ABT initiated 48 criminal proceedings and issued 223 summons for forest fires

So far this year, the Authority for the Supervision and Social Control of Forests and Land (ABT) initiated 48 criminal proceedings for fires forestry incidents and issued 223 summons for fines illegal burning and clearing in the country.

While in administrative sanctioning processes for illegal burning There are 223 citations issued, Of these 135 were issued in Santa Cruz, 36 in Beni, 16 in Cochabamba, 15 in Pando, nine in Chuquisaca, seven in Tarija, three in Potosí and two in La Paz.

“We do not hesitate to prosecute the perpetrators or participate in the serious damage to our environment, which is greatly affecting the health of a population, nature and the life of animals. Let the population know that those responsible will receive the corresponding punishment in justice,” said the national executive director, Luis Roberto Flores Orellana.

The Code of Criminal Procedure establishes a sentence of two to six years in prison for those who cause and provoke forest fires, with aggravating circumstances in forest reserves and protected areas, from three to eight years in prison.

Currently 32 active fires are reported in the country, of which There are 18 magnitude earthquakes and the Chiquitana region is the most affected. The largest fires did not originate within the national territory, but in the neighboring country of Brazil and advanced as far as Bolivia, according to data from the ABT.