Private protected areas (PPA) – are they effective in conserving the biodiversity hotspots?

The thesis is trying to bring the comprehensive information about Private Protected Areas (PPAs) and evaluate their effectiveness of management within the study region of Western Ecuador. The description of brief history, current trends in Latin America and Ecuador in private conservation are presented. Twenty PPAs were randomly selected and the Rapid Assessment and Prioritization for Protected Areas Management methodology used to evaluate their management effectiveness. To date, PPAs are not incorporated into the national system of protected areas and a few incentives are provided towards forest conservation on private lands. PPAs must face pressures and threats as mining, urban development or illegal hunting and land trafficking within their properties and they receive almost no help and attention from the authorities in cases of intervention. PPAs often serve as buffer zones of bigger public protected areas or stepping stones between smaller patches of protected forest. The highest scores on overall management effectiveness were found among generally bigger reserves owned by NPOs. The work also provides a brief comparison of private conservation in Ecuador and Czech Republic