The region of the Valleys of San Nicolas is located to the east of the department of Antioquia, on the central mountain range of the Colombian Andes. The region covers an area of 72.000 hectares, in a rank of altitude going from 800 to 3100 meters above sea level. It comprises the Municipalities of Guarne, Rionegro, Marinilla, La Ceja, El Retiro, El Carmen de Viboral, El Santuario, San Vicente and La Union, with an approximate population of 354.000 inhabitants. Map

It is located 40 kilometers far from Medellín City, this is a strategic area in which is found the hydrographic basin supplying water needed to generate the 33% of the Colombian energy, and supplies also the 50% of the water resource of the city of Medellín. Likewise, the region is an agricultural pantry and generates a great variety of inputs for industrial transformation. Besides, it is a potential zone for ecotourism.

Nevertheless, the urbanization dynamics, the expansion of the agricultural border for industrial cultivations and the inadequate management of the forests constitute a risk for the Region and particularly for the forest sector.