Three Puerto Ricans recently completed training that equips them to help monitor their condition of their island’s coral reefs and marine ecosystems: In September, Nikole Ordway, Reef Check Florida Course Director, trained 3 volunteers from Puerto Rico as EcoDivers. These new Reef Check divers will launch Reef Check surveys in Puerto Rico. The training started [...]
Tag Archives: puerto rico
Ecologically responsible rum production in Puerto Rico
Treehugger is running a series about environmentally-friendly rum production, and the producer they’re highlighting is Distillery Serallés, the makers of Puerto Rican DonQ rum: To make a long story short: The manufacture of one of the world’s favorite spirits has been everything but clean and responsible. Fortunately, some producers have begun to address these issues [...]
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposes endangered species status for Puerto Rico’s coquí llanero frog
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has proposed that a Puerto Rican frog, the coquí llanero (Eleutherodactylus juanariveroi) be added to the national list of endangered species: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing to list the coquí llanero, Puerto Rico’s smallest tree frog, as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). At the [...]
Puerto Rico will be home to the Caribbean’s largest solar energy installation
A 24MW solar energy facility, the largest in the Caribbean, is under construction in Puerto Rico. The Puerto Rico Daily Sun reports: Gov. Fortuño announced Thursday the creation of seven renewable energy projects, including a $98 million solar energy plant in the southern town of Guayama. Meanwhile vocal protesters milled about outside the Puerto Rico [...]
Conservation organisation files suit to get corals declared as endangered species
In the U.S., the Center for Biological Diversity recently filed a lawsuit seeking to expand the protection offered to coral reefs under the Endangered Species Act. The lawsuit and corresponding settlement cover 82 species of coral, including eight species that are found in the Caribbean; if the Center achieves its objective, it would affect the [...]
La mejor idea: Puerto Rico Verde
Last week I received an e-mail from the Communications and Public Relations Director of the Puerto Rico Energy Affairs Administration (PREAA), sharing information about what Puerto Rico is doing to spread the green energy message and implement a green energy policy. The above video highlights some of the successes of Administration’s energy conservation and renewable [...]
New coordinator for Bicknell’s Thrush conservation in the Caribbean
There is a new coordinator for Bicknell’s Thrush conservation work in the Caribbean: [The Vermont Center for Ecostudies] VCE is pleased to announce the hiring of a Caribbean Coordinator for the International Bicknell’s Thrush Conservation Group (IBTCG). Juan Carlos Martinez-Sanchez will begin work in October, and he will be an excellent fit for this crucial, [...]
Marine debris art contest open to entries from Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands
Students from Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are eligible to enter the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) annual Keep the Sea Free of Debris art contest: The NOAA Marine Debris Program is proud to again host the annual Keep the Sea Free of Debris Art Contest. We would like to know [...]
Funding renewable energy development in Puerto Rico
The Government of Puerto Rico reports on the progress of the recently launched Green Energy Fund: The government’s Green Energy Fund (GEF), which opened for business July 1, backed 25 solar energy projects, including grants to 13 businesses and a government agency, in its first round of funding, Puerto Rico Energy Affairs Administrator Luis Bernal [...]
Old landfills in Puerto Rico could become solar power sites
A recent study has found that at least five closed landfills in Puerto Rico could be viable solar power sites: A joint federal-commonwealth government study has found that five shuttered landfills on the island are viable sites for the development of solar energy projects, Puerto Rico Energy Affairs Administration Luis Bernal announced. The landfills — [...]
