The Central Forest Reserve (CFR) was designated a National Park by the Government of the Federation of Saint Christopher (St. Kitts) and Nevis on 23 October 2006, making it the first National Park to be designated for the purposes of biodiversity conservation and sustainable development.
The Park comprises the entire area of St. Kitts’ Central Range above the 1,000 foot contour, an area of 4,030 hectares or nearly 10,000 acres. The history of the forest in the Central Forest Reserve is closely tied to the cultivation of sugar and other agricultural activity on St. Kitts and represents those areas that were either too difficult to reach, too steep to cultivate, or with unsuitable soils or from which it was too difficult to transport cane and other produce after harvesting. Up to the beginning of the 20th Century, these areas had escaped being cleared, and the forest remained relatively intact within these areas.
The Park contains the last remaining area of tropical forest on the island of St. Kitts, making its protection a significant step in regional conservation. The thickly vegetated area collects and stores rainfall for the national water supply and the protection of this healthy watershed will continue to be a priority. The trails are used by the majority of ecotourism ventures on the island, as well as local recreational and educational programmes, and are an important asset expected to play an expanding role in the island’s economic future.
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