Chiquibul Targeted Again as Illegal Loggers Shift to Sapodilla

Illegal logging is making a comeback along Belize’s western border, warns Rafael Manzanero, Executive Director of the Friends for Conservation and Development (FCD).

Manzanero said that while illegal logging was most intense between 2010 and 2014, when over $50 million worth of timber was lost from the Chiquibul jungle to Guatemalan loggers, it had slowed in recent years.

“From 2010 to 2014, they had reached up to 17 kilometers within Belizean territory,” Manzanero said. “Right now, that basically was steadily going down until two years ago. We are seeing back again a resurgence of illegal activity in terms of illegal logging right now.”

Manzanero said the FCD is coordinating closely with the Ministry of Border Security to prevent a return to the levels seen a decade ago.

Currently, the focus of illegal logging has shifted. Mahogany and cedar, once the main targets, are now largely untouched. Instead, sapodilla trees are being felled to support cattle ranching operations, with logs used to build cattle posts.

The Chiquibul Forest, one of Belize’s largest protected areas, has long been vulnerable to cross-border incursions, with illegal logging, poaching, and gold panning posing persistent threats to its biodiversity and national resources.