On Floreana Island, located in the insular region of Ecuador, Bianca Dager, Vice Minister of the Environment of this State portfolio, attended a tour where the progress of the Floreana Ecological Restoration Project was verified, which will allow the recovery of the original habitat of the island that has a surface area of ​​173 square kilometers.

The actions carried out by the project are based on the elimination of threats that constitute invasive species that have long been established and spread in this territory. In this process, three invasive vertebrate species will be eradicated.

During the tour, Vice Minister Dager, along with the KfW Mission – Galapagos, Danny Rueda, director of the Galapagos National Park – DPNG and Marilyn Cruz, Executive Director of the Agency for Regulation and Control of Biosecurity and Quarantine for Galapagos, demonstrated the progress of the project such as the strategy for managing water sources and learned about the infrastructure implemented to mitigate potential risks in agricultural production.

“We have seen the efforts of all technicians and experts to restore this important ecosystem in which 13 emblematic species that became locally extinct on Floreana can be reintroduced. The strategies applied will prevent extensive grazing that puts the protected area at risk and control the biosecurity of the area,” said Bianca Dager, Vice Minister of the Environment.

This initiative led by the DPNG of the Ministry of Environment, Water and Ecological Transition, will reduce land degradation, facilitate forest regeneration, and improve ecotourism opportunities. Consequently, ecosystem services and agricultural production will be protected by eliminating one of the greatest threats to biodiversity, which are invasive exotic species.

The Floreana Project is one of the most ambitious in removing invasive species, and is developed by the Galapagos National Park Directorate and the Agency for Regulation and Control of Biosecurity and Quarantine for Galapagos, with the support of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, technical assistance from Island Conservation, Jocotoco Conservation Foundation, in collaboration with the Parish Council of Floreana Island, the Decentralized Autonomous Municipal Government of San Cristóbal and the support of the community.

Communications Directorate
Ministry of Environment, Water and Ecological Transition