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The community campaign "It shouldn't touch the floor or reach the water." It is an initiative that seeks to conserve water through the proper management of solid waste and its diversion from storm drains.
This effort focused on improving solid waste management arises from the interest, concern and action of the Machuchal community through Loíza Street and bordering sectors.
Thanks the close collaboration with the Goyco Community Workshop and the Clean Machuchal Committee.
Estuary recognizes the importance of Integrating artists, neighbors, leaders, residents, and liaisons into their community initiatives is key to continuing the efforts begun in the communities and ensuring committed, dedicated, and willing representation.
Community participation in Iliana García, Their commitment and performance in the Machuchal community and Loíza Street has achieved a uniform spokesperson to improve solid waste management.
The neighbor joins as a community liaison Jesus Perez, who founded Glass Break, initiative for managing and diverting the material. Their creativity, perseverance, and interest in environmental sustainability strengthen this initiative from several angles.
The Estuary thanks the artist and neighbor Yolanda Velazquez, for the art and visual design of this campaign, who through a The questionnaire gathered information from various sectors for the development of the project's image. The entire design stage was carried out digitally, using virtual tools and including the community through questionnaires, workshops, and calls.
The communication and community engagement process continued from another angle. A total of [number of] people participated. 82 responses, thus resulting in the Official logo.
These elements were used to develop the main logo of the campaign: a pair of hands. that come together forming a circle that embraces the seaThe arrangement of the colors suggests a seascape, with blue representing the sea, yellow the sun, white the foam of the waves and clouds, and red the land and human presence. Black defines the shapes to highlight the brilliance of the other colors and forms in the design.
As part of the collaborators' commitment, a memorandum of understanding was created to develop official partnerships for undertaking actions aimed at implementing the project. These collaborators include the following:
We share the following video that presents the efforts of this initiative; the importance of properly handling cooking oil used and to protect water infrastructure:
The importance of including the commercial sector as part of this initiative's strategy is to schedule visits and evaluations of the daily operations of merchants along Loíza Street, with the goal of providing them with tools to highlight actions in favor of the environment in the daily management of businesses.
The actions evaluated include: public education, filtered water, diversion and/or handling of materials, not using disposable materials, use of compostable tableware and/or materials, oil recycling, use of eco-friendly products, and responsible cleaning.
On Saturday, February 3, 2024, as part of the La Goyco Community Workshop's Community Fair, the "Don't Let It Touch the Ground or Reach the Water" campaign—an initiative to improve solid waste management and water conservation along Loíza Street—recognized the volunteers who have contributed to the campaign's efforts. On this occasion, the campaign wanted to acknowledge the volunteers, neighbors, and collaborators for their effort and commitment to the initiatives undertaken.
Recognition was given to those who participated in large-scale events (Tito Matos Fest, Christmas Lighting Ceremony, etc.), the diversion of materials (organic waste, glass, oil, batteries, cardboard, aluminum), members of Machuchal Limpio, the La Goyco Community Workshop team, general collaborators, neighbors who labeled their trash containers, workshop leaders, the Candela plena group, and others. To more than 150 people, we say: Thank you for supporting the conservation of natural resources, public health, and our waterways!
Estuary seeks to raise awareness about the connection between solid waste management and water quality through a comprehensive educational campaign. To this end, a water monitoring system was established to identify improvements in water quality and correlate changes with the measures implemented through the educational process. A series of parameters were selected to identify the conditions of the water flowing through the storm drains. These parameters were chosen based on three references: parameters studied by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in impact studies related to landfills and leachate, parameters historically studied by the San Juan Bay Estuary Program, and parameters recommended by the laboratory responsible for conducting the analyses for the established project.
In 2021, a public policy focus was added to the campaign. Outreach and communication with the community and the business sector have informed the concerns and recommendations being communicated to the Municipality of San Juan, the Department of Transportation and Public Works, the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources, and the legislature. This new contribution, using public policy as an educational, facilitating, and oversight tool, creates an opportunity for lasting change.
As part of supporting the transition of businesses on Loíza Street to comply with the 51-2022 law, known as the Law to prohibit the sale and use of single-use plastics in all commercial establishments, we share This fact sheet with the fundamental points of the Law for the benefit of all.
The purpose of this Public Policy Library is to collect and classify in an orderly manner the legal framework related to the conservation of natural resources. 
Similarly, legal instruments that promote the proper management of solid waste are included. These are also organized and classified to facilitate access to resources related to all aspects of environmental conservation and protection. We invite you to explore each tab of our virtual library, starting with the legend that serves as a guide to understanding the presented categories.
The San Juan Bay Estuary is a 501c3 non-profit corporation that designs, implements, and monitors restoration actions to improve water quality and associated ecosystems within the San Juan Bay Estuary system and its watershed.
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