Guatemala’s Congress and President Now Working to Protect Mirador National Park

In an unprecedented effort, the Presidency and Congress are working together to convene public meetings on how to best promote the sustainable development and protection of Mirador National Park in Peten Guatemala, known as the Cradle of Maya Civilization and Heart of the Maya Biosphere.

Guatemalan Congressman Aníbal Rojas led the first meeting between parliamentarians interested in the protection and sustainable development of Mirador National Park, with the aim of promoting initiatives to publicize this archaeological project to the world and its conservation.

The parliamentarian said that the first thing will be to review the legal system, promote new laws and supervise institutions that have had interference with the issue.

On possible initiatives of law, the deputy indicated that they will review if there are existing laws or proposals that need to be modified, according to new understanding of the scale of cultural and natural world heritage of the area.

The United States government could provide initially US$60 million over the next five years to strengthen the governance and enforcement of laws in Guatemala that combat the looting of archeological sites, as well as against illegal logging and poaching of endangered wildlife.

For full text of the Senate-sponsored Bill from the US 116th Congress, see-

S.3131 - Mirador-Calakmul Basin Maya Security and Conservation Partnership Act of 2019

S.3131 - Mirador-Calakmul Basin Maya Security and Conservation Partnership Act of 2019

A new bill now in the US Congress has the potential to fund $150 million over 10 years to support the conservation and sustainable development of Mirador National Park in Guatemala, with the potential to generate thousands of new jobs and income for one of the world’s pooresty countries and major source of illegal immigration into the United States. The initiative presented by US senators is aimed at the protection of archaeological sites of Petén. 

Congressman Vicente Gonzalez visited Guatemala last year with U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Congressmen Ruben Kihuen of Nevada. The visit included a meeting with Guatemalan President and a trip to Mirador National Park in Northern Peten.

Congressman Gonzalez said the United States can and should do more to help develop tourism and industry in the country, alleviating the “push factors” for irregular migration, and by improving American foreign policy. “It is an amazingly beautiful region that has billions of potential tourism dollars. I think we need to find some investment for that region so we can create employment and security. I think they have the resources. They just need to work a little harder with a better method,” said Gonzalez.

The U.S. Senators also visited Mexico City and we are encouraged that the Mexican Government may help Guatemala improve its conservation, tropical forests, wildlife protection, tourism infrastructure and training. A number of Mexican environmental funders like Dons Carlos Slim and Roberto Hernandez have supported millions to Calakmul World Heritage north of Mirador, and in Chiapas.

Tourism operators and guides from the local communities around Mirador can earn thousands of dollars a week guiding visitors on the 5-6 day visit across 25 major ancient cities and last intact major tropical forests in Central America.

In addition to Tourism Development around major archaeological and tropical forest treasures like Mirador, the Senators “picked out the regions where people are most likely to migrate from and we talked about coming up with farm programs to help those regions.” Gonzalez cited a U.S.-funded farm program that helped the state of Chiapas, Mexico.

Until recently, U.S. Foreign Aid and Development funding has been 90% focused on reconstruction of Iraq, Afghanistan and the Middle East, with little US attention to its Central American neighbors.

For more in Spanish -

Pensa Libre- This Law Could Provide Q923 Million for Conservation of Mirador

Canal Antigua - Deputies in Guatemalan Congress Fighting for Mirador National Park

The Mirador-Calakmul Basin, in northern Petén and south of Campeche, Mexico, is considered the last natural and cultural treasure in Guatemala and cradle of the Mayan civilization, so recently three representatives of the United States Senate presented an initiative of law to provide funds to the research, rescue, conservation and preservation program of your system.

If the initiative is approved, “the US government would provide US $ 60 million - some Q461 million - during the next five years to strengthen the governance and enforcement of laws in Guatemala that combat the looting of archeological sites, as well as illegal logging. of forests, predation and poaching of endangered wild animals.”

The proposed legislation would enable the Department of the Interior of the United States to support scientific research in the Mirador Basin, and help to strengthen the application of the relevant laws, security, conservation and preservation initiatives, as well as the promotion of environmental and archaeological investigations.

Mirador is considered to be have the largest and densist populations of jaguar and prey north of Pantanal Amazon.

Francois Berger, president of the Fares-Guatemala Foundation, said: “This is an opportunity to turn a great archaeological discovery unprecedented in the world into a project that allows the preservation of the unique nature in the area and provide major economic and social development for Guatemala."

Mirador archaeologist Dr. Richard Hansen has used advanced 3D Lidar aerial surveys sponsored by Global Conservation to find 620 new ancestral cities in the Mirador Basin, at least nine of which are larger and thousands of years older than Tikal National Park.

Dr. Hansen has found at least 10,000 ancient structures within Mirador’s urban areas, including "La Danta" which is the largest pyramid in the world by volume and the highest in the Americas.

Mirador Park and Wildlife Protection – Progress in 2019

Global Conservation is working to secure the permanent protection for Mirador National Park in Peten, Guatemala – the Heart of the Maya Biosphere and the Cradle of Maya Civilization.

The Maya Biosphere has lost over 80% of its intact tropical forests and wildlife habitats in the past 20 years.

Mirador National Park is the last major intact primary forest remaining in Central America endowed with over 40 major ancient Maya cities, immense temples and pyramids, and hundreds of miles of interconnected Mayan causeways, all in an area larger than Yellowstone.

Mirador Patrols are working hard patrolling over 25,000 kilometers in the past year to protect Mirador National Park - the Heart of the Maya Biosphere, a UNESCO World Heritage site, which is losing an average of 100,000 acres a year to land clearing for slash and burn agriculture and cattle ranching.