scales and with different objectives, such as populations, roads, rivers, vegetation, land cover, species richness, protected areas, topography, etc. The institution has also developed a land cover change map for the Gran Pantanal (inlcuding Brazil). This specifically addresses the issue of conversion of wetlands, during two periods: prior to 1991 and from 1991 to 2001. They are currently developing a report on land-use change on the Rio Grande floodplain, as part of regional disaster management strategy Each map has an idiosyncratic legend, developed according to the need of the study. The land-cover change map for Bolivia has 8 land-cover classes (e.g: , forest, chacoan scrub, cerrado savnna, llanos wetlands, etc.), then temporal land-cover change categories for each of those major groups. Page 16 of 17 Appendix C – Universidad Mayor de San Simón de Cochabamba, Centro de Investigaciones y Servicio en Teledetección (CISTEL) Map example. Page 17 of 17