[2] Initiated by a group of local Mayan leaders in 1997, the Maya Golden Landscape was then strengthened by the support of Fauna and Flora International.
The Ya’axché Conservation Trust has been directing this corridor along with the assistance of the management of the individual protected areas within the Maya Golden Landscape.
Other topographical features includes karst limestone hills, caves, sinkholes and draining basins at the base of the Maya Mountains which feed surrounding water bodies and watersheds.
Habitats to be encountered in the terrestrial component of the landscape includes tropical rainforests, pine savannas, coastal wetlands and mangrove forests.
A major contributor to the spike in fire damage was Hurricane Iris which passed directly through the area in October 2001 leaving dead vegetation in its path.
This dried dead vegetation served as fuel for the fires in 2002, which occurred next to a large savanna area, and 2003, in the hills behind Golden Stream.
[10] Part of the conservation achievements of the Maya Golden Landscape includes the internationally recognized Jaguar reserve at the Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary[11]