Ecuador has passed new environmental legislation that will ‘structurally transform’ how the country manages its protected areas.
The Organic Law for the Strengthening of Protected Areas establishes a robust, technical, participatory legal framework aimed at ensuring the long-term sustainability of Ecuador’s ecosystems and natural heritage.
The legislation sees the creation of the National Service for Protected Areas of Ecuador, a newly-established public institution operating under the Ministry of Environment, Water, and Ecological Transition.
The service will assume a number of responsibilities previously held by the Ministry, including the regulation of the National System of Protected Areas, and will have financial and technical autonomy, giving it the ability to regulate, plan, and monitor the country’s more than 70 protected areas, which span around a fifth of Ecuador’s land and marine zones.
‘Act of love’
“This law is not just another legislative process; it is an act of love for the country,” commented Niels Olsen, president of Ecuador’s national assembly. “With this regulation, Ecuador says: never again to institutional abandonment, never again to unprotected park rangers, and never again to communities asking for help and receiving only paperwork. It is time to act with intelligence, urgency, and heart.”
The legislative reform also enhances the country’s environmental governance by facilitating funding mechanisms through public investment, international cooperation, and private donations.
It also recognises the collective rights of Indigenous peoples, and explicitly prohibits privatising protected lands and restricts tourism to specific zones. Elsewhere, it establishes the professionalisation of park rangers, and emphasises collaboration between local communities, environmental authorities, and international partners
‘A significant opportunity’
“This law is a significant opportunity for Ecuador to reaffirm its environmental leadership,” added Yolanda Kakabadse, conservationist and chair of the board of the Charles Darwin Foundation.
“A modern, professional legal framework with clear oversight will not only support conservation but also strengthen the relationship between nature and society.”
At a global level, the legislative step aligns Ecuador with major international environmental commitments such as the Escazú Agreement, the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Read more here.
