The Pampas

“In South America, the temperate ecosystem is known as the Grasslands of the Rio de la Plata, is one of the most important in the world with an area of 760,000 km2. It occupies a great part of the center of Argentina, almost all of Uruguay and part of the state of Rio Grande do Sul, in Brazil. Known as the ‘pampas' or ‘fields', these regions have been and continue to be the basis of the economy of raw material for exporting countries.... ‘Today, much of the land is plowed or covered with new and modified vegetation,' said [Daniel Estelrich, professor of the Faculty of Agronomy, National University of La Pampa (Argentina).] ‘Only on the side of the roads and on the train tracks can you find specimens of native plants anymore'... The pampas represent one of the most extensive types of vegetation on the planet, but only 0.7% of its surface is protected.”