Weekly Estuary Update
Greetings from the estuary! Below, we share events, initiatives, and training and collaboration opportunities scheduled to benefit the waters, ecosystems, and communities connected to the San Juan Bay estuary.
Family day out
Don't miss the next Family Day Out at the Condado Lagoon Estuarine Nature Reserve on Saturday, February 1, 2025, starting at 2:00 pm at Jaime Benítez Park. The theme of the day out will be: Protecting Wetlands for Our Common Future, in commemoration of World Wetlands Day. We will have the following activities:
[2:00 pm] Sports activity
[3:00 pm] Kayak Tour (1 hour of Green Contact. Certain rules apply. More information at estuary.org/events.)
[4:00 pm] Land tour (1 hour of Green Contact)
[5:00 pm] Educational talk: Wetlands of the San Juan Bay Estuary Basin (1 hour of Green Contact)
[6:00 pm] Trivia about wetlands (30 minutes of Green Contact)
[7:00 pm] Estuary Cinema presents: Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
See more information at: estuary.org/events. We will wait for you!
Results of the Christmas bird censuses Gamaliel Pagán Hernández
This holiday season, the Estuary conducted its traditional Gamaliel Pagán Hernández Christmas Bird Census, from December 14, 2024 to January 5, 2025, as part of the Christmas Bird Count by Audubon.
In summary:
We conduct 25 censuses in 18 regions connected to the San Juan Bay estuary
We documented a total of 104 species species
They accompanied us 193 volunteers
We observe 12 endemic species y 33 migratory species
We appreciate the support of our volunteers and citizen scientists. Thanks also to the Scouts, leaders, and parents who participated as part of their requirements to receive the Bird Study Merit Badge; as well as to the managers, administrators, and entities that granted us access to their natural areas.
Check out the photos posted on our social media!
You can see the detailed report of the documented species, including dates, locations and photos, on the eBird platform. here.
School activities in the Estuarine Nature Reserve of the County Lagoon
The Estuary is offering educational activities for student groups in 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 am and 12:00 pm, for groups of all levels (K-12), from public, private, or homeschool schools, with a maximum of 30 participants per activity. These activities count toward Green Contact hours.
To coordinate, write to us at: [email protected].
Recycle your Christmas tree
Recycle your Christmas tree through one of the following initiatives within the San Juan Bay Estuary Watershed:
Municipality of Guaynabo: Recycle your Christmas tree by transforming it into compost
From 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm on the following dates and locations:
- Tuesday, January 14th, on Santa Ana Avenue (in front of the Pueblo Supermarket)
- Thursday, January 16, on Esmeralda Avenue (in front of Claro)
- Tuesday, January 21, in the parking lot of the Mario “Quijote” Morales Coliseum
- Thursday, January 23, at Crissy Gonzalez Park (San Patricio Ave.)
Recycle your Christmas tree with Para la Naturaleza
From Monday to Saturday, from January 13 to 31, from 7:00 am to 4:00 pm at the Nature Nursery, South Botanical Garden, Rio Piedras (and other locations around the Island).
Certification of scientific citizens
Below are the events scheduled for the coming weeks. See more information at: estuary.org/ccc.
Microplastics Characterization and Reduction Module
Workshop—Microplastics and other aquatic debris; Tuesday, January 21, from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm via Zoom
Coastal Resilience Module
Field experience—collection and propagation of coastal vegetation; Saturday, February 1, from 8:00 am to 11:00 am in Piñones
Field Experience—Ecological Assessment of Planting; Friday, February 7, from 8:30 am to 11:30 am at County Lagoon
Job/Contract Opportunities
Support the Estuary with your refund
This new tax filing season, we encourage you to donate part of your refund to conservation and management efforts for the ecosystems of the San Juan Bay estuary.
Allies who wish to contribute to these actions can do so through the total or partial donation of their reimbursement, directly from their single payroll (individual).
This method is possible thanks to Law 48 of 2009, which establishes the Special Fund for the San Juan Bay Estuary.
Look for the option “Contribution to the Special Fund for the San Juan Bay Estuary”, which you will find on the line 1B of the boxing “Refund” from your form.
Our restoration, conservation, and management efforts are made possible by the donations, collaboration, and volunteer work of residents, businesses, institutions, and friends of the interconnected waterways that comprise the San Juan Bay Estuary watershed. The San Juan Bay Estuary is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation that designs, implements, and monitors restoration efforts to improve water quality and associated ecosystems within the San Juan Bay Estuary system and its watershed.
Learn about the different methods available to donate to the Estuary at estuary.org/donate/.
Weekly bacteriological monitoring
Assessment conducted Thursday, January 16, 2025. We have a GREEN flag for County Lagoon. We recommend avoiding the area that exceeded the Beach Action Value water quality parameter of 70 CFU/100 ML. Remember to avoid the water during rain events.
