Overview
- The Peruvian State formalized the Área de Conservación Regional Aguas Calientes Maquía by Supreme Decree N.° 007-2026-MINAM after unanimous approval by the Council of Ministers.
- The new ACR covers 98,161.84 hectares spanning the districts of Alfredo Vargas Guerra and Contamana in Ucayali province and Maquía in Requena province.
- The designation protects wet Amazon forest, inundable river forests, aguajales, herbaceous swamps and geothermal spring systems that host about 11 plant species endemic to Loreto and threatened animals such as the maquisapa, uacarí calvo and river wolf listed by the IUCN.
- Authorities carried out a participatory process including a consulta previa that identified Shipibo-Konibo presence and the ACR is expected to directly benefit 31,147 people in seven native communities who rely on the territory’s resources.
- The ACR will be managed with technical support from Sernanp and Minam, integrated into a conservation corridor with Parque Nacional Sierra del Divisor to strengthen ecological connectivity and help reduce pressures like deforestation while supporting sustainable uses such as responsible tourism and water regulation.