Among their activities has been the:

Establishment of three locally-owned community tree nurseries Planting of 13,000 trees to stabilize stream banks and protect water sources Establishment of two model farms that provide "farmer-to-farmer" training in agroforestry (planting crops together with forest and fruit trees), reducing pesticide use and soil conservation techniques Construction of firebreaks Repair of roads and bridges

They have also sent Lewis Daniels, a soil scientist recently retired from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, to train the staff of AHDESA, Peace Corps Volunteers and community members in basic soil measurement techniques and in vegetative methods of soil conservation. These groups will use this information to train others in their communities.

In 2001, TWP will continue these and other activities with the second phase of the project. To help implement the specific program activities, TWP has hired a local, full-time agroforestry extension agent to provide agroforestry and soil conservation training to farmers as well as to set-up and manage the tree-nurseries. We will also continue to send experts in soil conservation, sustainable agriculture and agroforestry to the region.

How much does this cost?

Materials, tools, tree seedlings and fruit trees for three nurseries	$5,400
Supplies for a new model agroforestry farm	$1,000
Building of 100 fuel-efficient stoves at $40 per stove	$4,000
Salaries for our local agroforestry extension agent	$6,000
Stipend for consultants	$2,000
Training sessions and transportation	$1,500
Travel for program monitoring and evaluation	$4,380
Total program cost	$24,280

The most important need for TWP to implement their program this year is funding for establishing three new tree nurseries.

Who is this for?
The direct beneficiaries are the people living in the watershed who receive training, technical and material assistance. Trees, Water & People currently work in six communities: El Empedrado, Escarbadero, Tierra Colorado, Junacate, Quiscamote, San Matias and Copantillos. Their goal is to eventually work in 10 communities in the watershed. In 1999-2000, TWP and AHDESA provided training in forest protection to 40 community members; technical assistance and agroforestry training to 75 vegetable producers; and environmental education to 100 4th, 5th and 6th grade schoolchildren. They plan to work in these same communities, reaching a minimum of 300 individuals with training and education, in 2001. The program's indirect beneficiaries are the water users in Tegucigalpa. Approximately 420,000 people receive their drinking water from the Guacerique watershed and depend on this project to improve water quality.

What are the obstacles?
TWP is applying to private foundations to support year two activities, but they need support from individuals as well. Should funding fall short for this program, they will train less farmers, plant fewer trees, provide less environmental education and build fewer stoves while they continue to fundraise and build the program. Their goal for this year is to establish three more tree nurseries and they are currently raising funds for this component of the program.

What is the next step?
Trees, Water & People is currently raising funds to accomplish the following activities in the year 2001:

Train 90 local farmers in agroforestry, agricultural diversification, reduced pesticide use and soil conservation to improve yields in a sustainable manner

Obtain memorandum of agreements from local community groups and leaders to protect their forests and improve the watershed

Reforest springs, streambanks and other critical areas

Establish and maintain six community tree nurseries with 5,000 trees per nursery and establish community wood lots to provide a sustainable source of fuelwood

Plant 2,000 mango, orange, guayaba and peach trees to diversify agricultural production

Introduce velvet bean (a nitrogen fixing plant) to local farmers as a natural ground cover for soil conservation and soil enhancement

Establish one additional locally owned and operated model farm utilizing soil conservation and agroforestry techniques, including planting trees and grasses as live barriers between farming operations and water sources

Implement volunteer water quality monitoring with community members

Provide school-based environmental education to 180 elementary school students

Educate the members of eight communities on the effects of fire on the watershed, build fire breaks and organize fire protection brigades to reduce the threat of catastrophic forest fires

Build a minimum of 100 fuel-efficient stoves to begin reducing deforestation for fuelwood

What does this all mean?
The Guacerique watershed in central Honduras produces 12 million cubic meters of water per year and is the principal source of drinking water for approximately 420,000 people in the capital city of Tegucigalpa. The watershed is threatened, however, by physical, chemical and biological contamination, chiefly sediment from soil erosion (due to deforestation), toxic waste from agricultural chemicals, and sewage from nearby communities and livestock.

The people living in the watershed subsist on agricultural production, especially vegetables for sale to people in Tegucigalpa and for export to El Salvador. Sale of their produce is often uncertain, so diversifying to some fruit production is desirable. Additionally, many farmers use unsustainable agricultural practices that contribute to the degradation of the watershed.

Deforestation is also a threat to the forests of the Guacerique watershed, as it is in many areas of Central America. Deforestation occurs primarily from the harvesting of wood to burn as fuel in inefficient, open-fire cookstoves; clearing forests for expansion of farmland; and forest fires caused by slash and burn agriculture.