The Environmental Commission of the canton of Santa Cruz will end the year with the conclusion of a reforestation project for the protection of sustainable development in the Huacas-Tamarindo aquifer, among other achievements. This plan allowed the planting of 275 trees (species of cenízaro, vanillo, and zaíno) that will protect the mantle; In addition, it functions as a biological corridor and recharging area for these two highly developed tourist communities.
The initiative was possible thanks to the logistical support of the Chamber of Commerce and Tourism of Tamarindo (CCTT), the Municipality and the Council of Santa Cruz, FUNDECONGO, Sub-regional Office of Santa Cruz / Carrillo-Ministry of Environment and Energy, National System of Areas of Conservation-Tempisque Conservation Area, Territorial Link Presidential House, Conchal Reserve, Tourist Police, Coast Guard, Arado Aqueduct Administrator Association, Friends of Diría and the Red Cross.
According to Katy Madrigal, President of the Santa Cruz Environmental Commission, two days of planting were carried out, the first of them with 115 and then another 160 trees to complete the mission in favor of the environment.
Sustainable tourism development
“The Huacas Tamarindo aquifer is located in the coastal area of the Santa Cruz canton, in the North Pacific of Costa Rica. This is an area that is undergoing growing tourism and housing development, but it faces a major crisis regarding the development and comprehensive sustainable management of water resources and these actions will help to recover this important underground source of water”, Madrigal recounted.
Along with this effort, the President of the Environmental Commission stressed that despite the COVID-19 Pandemic it was possible to carry out three virtual pieces of training on waste management issues, for the Ramón Álvarez Forest of the UCR and studies done by the University Remote State monitoring of dispensing and pollinating fauna to improve ecological connectivity between the Diriá and Marino Las Baulas National Parks for the management of species in those places.
Intense joint effort
Hernán Imhoff, President of the CCTT and Vice President of the Commission, specified that in 2020 several organizations supported environmental initiatives “despite the difficulties that arose due to the global health emergency.”
“Getting this plan to fruition is of utmost importance to keep our guard up, even though working at this time can be a bit complicated, however, the mystique of work has been great and that allowed the spirit not to decline”, Imhoff recounted.
The President of the CCTT stressed that the protection of water resources is part of an “adequate” strategy to provide the appropriate conditions for the development of economic activities in the region.
“Seeking this goal is extremely important because without water the momentum of tourism cannot be maintained, which is the main source of employment in this region; for this reason, the work of the Environmental Commission will have a positive impact in the long term”, highlighted Imhoff.
Together with the plan developed in the community of Huacas, the Environmental Commission managed to carry out virtual trainings to disseminate the importance of the Ramón Álvarez forest with 11 hectares located in the Limón neighborhood of Santa Cruz and which is part of the System of Protected Areas of the University of Costa Rica. “Different organizations participated in the call and learned about the benefits of the Reserve for the Santa Cruz ecosystem and the need to raise awareness about it,” Madrigal said.
The Ramón Álvarez Reserve is a premontane humid forest patch with great potential for environmental education and research activities where it is possible to find a great diversity of fungi, birds, plants, and trees, including databases of different groups of species.
