Two small towns with a rich cultural heritage. A wide river with numerous arms and green islands. Dense forests and swamps with rich biodiversity. Uruguay's Farrapos National Park has a lot to offer. But can balancing conservation and economic development in the area be achieved? Gustavo Olveyra explains how two young men from San Javier, with support from local and national authorities, paved the way for sustainable tourism.
On the east bank of the Rio Uruguay, close to the border with Argentina, Uruguay’s Farrapos National Park’s wetlands extend for miles. Two kayakers silently maneuver down the river in between clusters of small islands lined with hawthorn and carob trees, which are home to a quarter of the country’s bird population. For Cristian and Matías, this is part of their everyday life. The two young men who run a kayak school out of San Javier, a small town at the edge of the national park, which was founded in 1913 by a group of Russian settlers escaping religious prosecution by the tsarist regime. Through their school, Matías and Cristian teach local children and young adults to learn to appreciate the nature that surrounds them.
As nautical teachers living in the exceptional environment of the Farrapos wetlands, they saw an opportunity to share their love for their local nature, their cultural heritage and create business opportunities for their town. They decided to organize a group journey with kayaks and canoes down the river to the town of Nuevo Berlin, which is located about 40 kilometers to the south. However, since the route leads through the national park, a protected area, their idea faced many hurdles.
There have been ongoing debates in Uruguay about the damage that tourism can cause on natural habitats and cultural heritage. While some blame tourism for natural degradation and call for restrictions, others point to development opportunities that tourism can create for local communities. For years, activities in protected areas, such as those organized by Cristian and Matías, were a sensitive issue and required authorization from local authorities as well as the police, water authority, the Ministry of Housing, Land Planning and Environment, and the Ministry of Tourism, where I was working at the time.
At the ministry, we were excited when we learned about Matías and Cristian’s plans – they did not want to disrupt life in the park, but rather show that protecting nature and exploring the wetlands by boat were not at odds. The ministry was already pursuing sustainable tourism activities to provide development opportunities on a local level and the Farrapos area was particularly interesting because of its cultural heritage. We wanted to make sure that the business would be a success and could serve as an example for environmentally-friendly tourism. But at the same time, we were nervous about potential repercussions. Can a recreational activity in a protected area draw large participation and still be sustainable? How do we ensure that tourist activities are of benefit to the local population, especially in the nearby towns of San Javier and Nuevo Berlin? To address these issues, we decided to get our hands on. We created a monitoring system to evaluate the social and environmental impact of activities in nature, which the ministry has used to assess other activities. We also wrote a guide, including a code of conduct and recommendations, on what to do in the area. The next challenge was to find people who wanted to take part in the outing, especially as the only date available to do it was in the middle of winter. We posted invitations on different Facebook groups for outdoor activities. After weeks of planning and preparations with help from the local community, the trip was ready to take place.
It was a cold winter morning, and a cold, blistery wind blew across the Rio Uruguay, creating fast-moving little waves on its surface. Despite the season, more than 80 canoe and kayak enthusiasts from Uruguay and Argentina had signed up and made their way to San Javier. The night before, while I was driving down the bumpy road to San Javier, I had heard on the radio that a weather warning had been issued for low temperatures and a southern breeze. To ensure safety, we had a rescue team with motorboats and doctors on hand in case a boat capsized and enough firewood of adequate origin to keep all participants warm at night. As the group in their colorful kayaks and canoes set off and disappeared down the river, I remained with the support team responsible for maintaining the camp and making sure that no harm was caused to the environment where we were operating.
In the afternoon, in the distance between the islands, we could see the first boats paddling towards the base camp. Tired but happy they set foot on land and hurried to change out of their wet clothes and sit by the fire and warm up with hot mate and coffee while the support group was already preparing dinner. At night, we sat around the fire playing guitars and singing songs, gazing at the stars, happy of having completed the most difficult stage of the trip.
The second day the group paddled in between islands where they were protected from the winds. This gave them a chance to see the plants and birds from up close. The journey ended with a great Asado, a traditional barbecue, in Nuevo Berlín, where the group sat together with locals from town and from San Javier, enjoying traditional Gaucho and Russian dances and sharing their experiences from the trip.
Before the COVID19-pandemic interrupted our lives, there were four successful excursions in the Esteros de Farrapos, organized by Matías and Cristian. The Ministries of Tourism and Environment have since continued to support their journey, and the sustainability monitoring tool has further improved with following trips. I hope that in the future there will be more of these trips where people get to visit the park and learn about its environment, history and the challenge of protecting this unique natural habitat.
This blog is the first part of the series related to the International Climate Initiative (IKI) project “Green Economy Transformation in Cooperation with the Partnership for Action on Green Economy (PAGE)". Read other stories to learn more about the project.