The Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (MMARN), together with the El Seibo-Miches Hotel and Tourism Association (Promiches) held an event in La Vacama to mark the beginning of the sea turtle nesting season for the year 2024.
The Miches Sea Turtle Monitoring and Protection Program (Protortuga), implemented by Promiches and the Environment, is supported by the Resilient Seibo project implemented by the German Development Cooperation (GIZ) and Vanguard, from Costa Rica, and national institutions such as the Dominican Foundation for Marine Studies (Fundemar) and the Center for the Conservation and Ecodevelopment of the Bay of Samaná and its Environment (Cebse).
The actions seek to monitor the beaches to identify mothers and nests; educate and raise awareness among stakeholders involved in sea turtle reproduction; promote scientific research and the dissemination of data related to sea turtle conservation; and promote the socioeconomic inclusion of the community in sea turtle conservation activities through tourism.
The event, held at the Costa Arrecife venue on La Vacama beach, attracted nearly a hundred people including representatives of local non-governmental organizations, tourism entrepreneurs, representatives of the French Embassy, local authorities and community leaders.
Importance of conservation initiatives
During the event, the head of the Department of Management and Conservation of Coastal and Marine Ecosystems, Ricardo Rodríguez, highlighted the importance of conservation initiatives such as Protortuga in protecting the country’s marine ecosystems and biodiversity.
The municipal director of La Vacama, Francisco de la Cruz, also highlighted the importance of collaboration between the public, private and community sectors for the protection of sea turtles and the promotion of sustainable tourism in the region.
Gustavo A. Román, executive director of Promiches and general coordinator of Protortuga, expressed his satisfaction with the progress of the program and reaffirmed the association’s commitment to environmental conservation and responsible tourism development in Miches.
“Last season we marked a milestone in the conservation of sea turtles in Miches reaching a 100% survival rate in the monitored nests. This year, with renewed effort and adding more allies to the program, we aspire to multiply our reach and successful results,” he said.
Program progress
Protortuga’s representatives highlighted the program’s progress and presented the new web page (www.protortuga.com), which offers detailed information about the program and its activities, as well as the various channels for participating in the initiative.
They also announced that, under the guidance of the Ministry of the Environment, they are working on the creation of the Dominican Republic’s National Sea Turtle Conservation Network, with the participation of all stakeholders interested in their conservation and research.
Román explained that the success of Protortuga is due to a public-private-community alliance, in which various organizations, local businesses and community leaders have joined forces to guarantee the best conditions for the reproduction of sea turtles in this area.
He highlighted the accompaniment of a group of experts, as advisors, represented by Rita Sellares, from the Dominican Foundation for Marine Studies (Fundemar); Marvin del Cid, from Acción Verde; Laura Villalobos, from Vanguard, and Omar Shamir, from the National Authority for Marine Affairs (Anamar).
As part of the objectives for the 2024 season, Protortuga also presented its Nursery Program for the conservation of nests on high-risk beaches, as well as educational merchandising models made from recycled materials, in collaboration with local and Dominican artisans, which will be available starting next month.
Source: Presidencia.gob.do
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