Weekly Estuary Update
A message from our CEO:
The next few weeks will be a time of pure celebration for the Estuary. From exercising 5 kilometers in the Botanical Garden to celebrating Earth Day lying on the grass watching a movie under the stars. In addition, there are projects being developed in conjunction with Puerto Rican government agencies, the federal government, and the eight municipalities through which waters drain into the San Juan Bay Estuary system. Estuary is a science-based, non-profit organization that serves as a catalyst and facilitator for these projects at a regional level. All of these are part of our individual and collective efforts. I invite you to support us in achieving sustainability for the San Juan metropolitan area.
5K Estuary in the Botanical Garden
The moment has arrived! The first Estuary 5K will be this Sunday, March 23, 2025, from 7:00 am to 12:00 pm at the Río Piedras Botanical Garden. Thank you to everyone who registered for your support!
We are continuing to distribute race shirts and bib numbers at the "En La Meta" store, located at 408 Avenida de la Constitución, San Juan. Distribution will take place on Saturday, March 22, from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm.
Parking for participants and volunteers is available at the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources, conveniently located steps from the Botanical Garden. Its address is Carr. 8839 km. 6.3, Sector, San Juan. Participants and volunteers must be at the Botanical Garden before the start of the race, which is scheduled to begin promptly at 7:00 a.m. The children's race is scheduled to start at 8:15 a.m. The raffle will be held at 8:30 a.m.
The Estuary 5K route is unique. It was designed by Godofredo “Godo” Rivera and approved by Freddy Rodríguez, the Estuary 5K's technical director. We thank them both for their support and solidarity with our organization. This event is made possible with the endorsement and close collaboration of the University of Puerto Rico Botanical Garden. We thank Aerostar, Ferraiuoli, Paulson Puerto Rico, Strong, Motorambar, and El Angel Ice Plant for their support in making this 5K a reality. Thanks also to the Municipality of San Juan for their support with ambulances and trash collection boxes.
Support the Estuary with your Refund
This tax season, consider donating part of your refund to efforts to eliminate sewage discharges into beloved bodies of water like Condado Lagoon and beaches. You'll also be supporting the restoration of San Juan Bay, the canals connecting the lagoons in the San Juan metropolitan area, and management projects for this vital ecosystem.
Look for the option “Contribution to the Special Fund for the San Juan Bay Estuary,” which – for individuals and corporations – you will find on the line 1B of the boxing “Refund” on page 1 of your form.
This method is possible thanks to Law 48 of 2009, which establishes the Special Fund for the San Juan Bay Estuary.
Learn about the different methods available to donate to the Estuary at estuary.org/donate/.
Puerto Rico Water Quality Day
The island's largest citizen science event is back! Create your group, choose a body of water, and join the 17th Puerto Rico Water Quality Day on Saturday, April 5, 2025, from 9:00 am to 11:00 am.
During Puerto Rico Water Quality Day, you will assess the conditions of your chosen body of water, collect data from your observations, and submit your results. The Estuary will provide all the necessary materials for your assessment, free of charge. We will offer training workshops throughout March, in various locations across the island and virtually.
We appreciate the continued support of Ford Environmental Donations and their commitment to the environment of Puerto Rico.
Family day out at the Estuary
The next family outing to the Condado Lagoon Estuarine Nature Reserve will be on Saturday, April 5, at Jaime Benítez Park. As part of Water Quality Day, we will be conducting monitoring activities at 9:00 am and 10:00 am. Later, we will have a sports activity, educational games related to water quality, an interpretive walk through the reserve, a trivia game, and an estuary movie. Certain activities may be eligible for Green Touch time or community service, as applicable. See more information at: estuary.org/events.
Estuary Cinema
Estuary Cinema presents: The Wild Robot; Saturday, April 5, 2025, at 7:00 pm at Jaime Benítez Park in the Condado Lagoon Estuarine Nature Reserve. This screening is free. The film will be shown in Spanish with English subtitles. No registration is required. Bring your blanket or chair!
Workshop on practices and resources for pine nut recycling
Restaurant, shop or store owner: Estuary invites you to learn about the resources and alternatives to reduce and recycle materials in your business.
Join us for the Piñones Recycling Practices and Resources Workshop on Tuesday, April 1, 2025, at 5:00 pm at the La Torre Community Center in Loíza. The workshop will cover the diversion of plastic, aluminum and brass, corrugated cardboard, and other materials, such as vegetable oil.
This workshop is part of the community campaign, Leave a clean footprint in Piñones, In collaboration with Clean. We will wait for you!
Field experiences from the Coastal Resilience module
On Saturday, March 8, 2025, a coastal vegetation planting and feedback of past plantings was carried out in the Condado Lagoon Estuarine Nature Reserve with students and teachers from the Marist College in Guaynabo.
The volunteers planted some 614 specimens of various species of coastal vegetation, including red mangrove, white mangrove, black mangrove and button mangrove.
Six days later, on Friday, March 14, the planting at the County Lagoon Estuarine Nature Reserve continued with students and teachers from the American Military Academy. This time, the citizen scientists planted approximately 600 specimens of white mangrove, black mangrove, and red mangrove.
Both plantings counted as field experience for the Coastal Resilience module of the Estuary's citizen scientist certification.
Participatory bird census
On Sunday, March 9, 2025, we conducted the most recent field experience of the Participatory Bird Census module of the Estuary Citizen Scientist Certification, in San Juan Central Park.
Among birds endemic to Puerto Rico, native and resident, a total of 333 individuals of 43 species were observed.
We thank all the citizen scientists who participated and congratulate the first group of students from the biological science courses at the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus, who completed their certification.
The Participatory Bird Census module workshops and field experiences are held every month. See more information at estuary.org/ccc.
Certification of scientific citizens
Below are the activities scheduled for the coming weeks. See more information at estuary.org/ccc.
Water Quality Monitoring Module
Field experience; Monday, March 24, from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm at Lake Las Curías and the Piedras River
Field experience; Tuesday, March 25, from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm in San Juan Bay
Field experience; Wednesday, March 26, from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm at Laguna San José
Field Experience; Thursday, March 27, from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm at County Lagoon
Participatory Bird Census Module
Field experience; Friday, April 4, from 7:00 am to 10:00 am at Luis Muñoz Rivera Park/El Escambrón Spa
Microplastics Characterization and Reduction Module
Workshop for the Microplastics Characterization and Reduction module; on Thursday, April 3, from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm via Zoom
Coastal Resilience Module
Coastal Resilience Module Workshop: Dunes and Mangroves; on Thursday, March 27, from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm via Zoom
See more information at estuary.org/ccc.
Media coverage
March 20, 2025. San Juan Bay Estuary invites you to join Water Quality Day. Science and Environment. El Nuevo Día. Web. https://www.elnuevodia.com/ciencia-ambiente/otros/notas/estuario-de-la-bahia-de-san-juan-invita-a-unirse-al-dia-de-calidad-de-agua/
Weekly bacteriological monitoring
Assessment conducted on Thursday, March 20, 2025. We have a GREEN flag for County Lagoon. We recommend avoiding the area that exceeded the "Beach Action Value" water quality standard of 70 CFU/100 ML. Remember to avoid the water after rain events.
