SJBEP in the Dominican Republic; 30 gallons of oil recycled; New educational exhibit; Financial Single Audit; Workshops

Educational exhibit proposed by the SJBEP for the Dos Hermanos Bridge.

Our update for July 6 to July 15, 2011, is as follows:

SJBEP in the Dominican Republic: The SJBEP has been invited to participate in the International Day of Mangroves in an activity organized by the Minister of the Environment of the Dominican Republic. Javier Laureano will present the organization’s work to promote public participation in its mangrove planting campaign and will take another step to further the Latin American Federation of Estuaries. The conference is set for July 25, 2011.

Results of SJBEP’s proposal to recycle campaign reviewed in newspaper, 30 gallons of oil recycled at 4^th of July event: We want to thank the Office of the Governor and the Solid Waste Management Authority for their fine and rapid execution of our suggestion to recycle the cooking oil produced as part of the 4^th of July celebrations. Follow the link for more information:

http://www.elnuevodia.com/evitanqueaceitevayaapararalaguna-1009369.html

New educational exhibit for the Dos Hermanos Bridge designed and submitted to the Office of the Governor: Last Wednesday, July 13, 2011, Javier Laureano submitted to the Office of the Governor a new educational exhibit proposed for the Dos Hermanos Bridge. This is a unique spot where the public can experience first hand one of the Atlantic Ocean’s salt water intakes into the estuarine ecosystem.

Results of Financial Single Audit Report: We are very happy to announce that we have received another year of “no findings” in our annual Single Audit. We want to thank and congratulate our Office Manager, Cathy Ortiz, for her good bookkeeping job, as well as our CPA, Eduardo Fadhel, and our Compliance Coordinator, Zulma Sanabria.

SJBEP submits comments to USACE regarding a new pier at the San Juan Nautical Club: The organization submitted to the United States Corps of Engineers (USACE) its official comments regarding the public notice for permit application for the reconfiguration of the existing eastern pier section and the extension of the western “T” pier section. We recommended that the 0.19 acres of seagrass bed that will be directly impacted be salvaged and transplanted to an adequate alternate site. Also, the remaining 1.06 acres of seagrass beds in the area should be protected from possible impacts associated with this activity.

Workshop offered at the Santa Ana Environmental Interpretation Center: The Scientific Advisor offered a conference on the hydrological connection between the ground waters of the karst and the San Juan Bay Estuary on July 13, 2011. The activity was organized by the Outreach Coordinator and included a technical trip to this beautiful forest within the city. Approximately 20 volunteers participated in the activity.

Proposal to monitor and improve stormwater discharges into the Condado Lagoon: The SJBEP submitted to the San Juan Municipality a proposal to establish a network of stormwater monitoring stations along the Condado, Miramar, and Santurce. The proposal includes the installation of state-of-the-art equipment in the stormwater drainage system to filter oil and grease as well as other pollutants.

Estuary’s Cinema: On July 9, 2011, at 7:00pm. the organization presented another successful screening of its open air cinema project at the Condado Lagoon. On this occasion we screened several short film documentaries about mangroves as well as “The Simpsons: The Movie.”

“Sand, Sun, and Coral Reef” workshop: The SJBEP offered a workshop at the Isla Verde Coral Reef about this unique ecosystem on July 8, 2011, from 9:00am to 11:00am. We want to thank community leader Paco López for his support, and for receiving our staff and volunteers in his community.

Our First Estuarine Short Film Festival keeps receiving good press coverage: The electronic magazine 80grados.net reviewed the Festival:

http://www.80grados.net/2011/07/premian-talento-juvenil/

SAVE THE DATE

July 23, 2011, at 7:00pm: The SJBEP presents “The Fantastic Mr. Fox” and local cartoon “Manny El Manatí” (“Manny the Manatee”) at the next screening of the Estuary’s Cinema, which will take place at the Jaime Benítez Condado Lagoon Park.