Atiquipa District is one of thirteen districts of

Caravelí Province Caravelí Province is one of eight provinces in the Arequipa Region of Peru. Political divisions The province is divided into thirteen districts which are: * Acarí (Acarí) * Atico ( Atico) * Atiquipa ( Atiquipa) * Bella Unión (Bella Unió ...

in the

Arequipa Region Arequipa ( ay, Ariqipa; qu, Ariqipa) is a department and region in southwestern Peru. It is the sixth largest department in Peru, after Puno, Cuzco, Madre de Dios, Ucayali, and Loreto, its sixth most populous department, and its eleventh least ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

Environment

Atiquipa is located in the coastal desert of Peru, an almost rainless area. However, heavy fogs and mists, called

garúa Garúa is a Spanish word meaning drizzle or mist. Although used in other contexts in the Spanish-speaking world, garúa most importantly refers to the moist cold fog that blankets the coasts of Peru, southern Ecuador, and northern Chile, especially ...

, permit vegetation to grow on the mountain slopes of the district. This vegetated fog oasis is called the

Lomas Lomas (Spanish for "hills"), also called fog oases and mist oases, are areas of fog-watered vegetation in the coastal desert of Peru and northern Chile. About 100 lomas near the Pacific Ocean are identified between 5°S and 30°S latitude, a nort ...

de Atiquipa, It is the largest and the best preserved fog oasis in Peru, covering more than with some 350 plant species, including 44 endemics. Conservation organizations are attempting to preserve and restore the environment of the lomas. Included in the project is the installation of fog-catching nets to capture water and thereby help the 80 families who live within the area to expand agriculture, primarily growing

olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' ...

s.Peru: The Blessing of Water in Peru's Coastal Desert," ''The Nature Conservancy,'' http://www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/regions/southamerica/peru/explore/lomas-de-atiquipa.xml , accessed 17 Jul 2016

References

Districts of the Caravelí Province Districts of the Arequipa Region {{Arequipa-geo-stub