street

The struggle about the street

The street has been built despite big engagement and oppositon and is used by now. It is crossing our protected foerst in the first line, directly behind the hill and is at least not visible from the amaZOOnico. Th Prefecto has given the street in September 1997 to the petrol company ORYX (naturally not officially). ORYX had been reparing around, as the street was threatning to slip on mmany places or has been filled up through landslides (built fast and cheap). Even the bridge over the Rio Arajuno has collapsed under the weight of the first truck and had to be rebuilt from ORYX.
Finally, in February 1998 ORXY made a topographical record, as the street map from the builders of the Prefecto missed up to 1km. The street had been built "intuitively", so nobody really knew, where to put it on the map.

Negotiations with ORYX

We have got again into contact with OPRYX in November 1997, to get some compensations or rather correctures. This is diplomatically very delicate. They insist, that these are not compensations at all, as they are not officially owners of the street. But they like to support our "admirable work". Might it be as it wants to, in Februuary 98 we could finally negatiate the following:

To deepen the shipping lane of the Rio Arajuno by dredging, to make it again navigable for boat-traffic (already done)
Cleaning of the creek Churupumayacu, that has been completely damed (we did this ourselves in August 1998, but did not recieve any compensation from ORYX)
Secure the saltlickingplace for parrots; it is endangered through landslides
Construction of a rangers house with room for three people (done November 1998)
To pay three roadsigns for the street with information about GSR and the amaZOOnico (not done)
Instal thresholds to force trucks to brake (not done)
Point at issue: Pay the rangers (up to now, the rangers are payed from us)

Conclusion

If you're driving from Tena by bus through the forest, you'll notice before all, that the forest in front of Selva Viva looks like a desaster: On the left unsd right side of the street up to 100m landslides, erosion, cut down trees. As soon as you really enter the forest preserve things look much better: Partly the street is really only 5m wide, the hills have been stabilized, the creeks mostly not damed. Our coast- and nerv-intense struggle in 1997 has been worth despite all. On the left and rightside of the street, the forest from Selva Viva is still there, in front of and behind the preserve, there is a lot of cutting down, and there, the mahogany tree (swietenia macrophylla) will be extinct soon too. In SelvaViva we still do have many beautiful trees!