Zongo Valley
The Zongo Valley is an Andean valley, located northwest of the city of La Paz, in the Pedro Domingo Murillo Province, La Paz Department, Bolivia. The valley follows the course of the Zongo River and is located within the Cordillera Real, from the Huayna Potosí mountain at above sea level and up to above sea level, in the tropical area of the Bolivian Yungas.
The Zongo Valley belongs to the Zongo macrodistrict of the municipality of La Paz. The inhabitants of this valley are settled in small towns along the road that runs parallel to the river of the same name.
History
During the colonial era, the Zongo Valley maintained its tradition as a coca leaf producing area and was exploited as a supply center for the so-called "green gold", used for the exploitation of mines during that time.Geography
The Zongo Valley is located in the northern part of the municipality of La Paz, administratively belonging to the Zongo Macrodistrict of the municipality. The eastern area of the valley is part of the Cotapata National Park, whose territory also includes the municipality of Coroico. Its surface has a diversity of ecological floors with wetlands, moors, mountain ranges, Andean forests, humid forests, among others. In the Zongo Valley, there is an average annual rainfall of 3000 mm, with an increase between the months of January and March and a dry period between June and July.Environment
The Zongo Valley is a territory of great natural wealth and excellent biodiversity.4 Much of the Zongo district, where the Zongo Valley is located, conserves its biodiversity and natural characteristics due to the lack of road access. However, there are threats to its biodiversity due to the exploitation of the middle valleys of the coca agricultural frontier, the penetration into the Zongo Tropical area by the municipality of Caranavi to the northeast, the land division that is carried out in the upper part of the Zongo Valley and mining extraction in the center of the lower valley. Deforestation due to forest clearing is a new threat that puts its biodiversity at risk.In 2020, 20 species new to science were discovered through the work of 17 scientists, through the NGO Conservation International and the support of the National Museum of Natural History of Bolivia and the National Herbarium of Bolivia. In this expedition, a total of 1,700 species living in the valley were recorded. Among the rediscovered species are the frog Oreobates zongoensis, the satyr butterfly and the plant Stromanthe angustifolia.