Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Mangrove protection
Operation Bootstrap rushed to develop business and housing com-
munities and devastated vast mangrove swamps, particularly along the island's north shore.
In the 1990s environmentalists saw significant victories in reversing this damage, including
the creation of the huge 2883-acre Reserva Nacional de Investigación Estuarina de Bahía
de Jobos.
Heavy-metal pollution
The land and sea life around Vieques were literally under siege
from the US government during the years of naval bombardment. The US Navy left
Vieques in 2003 and the island was deemed a Superfund site shortly after the pullout.
Though progress has been made, much of the Vieques National Wildlife Refuge is closed
to the public until heavy metals, unexploded ordnance and leftover fuels and chemicals can
be taken care of.
Conservation Groups
Surfrider Foundation(
www.surfrider.org
)
Conservation Trust of Puerto Rico(
www.fideicomiso.org
)
Natural History Society of Puerto Rico (
www.naturalhistorypr.org
)
Puerto Rican Conservation Foundation ( 787-760-2115)
