Ya’axché sounds alarm: 450 acres cleared illegally in Colombia River Forest Reserve
TOLEDO DISTRICT, Tues. Sept. 16, 2025
While Belizeans prepare to celebrate 44 years of independence, Ya’axché Conservation Trust is sounding the alarm about a troubling reality unfolding in the south – one it warns poses a serious national security threat that requires urgent government action.
Ya’axché is the co-manager of the Bladen Nature Reserve which is adjacent to the Columbia River Forest Reserve (CRFR). The CRFR spans approximately 148,303 acres and forms part of the Maya Mountains Massif. It is managed directly by the Forest Department.
Ya’axché says it has supported surveillance patrols in the CRFR alongside key government and non-government partners. In a statement on Monday, Ya’axché highlighted that the CRFR “safeguards unique biodiversity including Critically Endangered species, provides vital ecosystem services and directly supports twelve indigenous Maya communities.”
On August 20th, rangers from Ya’axché Conservation Trust joined a 10-day enforcement operation led by the Belize Defence Force. The mission was to investigate illegal activities in the Bladen Nature Reserve, Columbia River Forest Reserve, and surrounding areas along the Belize–Guatemala border and the Adjacency Zone. What they found was staggering.
Ya’axché says the patrol documented extensive illegal logging operations deep within the Columbia River Forest Reserve. Mahogany, rosewood, nargusta, sapodilla, and yemery are among the different valuable timber species it says are being harvested in what appears to be an organized commercial effort. Additionally, the patrol discovered a newly constructed road, 30 feet wide and stretching 6 kilometers into Belizean territory. It included five wooden bridges, clearly built to support vehicle and machinery traffic between Belize and Guatemala. Ya’axché says the road lies just 1.4 kilometers from the Machaquilha Conservation Post.
But, Ya’axché reports that the destruction does not stop there. Over 100 acres of land have been cleared for cattle ranching and crop production including of beans, corn, cardamom, and more. Ya’axché acquired remote sensing data which revealed that approximately 450 acres of Belizean territory have been illegally converted for agriculture. It adds that large swaths of land within the reserve which were burned during the 2024 fire season are now being used to “expand the agricultural frontier further into Belize.”
Ya’axché warns that the illegal activities threaten Belize’s natural resources and cause significant environmental degradation. It pointed to the recommendations in the Government’s management plan for the reserve which expired in 2015. Those included the installation of additional conservation posts for increased enforcement presence, promoting community-driven management of the reserve, community sustainable natural resource use via concession, and adopting agroforestry. According to Ya’axché, these recommendations remain unfulfilled. As it called for the measures to be implemented, Ya’axché further cautions that failure to act will result in the “continued degradation of our resources and the further erosion of our territorial integrity.” It urged immediate action from the highest levels of government. Christina Garcia, Executive Director of Ya’axché stated, “I think that the Belizean people have the right to know what is happening within our country, especially in these protected areas … It’s a direct attack on our sovereignty, and it is something that has escalated over time, and no concrete decisions have been made in regards to doing something about it.” The Machaquilha Conservation Post remains the single enforcement post in the entire reserve.
When Prime Minister John Briceño was asked to comment on the concern, he wrongly attributed co-manager responsibility to Ya’axché for the CRFR. He stated, “If they would have been out there looking at the area they’re responsible for, that would have never happened. So we need to start with that.” He affirmed that they continue to monitor the entire area, but cited the need for caution because they have to be mindful of the one-kilometer buffer along the border. He stated, “If any activity happens within that area, we need to have the OAS to come and verify that – whether it is within Belize territory or Guatemalan territory.” He reported that the National Security Council has now taken the decision for authorities to act against any Guatemalan conducting any illegal activity which is determined to be clearly beyond that one kilometre area. He affirmed, “We are not going to wait for the OAS, we are going to remove them.” He also called it an ongoing process.
The Prime Minister did comment that it is the poor people from the communities along the Guatemalan side of the border who are encroaching on Belize’s territory because they are landless due to the elites having taken up all the land in that area in Guatemala. He said they are actually encouraged to come across and are being told, “‘Ey, see that land over there? It belongs to us,’ and then they try to come in.” Nonetheless, he remarked, “but we are going to stop them. We are going to ensure that land belongs to us and they know that, and we are constantly reminding them – them and the OAS – that they are in our territory and they need to be removed.”
