San Andrés, El Petén
Encyclopedia
San Andrés is a municipality
in the department of El Petén in Guatemala
. The municipality is formed by the town of San Andrés, located on the north-western shore of Lake Petén Itzá
, and 55 rural communities, with a total population of 20,295 people (census 2002).
The municipality was created in 1962 and has a territory 8,874 km², equivalent to 25% of the department of El Petén. In the 1990s, more than 93% (8,288 km²) of the municipalities territory was declared protected nature reserve by the central government.
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
in the department of El Petén in Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
. The municipality is formed by the town of San Andrés, located on the north-western shore of Lake Petén Itzá
Lake Petén Itzá
Lake Petén Itzá is a lake in the northern department Petén in Guatemala. It is the second largest lake in Guatemala, the Izabal lake being the largest. It is located around . It has an area of 99 km² some 32 km. long and 5 km wide. Its maximum depth is 160 m...
, and 55 rural communities, with a total population of 20,295 people (census 2002).
The municipality was created in 1962 and has a territory 8,874 km², equivalent to 25% of the department of El Petén. In the 1990s, more than 93% (8,288 km²) of the municipalities territory was declared protected nature reserve by the central government.