RONDA IBERIA 51

Cuesta i magi nar que todav a

existan ros que corren libres de
presas a travs de una de las mayores
cadenas montaosas del continente
americano, la Sierra Madre Occidental
de Mxico. Cuesta tanto porque solo
queda uno y adems es un gran desco-
nocido: el San Pedro Mezquital.
A vista de pjaro, desde el altiplano
de Durango hasta la costa del Pacfico
en Nayarit, el ro serpentea cruzando al-
gunos de los parajes menos conocidos
de Mxico y desemboca en Marismas
Nacionales, un entramado de lagunas
y esteros que alberga el bosque de
mangle ms extenso del Pacfico Norte.
Por su gran superficie, biodiversidad
y estado de conservacin, es Hume-
dal de Importancia Mundial RAMSAR
desde 1995, Reserva de la Biosfera
declarada en 2010, y parada clave en
una de las rutas principales de las aves
migratorias del Pacfico. Marismas Na-
cionales constituye un rea de gran
valor y tiene un papel determinante en
la productividad pesquera del golfo de
California, una regin marina de impor-
tancia global.
La alianza WWF-Fundacin Gonzalo
Ro Arronte lleva ms de tres aos tra-
bajando en la regin para promover un
manejo integrado del ro y su cuenca.
Mantener el San Pedro Mezquital vivo,
respetando sus variaciones estacionales
y sus crecidas, es fundamental para la
conservacin de Marismas Nacionales,
su riqueza biolgica y productividad, y
el bienestar de sus gentes. WWF es una
de las organizaciones independientes
de conservacin ms grandes y respe-
tadas del mundo mientras que la Fun-
dacin Gonzalo Ro Arronte es una de
las ms importantes de Latinoamrica
que apoya proyectos de conservacin
del agua.
Ms informacin: www.wwf.org.mx/
sanpedromezquital

It is hard to imagine that

in Mexicos Sierra Madre
Occidental, one of the biggest mountain
ranges on the American continent, there
are still rivers without any dams blocking
their flow. The reason it is so hard is that
there is only one, and not a very well
known one at that. Its name is the San
Pedro Mezquital.
A birds eye view shows the river
winding from the high plain of Durango
to the Pacific coast of Nayarit, passing
on the way through some of Mexicos
least known countryside before reaching
the sea at Marismas Nacionales, a
patchwork of lakes and marshes that
contains the largest mangrove forest
in the North Pacific. Owing to its size,
biodiversity and state of conservation, it
has been a RAMSAR Wetland of World
Importance since 1995 and an officially
designated Biosphere Reserve since
2010, and is a key stopping point on one
of the main Pacific routes for migratory
birds. Marismas Nacionales is an area
of enormous value that plays a decisive
role in the productivity of the fisheries of
the Gulf of California, a marine region of
global importance.
For more than three years, the
WWF and the Gonzalo Ro Arronte
Foundation have been working together
in the region to promote integrated
management of the river and its basin.
Keeping the San Pedro Mezquital alive
and respecting its seasonal variations
and floods is vital for the conservation
of Marismas Nacionales, its biological
wealth and productivity, and the well-
being of its people. WWF is one of the
largest and most respected independent
conservation organisations in the
world, while the Gonzalo Ro Arronte
Foundation, one of the most important
of its kind in Latin America, provides
support for water conservation projects.
Further information: www.wwf.org.
mx/sanpedromezquital
THe SAN PeDRO MezquITAL RIveR, A SuRvIvOR
El ro San Pedro Mezquital,
un superviviente
S
A
N
T
I
A
G
O

G
I
B
E
R
T

/

W
W
F
S
A
N
T
I
A
G
O

G
I
B
E
R
T

/

W
W
F
J
A
I
M
E

R
O
J
O

/

W
W
F