Weekly Estuary Update

This week, the San Juan Bay Estuary invites you to enjoy a family outing at the Condado Lagoon Estuarine Nature Reserve, with workshops and tours focused on the restoration and management of our waters. We also offer volunteer opportunities, community engagement, and Citizen Scientist Certification activities, through which you can earn Green Contact hours or community service, as applicable. See upcoming activities below.

Family day out

Join us for the next Family Day Out at the Condado Lagoon Estuarine Nature Reserve on Saturday, December 6, 2025, starting at 3:30 pm at Jaime Benítez Park. We'll have an art workshop, a botanical tour of the Reserve, and a workshop on the importance of dunes and mangroves to our coasts.

The botanical tour and the dune and mangrove workshop count toward Green Touch hours or community service. See more details at: estuary.org/events . We look forward to seeing you!

Estuary Cinema

Estuary Cinema presents a new showing of Superman (2025) on Saturday, December 6, 2025, at 7:00 pm in Jaime Benítez Park at the Condado Lagoon Estuarine Nature Reserve. The film will be shown in Spanish with English subtitles. This showing is free. Bring your blanket or chair!

Friends of the Lagoon Meeting

Don't miss the next Friends of the Lagoon meeting on Wednesday, December 3, 2025, at 6:00 pm at Jaime Benítez Park in the Condado Lagoon Estuarine Nature Reserve, with a virtual session via Zoom. Everyone is invited.

To receive your virtual access link, sign up at: estuary.org/events.

Reducing aquatic waste in estuary waters

It is part of the recycling and waste reduction initiatives across the San Juan Bay estuary watershed:

Volunteers for the recycling stations at La Goyco Community Workshop

There are still spaces available for one of the shifts at the recycling stations of the Christmas Lighting of Taller Comunidad La Goyco, on Saturday, December 6, 2025.

Your participation will count as field experience for the Microplastics Characterization and Reduction module of the Estuary Citizen Scientist Certification. Sessions will be three hours long.

Call for research proposals—Scholarship for graduate students

The San Juan Bay Estuary will offer a scholarship for graduate students to develop and conduct studies aimed at understanding and addressing the complex problems identified in the Juan Méndez ravine in San Juan. Interested applicants are encouraged to focus their research proposals on topics related to ecosystem analysis, innovative problem-solving strategies, and community outreach.

The deadline is December 15, 2025. The scholarship period is six months. The scholarship is $10,000 for master's students and $15,000 for doctoral students. More information is available here.

Job opportunity

Grants and Compliance Manager

Opportunity for a professional services contract

Audit & Tax Services Contract Announcement (2025)

Citizen Scientist Certification

Below are the activities scheduled for the coming weeks. Workshops and field experiences for the Estuary Citizen Scientist Certification count toward Green Touch hours or community service. See more information at: estuary.org/ccc.

Field experience: Planting coastal vegetation; Saturday, November 29, at 8:00 am in Piñones

Field Experience: Seed and Plant Propagation; Sunday, November 30, at 8:00 am at Centro TAU, Loíza

Media coverage

November 14, 2025. San Juan Bay Estuary Announces Environmental Research Grant Program. Science and Environment. El Nuevo Día. Web. https://www.elnuevodia.com/ciencia-ambiente/otros/notas/estuario-de-la-bahia-de-san-juan-anuncia-programa-de-becas-para-investigacion-ambiental/?cache=uwz99

November 17, 2025. Call for applications for research grants related to the Juan Méndez ravine opens. El Vocero. Web. https://www.elvocero.com/actualidad/abren-convocatoria-de-becas-para-investigaciones-relacionadas-a-la-quebrada-juan-m-ndez/article_3a4dddff-b373-405a-8d4b-8715911ff3ba.amp.html

November 17, 2025. Grant offered for research on the restoration of the Juan Méndez ravine in San Juan. Local news. Metro Puerto Rico. Web. https://www.metro.pr/noticias/2025/11/17/ofrecen-beca-para-investigacion-sobre-la-restauracion-de-la-quebrada-juan-mendez-en-san-juan/

Prepare yourself this hurricane season

Prepare for this hurricane season. Download the Estuary Community Hurricane Preparedness Guide and follow its recommendations. Your community's strength and resilience begin at home.

Also visit the Estuary Virtual Community Center , where you'll find vital information, such as relevant emergency numbers and instructions for preparing emergency kits.

Don't panic! Get ready.

Weekly bacteriological monitoring

Thanks to the volunteers who supported the bacteriological monitoring on Thursday, November 20, 2025, as part of the Water Quality Monitoring module of the Estuary Citizen Scientist Certification. The results are below:

Assessment conducted on Thursday, November 20, 2025. We have a RED flag for County Lagoon. We recommend avoiding areas that exceeded the water quality parameter for enterococci, "Beach Action Value," of 70 CFU/100 ML. Remember to avoid the water during rain events.