We currently conduct a sustainable timber operation on the Property’s 43,000+ acres of hardwood timberland. Sustainability is ensured through strict adherence to our Forest Management Plan, which we have implemented in preparation for Forest Certification. Although selectively logged in its history, the Property’s forests are a remarkably resilient ecotype, surviving and flourishing through these exploits. And today, with the benefit of ongoing protection and preservation efforts over the past 10 years, recent assessments prove that the forest and other vegetation patterns have never been severely damaged. The area is, with regards to its extraordinary richness of flora and fauna, one of the last important coastal forest refuges of the Yucatan Peninsula.

As one of the largest remaining blocks of privately owned undeveloped broadleaf forests within Belize, the Property is important in the maintenance of key species requiring large areas of minimally impacted forest, such as the jaguar, ocelot, and the white-lipped peccary. The Property’s forests lie in an important transition zone, encompassing elements from both the Yucatan moist forest to the north and and the more humid forests to the south and west.

In order to gain a true understanding of the forest’s natural treasures, how they’ve been impacted and how they can best be preserved, a Guatemalan organization, Fundación Naturaleza para la Vida (NPV), was contracted to complete a full forest inventory of Balam Jungle. NPV, who was recommended through Smartwood, the world’s leading nonprofit forest certifier, established a database of information, which led to the creation of the Property’s sustainable Forest Management Plan. The Management Plan now guides harvesting operations, optimizes reforestation efforts, and will soon qualify the area for forest certification status.

Knowing the devastation that can occur due to the loss of our planet's forests, we wanted to be a part of the solution. Adhering to forest certification standards, our Forest Management Plan serves as a critical guide that ensures the sustainability of our harvesting operation while optimizing the regeneration of impacted areas through the incorporation of plantation and reforestation programs. During the wet season, we implement our significant reforestation program, ensuring that our timberland will continue to flourish into the future. Our privately employed forest rangers patrol the the property daily in order to protect our resources from would-be poachers and hunters.

For more about our timber operation, please visit our sister site @: www.balamhardwood.com