1997 Enactment of Treaty for the Execution of the Trifinio Plan

In 1987, a long-mooted agreement between El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala was developed to establish the transnational Biosphere Reserve in the cloud forest covering the Montecristo massif which lies on the border of the three countries. The region is home to rare flora and fauna as well as serving as the catchment zone for three of Central America’s principal watercourses, including the River Lempa. 

The initial agreement established the Transnational Commission for the Plan Trifinio to promote development in the region as well as protect the forest and biodiversity. Trifinio is the Spanish geographical term for a place where three borders converge. In November 1987, the three countries issued the “Declaration of the International Biosphere Reserve of Fraternity (Trifinio)” (Declaración de la Reserva Internacional de la Biósfera de la Fraternidad) and in 1998 the Plan Trifinio for Regional Trinational Frontier Development (Plan de Desarrollo Regional Fronterizo Trinacional Trifinio) was published. This established the framework for the development of the region, which received support from, amongst others, the OAS, UNDP, UNESCO and EU.  

In October 1997, the governments of El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras developed this process further, signing the Treaty for the Execution of the Trifinio Plan. This created a regional body that forms part of the Central American Integration System (SICA). The terms of the treaty seek to develop an environmental and territory management process that allows for the best possible quality of life for border communities, including the trinational Commission that acts as a guardian for the development of the reserve. The focus of the Plan and the Commission has been to promote a wide range of development projects while preserving the biodiversity, particularly focusing on soil and forest conservation rather than watercourses.

As a consequence of these priorities, the Trifinio Plan and Commission have a range of limitations, including failure to prioritize the development of effective transnational mechanisms to regulate and manage shared regional water resources originating in the Reserve (Artiga, 2014). This is a particularly acute concern for El Salvador, whose principal watercourses, such as the River Lempa and Lake Güija, depend on catchment zones in the Reserve. 

Despite the limitations of the Treaty for the Execution of the Trifinio Plan, civil society groups and Salvadoran government representatives have invoked its provisions to advocate the suspension of Cerro Blanco mining project. For example, former Salvadoran President, Salvador Sánchez Cerén, noted that while the Treaty does not prohibit mining, it requires that any decision affecting the reserve must be agreed upon by all three countries (stopesmining.org, 2014). Nevertheless, the government of Guatemala has so far failed to recognise this trinational legal obligation under the treaty with respect to the impact of the Cerro Blanco mine. For more information on citizen-led efforts to draft crossborder treaties addressing water resources, see 2014- Citizen Transborder Treaty Drafting [Cerro Blanco].