Agro-Forest Industry (AFI) can mitigate impacts from unsustainable small holders practice and traditional agricultural expansion and could generate more income per hectare and profit of invested capital in the long run.
Bolivia needs urgently to invest into sustainable landuse practice, as gas reserves are depleting and diesel fuel is imported. Bio diesel from soy bean production will lead only to more deforestation. As nature of the area is already altered it is a great opportunity to correct the situation and to mitigate negative impact of the ongoing deforestation from the agricultural front like in the Chiquitania, keep burning the Amazon forests.
The Pilon Lajas Nature Reserve is an ecological hotspot, due to its high biodiversity. The region is widely intervened by colonizing settlers coming from the highlands, since the 70ties, when they left their unsustainable small mining activities. Land clearing and inadequate agricultural practices resulted in scattered deforestation and subsequent unproductive fallow.
Grain production was unsuccessful due to high rainfall pattern and soil problems. In the 90ties agroforestry schemes where introduced which showed good results, but did not generate enough income for small landholders. Larger lands turned into pasture for cattle farming motivating smallholders to clear more land for pasture and to sell the land. But cattle farming in the Beni is mainly practice on natural grassland, so the land was left as no sustainable value or sales values could be generated. Settlers went elsewhere to continue with deforestation. Main threat today is logging and increased forbidden penetration into the Nature Reserve as access has improved.
The project's aim is to implement a sustainable model of land-use, including restauration and captation of carbon. Main goal is sustainable income generation and stop deforestation in the Reserve and the border zone.
The land is suitable for large Agroforestry schemes that includes: cacao, tree crops, fine wood and oilpalm (biofuel) and its industrialization in the region.
The recent built infrastructure with roads and electricity allow different dimensions of investments and income generation. It is planned to install up to 30.000 hectares of modern plantations. The estimated investment is $200 million, generating over 6.000 jobs, boost local economy and opens new export opportunities and over $40 million in earnings annually.