Page 22 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Argentina

20  INTRODUCING ARGENTINA

Land and Conservation Argentina, and cash crops such as
The absence of human settlement in genetically modified soya and tobacco
many areas and the abun dance of green have replaced the quinoa and amaranth
spaces makes Argentina in many ways a that pre­Columbian farmers planted.
natural paradise. The Pampas Argentina’s grow ing industrial
grasslands spill endlessly sector has also had a devas­
around the capi tal city, while tating impact on nature.
sub tropical forests charac­ Native flora and fauna are
terize Argentinian Litoral. under threat due to the
The Andean Northwest hydro electric projects on
offers deep ravines the Uruguay and Paraná
weathered by wind and rain, Rivers, and the forestry
and Patagonia thrills visitors projects in Misiones and
with its magnificent glaciers. The Tierra del Fuego. The World
country’s 27 national parks and Visitor center logo, Parque Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)
municipal pre serves protect a Nacional Chaco estimates that more than
wide range of environ ments, including 61,775 sq miles (160,000 sq km) of forest
ice­fields, deserts, and wetlands. cover were lost between 1980 and 2000.
The government has now begun to Illegal hunting is a problem in all provinces.
realize that the booming tourist indus try The country’s main environmental non­
will depend on sustaining this wilder­ governmental organization, Vida Silvestre,
ness. For over a century, the country’s works with private organi zations and
eco nomy has focused on agri culture, philan thropists to create new protected
cattle­raising, and sheep­farming, and areas and establish sus tainable tourism
land in many areas has been dam aged projects. Recent suc cesses have included
by the impact. For example, the plains the temporary shutdown of a Shell refinery
of Patagonia have been deserti fied by in Buenos Aires for inadequate waste­
intensive sheep­farming. The growing handling proce dures, and the creation of
of wheat and other grains has replaced Parque Nacional Monte León through the
the original grasslands of central nonprofit Patagonia Land Trust.

The stunning red rocks of Parque Provincial Ischigualasto, a UNESCO World Heritage Site

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