Environmental Services: Land use change and land access dynamics in the Delta del Paraná - Argentina

Abstract

The Delta del Paraná, a complex of wetlands covering the last 300km of the Paraná River in Argentina, provides several benefits to populations living inside and nearby. Considered as a marginal area regarding its historic economic development, the wetlands inside the Delta del Paraná have maintained its ecological integrity throughout the last centuries. However during the last decade the region is experiencing a period of profound transformation with the entrance of new actors and land use changes. This thesis intends to describe the environmental importance of the ecosystem in the provision of environmental services, to illustrate the changes that are currently taking place, and to focus on how are the new actors accessing to the land, aiming to create a better understanding of the local developments. Throughout qualitative research tools and participatory observation, the thesis describes and analyzes the formal and informal mechanisms with which new powerful actors are gaining access to land over old land users and owners. It is concluded that the current dynamics observed in the entering of actors and land uses occurring in the Delta del Paraná, enhanced by a lack of control by governmental agencies and an intricate legal framework, negatively affects the environmental sustainability of the ecosystem and the well-being of local and regional populations.