325
pace. The introduction of steam-driven sawing machines and the cheap access to
faraway markets (especially Buenos Aires) were determinant for this development,
which began to soar with immigrant income. The further advance of the railway
network from Tucumán toward the North, allowed the expansion of the timber
exploitation at its side. In 1891 the railway network reached the cities of Salta and
Jujuy; and at the end of the decade of the 1930s, the lines were completed. At that
time, each railway station from the south of Tucumán to the north had one or two
sawmills (some up to 10 or 15, like Orán and Tartagal). In all the railway stations,
the forest was the initial generator of wealth and source of work, giving origin to the
formation of villages (Del Castillo et al. 2005).
Nowadays, the highest percentage of the remaining piedmont rainforest is
located in the Northern sector of the Yungas, while the Southern sector has been
almost completely transformed into agricultural areas by the end of the nineteenth
and early twentieth century (Brown and Malizia 2004). One of the last relics of
Selva Pedemontana in the Southern sector is kept in the Provincial Park and Flora
and Fauna Reserve “La Florida” (Tucumán), which was created in 1936, being the
first protected area in provincial jurisdiction of the entire Argentina (Inza et al.
2012; Lomáscolo et al. 2014).
Currently, approximately 11% of the Argentine Yungas are legally designated as
protected areas (Malizia et al. 2012). However, many of these protected areas are
not representative of the main forest ecosystems or are poorly implemented. These
facts have led to judge that the existing protection is insufficient to guarantee the
conservation of the Yungas biodiversity, especially in the Selva Pedemontana
(Brown and Malizia 2004; Pidgeon et al. 2015). Protected areas are generally
located in sectors where losses due to opportunity costs are low (Pancel 2015). The
incorporation of important regions for biodiversity conservation into the system of
protected areas is not always feasible. However, it is possible that these regions can
be managed recognizing biodiversity conservation as a goal (Blendinger et al. 2009).
Different kinds of natural reserves exist in the Yungas (Fig. 12.2). The National
Park Administration is responsible for the national parks Baritú, El Rey, Calilegua,
and Los Alisos. In addition, three provinces are currently managing reserves and
parks distributed into Yungas environments: Jujuy (2), Salta (3), and Tucumán (7).
On the other hand, there are academic institutions and companies that also have
some flora and fauna reserves of their own. However, the degree of protection and
management is lower than in national parks.
Focusing on the exploitation of the natural forest, a falling trend is evident in the
last years due to the resource depletion, in terms of intervened surface and also of
harvested volumes. In fact, a change in the target species have been occurring, particularly a decrease in traditional species such as cedars (Cedrela balansae, C. saltensis, and C. angustifolia), Handroanthus impetiginosus and Myroxylon peruiferum,
and an increase in the case of Anathenantera colubrina var. cebil (Eliano et al.
2009). Many of the species that used to be less important for the domestic market
are currently in the top spots in terms of extraction due to their abundance, in
detriment of the quality required for manufacturing products with high added value
12 Subtropical Rainforests: The Yungas and the Alto Paraná Rainforest
pace. The introduction of steam-driven sawing machines and the cheap access to
faraway markets (especially Buenos Aires) were determinant for this development,
which began to soar with immigrant income. The further advance of the railway
network from Tucumán toward the North, allowed the expansion of the timber
exploitation at its side. In 1891 the railway network reached the cities of Salta and
Jujuy; and at the end of the decade of the 1930s, the lines were completed. At that
time, each railway station from the south of Tucumán to the north had one or two
sawmills (some up to 10 or 15, like Orán and Tartagal). In all the railway stations,
the forest was the initial generator of wealth and source of work, giving origin to the
formation of villages (Del Castillo et al. 2005).
Nowadays, the highest percentage of the remaining piedmont rainforest is
located in the Northern sector of the Yungas, while the Southern sector has been
almost completely transformed into agricultural areas by the end of the nineteenth
and early twentieth century (Brown and Malizia 2004). One of the last relics of
Selva Pedemontana in the Southern sector is kept in the Provincial Park and Flora
and Fauna Reserve “La Florida” (Tucumán), which was created in 1936, being the
first protected area in provincial jurisdiction of the entire Argentina (Inza et al.
2012; Lomáscolo et al. 2014).
Currently, approximately 11% of the Argentine Yungas are legally designated as
protected areas (Malizia et al. 2012). However, many of these protected areas are
not representative of the main forest ecosystems or are poorly implemented. These
facts have led to judge that the existing protection is insufficient to guarantee the
conservation of the Yungas biodiversity, especially in the Selva Pedemontana
(Brown and Malizia 2004; Pidgeon et al. 2015). Protected areas are generally
located in sectors where losses due to opportunity costs are low (Pancel 2015). The
incorporation of important regions for biodiversity conservation into the system of
protected areas is not always feasible. However, it is possible that these regions can
be managed recognizing biodiversity conservation as a goal (Blendinger et al. 2009).
Different kinds of natural reserves exist in the Yungas (Fig. 12.2). The National
Park Administration is responsible for the national parks Baritú, El Rey, Calilegua,
and Los Alisos. In addition, three provinces are currently managing reserves and
parks distributed into Yungas environments: Jujuy (2), Salta (3), and Tucumán (7).
On the other hand, there are academic institutions and companies that also have
some flora and fauna reserves of their own. However, the degree of protection and
management is lower than in national parks.
Focusing on the exploitation of the natural forest, a falling trend is evident in the
last years due to the resource depletion, in terms of intervened surface and also of
harvested volumes. In fact, a change in the target species have been occurring, particularly a decrease in traditional species such as cedars (Cedrela balansae, C. saltensis, and C. angustifolia), Handroanthus impetiginosus and Myroxylon peruiferum,
and an increase in the case of Anathenantera colubrina var. cebil (Eliano et al.
2009). Many of the species that used to be less important for the domestic market
are currently in the top spots in terms of extraction due to their abundance, in
detriment of the quality required for manufacturing products with high added value
12 Subtropical Rainforests: The Yungas and the Alto Paraná Rainforest