- Wetlands surrounding the protected Lake Ypacaraí in Paraguay are being filled in to allow for the construction of housing and tourism projects.
- In addition to providing habitats for countless species of flora and fauna, the wetlands act as a filter for freshwater and help control flooding and erosion.
- The projects were approved by the Ministry of Environment, sparking outcry from congressmen who want to know if protected area laws are being ignored in favor of urban development.
Urban development projects surrounding a protected lake in Paraguay are threatening the recovery of local ecosystems and raising questions about the government’s ability to circumvent conservation mandates.
Wetlands around Lake Ypacaraí are being filled in to allow for the construction of housing and tourism projects despite a series of environmental recovery measures that prohibit development in the area.
“These activities are totally altering the natural makeup of the lake,” Monica Centrón, of Alter Vida, a socio-environmental development organization in Paraguay, told Mongabay. “The area they’re working in has so much flora and fauna. We’re losing all of that. We’re losing water quality and space for biodiversity.”
Work on the new construction projects could endanger the as many as 79 species of fish that live in the lake, as well as the many mammals that the lake supports, including the Maned wolf (Chrysocyon brachyurus), giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) and Neotropical otter (Lontra longicaudis).
Wetlands surrounding the lake also act as a filter for freshwater and help control flooding and erosion.
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