The natural environment contributes largely to Belize's economy and economic development,
with Tourism and Agriculture being the primary industries contributing to the nation?s GDP.
These industries are nature-based and present a unique opportunity for the preservation of the
natural environment, as well as degradation if not carefully managed. As a country, many plans,
strategies, and policies have been developed to either preserve or sustainably harvest the
natural resources. This has introduced the need for protected areas management in Belize.
The Belize National Protected Areas System Plan is the primary document guiding the
sustainable goals and use of protected areas in Belize. Although several strategies have been
identified, the key strategies that this project will contribute to is the increasing connectivity of
ecosystem nodes, and protection and preservation of biodiversity. These strategies then
contribute to the overall goal of increasing the management effectiveness of

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Protected Areas.
By contributing towards these strategies, the project aims to contribute directly to the GEF-SGP
Country Programme of improved management effectiveness of terrestrial protected areas and
enhanced stewardship between civil society organizations and the regulatory agencies.
The Tapir Mountain Nature Reserve (TMNR) was previously managed under the Belize
Audubon Society. However, their co-management of the protected area was relinquished. This
resulted in the area being considered a ?paper park? for some years. In 2016, the Belize Karst
Habitat Conservation (BKHC) sought co-management of the area, given the high level of illegal
activities being carried out in the reserve. As context, the TMNR is buffered by four (4)
communities: Teakettle, Barton Creek, Unitedville, and Ontario Village. Accessibility to the site is
easy, given the tourist attraction nearby - the ATM Cave. With no active management presence,
illegal logging has been observed and reported, there is threat of agricultural incursion near the
border, as well as looting, given the historic use of caves. These high cultural and biodiversity
threats to the area stand to degrade the potential positive use of the ecosystem which has the
potential for leisure, economic opportunity, as well as the priceless ecosystem contribution to all
Belizeans. In summary, this project seeks to monitor and protect the natural assets in an already
established protected area through active co-management.

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