Estuario Weekly Update
On Sunday, February 2, 2025, we celebrate World Wetlands Day!
Wetlands are essential feeding, protection and breeding areas (critical habitat) for a wide variety of species of fish, birds, mammals and invertebrates. They also offer important ecological services (green and blue infrastructure) to humanity, such as flood control, pollutant retention and coastal protection.
About 18% of the land surface of the San Juan Bay Estuary (SJBE) watershed is composed of wetlands or swamps.
Explore a map of the SJBE watershed’s ground cover
One of the SJBE’s most important wetlands is Ciénaga Las Cucharillas, located in the municipality of Cataño, which occupies about 500 hectares. Also of importance is the Piñones State Forest, which contains the largest mangrove forest in all of Puerto Rico, 3,040 hectares—or one-third of the entire mangrove area in Puerto Rico.
Urban development in recent decades has led us to cover these soils with impervious surfaces (cement and asphalt soils, sidewalks and roads), altering their hydrology, and thus preventing the benefits they provide. Rehabilitation and sustainable planning around these ecosystems help us reclaim these benefits. Their restoration is also essential to mitigate the effects of climate change.
Learn more about World Wetlands Day, here.
Family Day
On Saturday, February 1, don’t miss the next Family Day at the Condado Lagoon Natural Estuarine Reserve, starting at 2:00 p.m. on the grounds of Jaime Benítez Park. This month, in commemoration of World Wetlands Day, the theme of the Family Day will be: Protecting wetlands for our common future.
We will have a sports activity, a kayak tour (certain rules apply, more information on estuario.org/eventos), a land tour, an educational talk about the wetlands of the SJBE, trivia, and the presentation of Cine del Estuario with: Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.
See more details, including available Contacto Verde hours, on estuario.org/eventos. We look forward to seeing you!
Estuario 5K at Jardín Botánico
Do you want to spend an unforgettable day? Join the first Estuario 5K! You will walk along trails, appreciating streams and lakes, listening to the singing of birds and under the shade of native and centenary trees.
Date: March 23, 2025
Time: 7:00 a.m.
Location: Jardín Botánico de Río Piedras, San Juan
Raffle: For an additional cost, you can get the opportunity to enter the raffle for the VIP Concert Experience of Bad Bunny’s No me quiero ir de aquí.
Limited spaces. Secure your space today: HERE
Registration includes a commemorative shirt, medal at the end of the 5K, runner number, chip to record the duration of your race, hydration, and access to a farmer’s market after the race.
The Estuario 5K is carried out with the endorsement and close collaboration of Jardín Botánico de la Universidad de Puerto Rico.
School activities in the Condado Lagoon Natural Estuarine Reserve
The SJBEP is offering educational activities for student groups in the Jaime Benítez Park, from interpretive tours, workshops and other activities related to the topics of biodiversity, ecosystems, water quality, green infrastructure and coastal resilience.
Spaces are available Monday through Friday, between 8:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m., for groups of all levels (K-12), from public, private or homeschoolers, with a maximum of 30 participants per activity. These activities count towards Contacto Verde hours.
To coordinate, write to us at: [email protected].
Certification for Citizen Scientists
Below are the events scheduled for the coming weeks. See more information in estuario.org/ccc.
Participatory Bird Census Module
Thematic workshop; Thursday, February 6, from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. via Zoom
Field experience; Saturday, February 8, from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. at Laguna Blasina, Carolina
Coastal Resilience Module
Field experience—collection and propagation of coastal vegetation; Saturday, February 1, 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. in Piñones
Field experience—ecological planting assessment; Friday, Feb. 7, from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at the Condado Lagoon
Employment/Contract Opportunities
Support Estuario with your refund
This new tax season, use your refund to donate towards the conservation and management actions of the ecosystems of the San Juan Bay Estuary.
Allies who want to contribute can do so through the total or partial donation of their refund, directly from their Individual Income Tax Return Form.
This method is possible thanks to Act 48 of 2009, which established the San Juan Bay Estuary Special Fund.
Look for the option “Contribution to the San Juan Bay Estuary Special Fund,” located in line 1B of the “Refund” box of your form.
Our restoration, conservation and management actions are possible thanks to the donations, collaboration and volunteering of residents, businesses, institutions, and friends of the interconnected bodies of water that make up the estuarine watershed. The San Juan Bay Estuary Program is a 501c3 non-profit corporation that designs, implements, and tracks restoration actions to improve the quality of bodies of water and associated ecosystems within the San Juan Bay Estuary system and its watershed.
See other means of donating to Estuario: estuario.org/donate/.
Weekly water quality monitoring
Evaluation carried out on Thursday, January 30, 2025. We have a RED flag for the Condado Lagoon. We recommend avoiding the areas that exceeded the Beach Action Value water quality parameter of 70 CFU/100 ML. Remember to avoid the water during rain events.
