ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
In the Peruvian Amazon the regional capital consists mainly of natural resources. Maintaining this capital viable requires well functioning environmental management policies. But what exactly does environmental management mean? One of the easiest ways to understand the concept is to compare it to the management of an enterprise. Although the goals may be a little different, the management principles are largely the same. The most important rule is that the revenues a company makes cannot be based on eating away the capital: sooner or later the company will run out of capital and go bankrupted.
In the Peruvian Amazon this type of environmental management has been going on for decades. A considerable part of the development in the region has been based on the use of natural resources, which has created income, but at the same time caused degradation of soils, deforestation, and damage to fresh water resources and other natural resources.
Conservation and sustainable use of natural resources are closely connected to the wellbeing of the local people, and the future of the Peruvian Amazon. Many problems in the region, beginning with poverty, are associated with the destructive use of these resources. The final decisions concerning the use of the resources are made at the highest government levels, making it a political matter.
Public policies should be based on valid scientific information that would help decision makers to understand the current situation in the region, and strive towards ecologically sustainable development. The different levels of governmental decision-making (national, regional and local) should incorporate environmental policies in the development plans.
Environmental management policies may cover various topics, depending on the action ground and the institution involved. The in-depth elements provided by PromAmazonia’s Environmental management service are available in Spanish. See overview of the services for a summary in English.

Environmental management services include information on:

Environmental management policies
Information on what kind of processes the formulation of development of policies and guidelines include, examples of maps of the Peruvian Amazon, summaries of Peruvian environmental management policies.

Instruments for environmental planning
Information on international conventions, agreements and treaties, national guidelines, plans and strategies

Institutional strengthening
Material on local and regional environmental management systems in Peru, and relevant links.

Classification of territories
Information on the Ecologic and Economic Zonification (ZEE), Peruvian protected areas, communication initiatives, classification of territories, environmental and socio-economic macro units.

Sustainable use of biological diversity (Biotrade)
Information on biotrade, natural resource management, loss of biodiversity resources, water and solid waste management.

Capacity building
For government employees; regional and local environmental education
Information, communication and transparency in environmental management; environmental monitoring systems Participatory approach, communication programs.