92406 Protecting the Amazon Rain Forest - ARPA Project December 13, 2005 Amazon Region Protected Areas Project (ARPA) The vision of the Amazon Region Protected Areas Project (ARPA) is to create a mosaic of protected areas around productive landscapes to maintain the ecological integrity of the region over the long term.  The project aims to add  28 million hectares in new protected areas (PAs) in the Brazilian Amazon over the next 10 years, while helping to consolidate the existing protected areas system. This will result in a total of 50 million hectares of Amazon forested ecosystems under protection and sustainable use, The ARPA project will result in a total of 50 an area the size of Spain. million hectares of Amazon forested ecosystems under protection and sustainable The program is being implemented in three phases. use, an area the size of Spain. The first (ongoing) phase seeks to: Create 18 million hectares of new protected areas using a conservation mosaic approach     Consolidate the management of existing and newly created PAs   Establish and operate a fund to meet the Financing recurrent costs of managing PAs   Total cost : $81.5 million Establish and operate a biodiversity monitoring and evaluation system Sources of funding: Global Environment Facility (GEF) World Wildlife Fund (WWF) KfW (German development bank) The second two phases will aim to establish an 8 State Governments additional 19 million hectares of new strict protection PAs, consolidate management of the Implementing agency existing PAs, and support their long-term Ministry of the Environment sustainability. Brazilian Fund for Biodiversity ARPA has already achieved a number of results: More details 15 million hectares of new protected areas  Full project information & documents decreed   A Protected Areas Fund established and endowed with $8 million   Relationships established between ARPA and key stakeholders throughout the Brazilian Amazon   Processes established to allow funding to reach isolated protected areas Updated: December 2005