Adquisition of the 400 ha of land / 1980 – 1990

This is how the land looked back then: completely degraded and eroded.

Back in the 80s, two dreamers, Gordienko brothers Pablo and Andrei bought land that a few years later would come to be Macao Sanctuary. Back then the landscape looked very different than what can be appreciated today. The forest was burnt annually to extend the grasslands, a common agricultural practice of that time. This fragmented the forest and the earth, leaving the ground compacted, eroded and nutrient poor.

Extensive cattle raising, the main economical activity then, had already damaged the land and the soil. The ecosystem was affected negatively and biodiversity was decreasing. Cattle businesses were solely operated by owners, leaving locals unemployed and also affecting the economy of communities in the area.