"Garden of Eden" Receives Designation as National Park

The Mesopotamian Marshes in Iraq have widely been considered the location of the "Garden of Eden." Late last month, the Iraq Council of Ministers made history by designating the area as the nation's first national park.

Located in southern Iraq, the marshes were once the third largest wetlands in the world, but were devastated during the Gulf War in the 1990's. Saddam Hussein, then president, drained the area to less than 10% of its original size.

Satellite images of the marshes before and after being drained.

Efforts have been made to restore the marshlands since 2003. The designation as national park is hoped to offer continued support and motivation for restoring the area. The restoration of the marsh is hindered by the complex political pressures it faces as an integral water source.

Water politics in the region have been contentious, with countries upstream of Iraq restricting the water flows of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. However, Nature Iraq, a non-governmental organization which led the demand for national park designation, hopes to create water diversions to allow water to reenter the marshes.

Azzam Alwash, founder and President of the Board of Directors of Nature Iraq was quoted in a press release: “With this action, Iraq has acted to preserve the cradle of civilization.  It is now the duty of the world to help Iraq maintain these wetlands for the future generations by helping Iraq, Turkey, Syria and Iran to reach an equitable agreement on the sharing of the waters in the basin of the Tigris and Euphrates.”

Angelica Oman

Graduate Program Assitant

Denver Law Adjunct Professor Florencia Heredia Recognized by Who's Who Legal

Florencia Heredia

Denver Law Adjunct Professor Florencia Heredia, an attorney in Buenos Aires, Argentina, has been recognized as the 2013 Mining Lawyer of the Year by Who's Who Legal.  Ms. Heredia has taught "Latin American Mining Law" at the Sturm College of Law.

In 1992, Ms. Heredia began her legal career with the Argentine firm of Estudio Beccar Varela. In 2008 she formed her own firm HOLT Abogados with three female partners.  As Ms. Heredia told Who's Who Legal, "It was a decision I had been thinking about for some time. Although I was at a great stage in my career at Beccar Varela, I decided it was time to follow a different path."

Holt Abogados is a boutique firm focusing on natural resources and environmental matters along with corporate, regulatory, and financial matters.

Ms. Heredia has served as a trustee with the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation. She was recently elected to the position of secretary of the Foundation's Board of Directors.  She is currently senior vice-chair for the International Bar Association's Section on Energy, Environment, Natural Resources and Infrastructure Law Mining Law Committee. 

Don Smith, Director of the ENRL Program said, "Florencia Heredia is an inspiration for all who meet her. She is smart, hard-working, energetic and above all highly respected by her colleagues.  She is, without question, one of the top mining law attorneys in the world, and her career should be an example to all about the success one can achieve through hard work and determination.  All of her friends at Denver Law are thrilled with this recognition."

Ms. Heredia and Luis Carlos Rodrigo, attorney with Rodrigo, Elias & Medrano Abogados in Lima, Peru, teamed up to teach Latin American Mining Law at Denver Law.