METHODOLOGY FOR IDENTIFICATION OF PRIORITY AREAS FOR INTERVENTIONS OF PAYMENT MECHANISM FOR WATER ECOSYSTEM SERVICES IN AMAZON CITIES, PERU

Abstract

The water ecosystem service (HES) is identified as the main service that must be conserved, protected and properly managed to ensure its quality, quantity and availability. The objective of this work was to develop a methodological proposal for the identification of Payment Mechanisms for Water Ecosystem Services (MERESE-H) in the department of Madre de Dios, Peru. Workshops were held with key local actors to identify current human activities that cause changes in land use in the study area. Additionally, a diagnostic study was developed at the socioeconomic level to learn about the situation of the sanitation service of water operators in rural areas and small cities in the Amazon region of Madre de Dios. As a methodological sequence, the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Tradeoffs (InVEST) tool was used to calculate the Hydrological Service Index (HSI) for the prioritized basins, showing the current status of their water services. These dates were used to contrast the problem of administration of operation and the maintenance of the service together with the projected deficiencies of the ISH of the basins under study; resulting in a serious deficiency in the service at the level of quality and quantity of water for its adequate use as a basic service. Finally, with the proposed methodology, five sites have been identified that meet the criteria for an adequate design, implementation, and management of a MERESE-H. This result is visualized in a "traffic light" table for intervention in the short and medium term in rural areas and small Amazonian cities. The InVEST tool, as part of the valuation process, is recommended for the evaluation of the hydrological services of the micro-basins to work; but to obtain results closer to reality, it is necessary to have updated data, mainly on land use and weather (precipitation and evapotranspiration).