San Cristóbal Verapaz (Spanish pronunciation:[saŋkɾisˈtoβalβeɾaˈpas]) is a town, with a population of 20,961 (2018 census),[2] and a municipality (population 68,819 at 2018 census) in the Guatemalan department of Alta Verapaz. It is located approximately 29 km from Cobán, the capital of Alta Verapaz and about 210 km from Guatemala City. San Cristóbal belongs to the Pokimchi' linguistic area.[3] Its main income source is the «Cobán» shoe factory, which specializes in industrial rubber boots, which are sold both locally and internationally.
The Northern Transversal Strip was officially created during the government of General Carlos Arana Osorio in 1970, by Legislative Decree 60-70, for agricultural development.[4] The decree literally said: "It is of public interest and national emergency, the establishment of Agrarian Development Zones in the area included within the municipalities: San Ana Huista, San Antonio Huista, Nentón, Jacaltenango, San Mateo Ixtatán, and Santa Cruz Barillas in Huehuetenango; Chajul and San Miguel Uspantán in Quiché; Cobán, Chisec, San Pedro Carchá, Lanquín, Senahú, Cahabón and Chahal, in Alta Verapaz and the entire department of Izabal."[5]
San Cristóbal Verapaz was not part of the Strip, but it was bordering it and felt the devastating effects of the Guatemala Civil War which was fought mainly in the Strip during the 1980s.
The rural area of the municipality has eighty nine communities, while the villa has five neighborhoods: Santa Ana, San Felipe, San Cristóbal, San Sebastián y Esquipulas. The municipality is divided into the following microregions:
^Escalante Herrera, Marco Antonio (2010). "San Cristóbal Verapaz". pbase.com (in Spanish). Guatemala. Archived from the original on March 26, 2015. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
^Dirección Municipal de Planificación (2009). Distribución municipal de San Cristóbal Verapaz (in Spanish). Guatemala: Municipalidad de San Cristóbal Verapaz.
^ abSEGEPLAN (n.d.). "Municipios de Alta Verapaz, Guatemala". Secretaría General de Planificación y Programación de la Presidencia de la República. Guatemala. Archived from the original on 30 June 2015. Retrieved 30 June 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: year (link)
Álvarez Rangel, Nidia (1995). Análisis multielemental por reflexión total de rayos X, en tejido muscular de Micropterus salmonoides (lacepade) y guapote cichlasoma maneguense (Gunter), en la laguna Chichoj, San Cristóbal Verapaz (in Spanish). Guatemala: Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala.
Arce Canahuí, Ángel (1992). Caracterización biofísica y socioeconómica de la cuenca de la Laguna Chichoj (in Spanish). Guatemala: Centro Universitario de Nororiente, Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala.
Cabrera Cruz, Rudy (2005). Plan de acción e inversiones para el manejo la microcuenca de la Laguna Chichoj. Municipalidad de San Cristóbal Verapaz, Alta Verpaz.
— (2005). Propuesta de Estudio Técnico de la Laguna Chichoj (in Spanish). Alta Verapaz: Municipalidad de San Cristóbal Verapaz, Alta Verapaz.
— (2005). Propuesta de Programa de Educación Ambiental y Participación Local (in Spanish). Alta Verapaz: Municipalidad de San Cristóbal Verapaz, Alta Verapaz.
CALAS (2004). Memoria de la reunión para la creación de la Agenda Ambiental Municipal, 2004-2008 (in Spanish). Alta Verapaz: Municipalidad de San Cristóbal Verapaz, Alta Verapaz.
Castañeda Salguero, César (1997). Proceso degradativo y proyecto de recuperación de la laguna Chichoj, San Cristóbal Verapaz. Plan de acción forestal para Guatemala (in Spanish). PNUD.
CONAMA (1999). Estrategia Nacional para la conservación y el uso sostenible de la Biodiversidad y Plan de Acción (in Spanish). Guatemala.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
CONAP (2005) [1989]. Ley de Áreas protegidas y su reglamento Decreto No. 4-89 y sus reformas decretos No. 18-89, 110-96 y 117-97 (in Spanish). Guatemala: Congreso de la República de Guatemala.
CONAP (2006). Política Nacional de Humedales (in Spanish). Guatemala.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
FOGUAMA (1999). Diagnóstico preliminar de la Laguna Chichoj (in Spanish). Guatemala: FOGUAMA.
MARN (2003). Informe Nacional del Estado del Ambiente, GEO (in Spanish). Guatemala.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
Mollinedo García, Manuel Sabino (1999). Estudio agrológico de la cuenca de la Laguna Chichoj (in Spanish). Guatemala: Centro Universitario de Nororiente, Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala.
INFORME REMHI, Recuperación de la Memoria Histórica (in Spanish). Guatemala. 1999.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)