ID: 1274

The Fierro Urco Water Protection Area

The Fierro Urco Water Protection Area will protect 79,000 hectares of páramo habitat on a series of mountaintops in the western Andes of southern Ecuador. The páramo is home to many striking examples of Andean wildlife and because of its unique species it is referred to as an evolutionary hotspot. In September 2018, a new species of critically endangered hummingbird, the Blue-throated Hillstar, was discovered in Fierro Urco. However, Naturaleza y Cultura Ecuador’s original proposal for the Water Protection Area did not include their habitat and mining corporations owned the rights to mine key areas for metal deposits, which would most likely be extracted through open-pit mining and would be a disaster for wildlife. In February 2019, World Land Trust launched the Save the Blue-throated Hillstar appeal to enable Naturaleza y Cultura Ecuador to extend this Water Protection Area to include the hillstar’s 28,000 hectare range. By incorporating the hillstar’s habitat, it will have government-level protection, be safe from mining and provide clean freshwater for over 470,000 people.

Planned actions

Protection of land/water

Management of land/water

Species management