Paying for watershed services in Latin America: A review of current initiatives

This paper addresses the challenge of using PES to enhance hydrologic services in Latin America. To begin, the current state of implementation is described. We are able to identify just a few sites where each and every feature of PES is in place and many places where some but not all these features have been adopted. In the latter part of the paper, we examine why PES implementation remains incipient in Latin America, albeit farther along than in other parts of the developing world. Our analysis focuses on public policy, institutional factors, and political realities affecting PES in Latin America.