After 16 years of grassroots efforts, local communities in northern Puerto Rico are celebrating the creation of a new marine protected area: the Jardines Submarinos de Vega Baja y Manatí.
The newly established MPA encompasses 202.7 square km (77 square miles) of coastal coral reefs, mangroves and seagrass beds home to more than 14 endangered species, including the Greater Caribbean Manatee. The area also hosts vibrant small-scale fisheries and a local ecotourism industry, and communities hope that new efforts to formally co-manage Jardines as an MPA will allow its waters to remain a source of food and income for local families for generations.
Ricardo Laureano, leading member of Vegabajeños Impulsando Desarrollo Ambiental Sustentable (VIDAS), said:
“This is a victory for the people. These ecosystems nourish us and sustain our quality of life. It took 16 years of hard work, starting in 2007, to get here. Over the years, we rallied neighbors, knocked on doors, and engaged local and national leaders to highlight the critical need to protect this Reserve.”
The conservation movement for Jardines was led by a coalition of several local groups spearheaded by VIDAS, including Puerto Rico Sea Grant, Sociedad de Ambiente Marino, Surfrider Puerto Rico, Para la Naturaleza and supported by international partners like WCS.
“The Jardines MPA represents a critical point of connectivity within the greater Caribbean. Since 2018, WCS has joined forces with the Caribbean Biological Corridor (CBC) – an intergovernmental platform that brings together the countries of the Greater Antilles – to advance and scale up marine conservation in the region. As part of this initiative, WCS supported local partners in Puerto Rico that worked with VIDAS to strengthen the Jardines MPA proposal and bring it across the finish line.”
WCS Marine 30×30 Director Pamela Castillo said:
“This milestone was achieved thanks to the unwavering efforts of a grassroots community coalition. WCS is honored to provide technical support that helps locally-led efforts like this one reach the national level, contributing to the successful designation of the Jardines MPA. We celebrate our partnership with the Caribbean Biological Corridor in advancing science-based, effective, and inclusive marine conservation, which brings us closer to the coalition of community groups in Puerto Rico, led by VIDAS.”
The next step will be the development of a co-management plan for the MPA.
