Playa La Flor National Wildlife Refuge in Nicaragua
11/23/97
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RELAYED TEXT STARTS HERE:
Headline: Playa La Flor National Wildlife Refuge in Nicaragua
Source: Randall Arauz
Central American Director
Sea Turtle Restoration Project, EII
Apdo 1203-1100
Tibas, San Jose, COSTA RICA
Phone/fax (506) 236 6017
email rarauz@caiari.ucr.ac.cr
Date: 11/23/97
Biologists and environmentalists in Nicaragua have asked for international
support to protect one of Nicaragua's (and the world's) most important
nesting beach for the olive ridley sea turtle, Playa La Flor National
Wildlife
Refuge.
Attached is a letter to the President of Nicaragua asking for strong
Protection for this National Wildlife Refuge, which is now being
threatened by a
Proposed hotel development.
We are asking you to sign on to this open letter by returning the
following
message
"Add my name to letter to President of Nicaragua re: Playa La Flor"
Send to Randall Arauz, Email: rarauz@cariari.ucr.ac.cr
And Please, cc the message to ja@nicarao.apc.org.ni
or to the nicaraguan sustained development network
ayon@ns.sdnnic.org.ni
Please include your:
Name:___________________________________ (if PhD, please include)
Affiliation:_______________________________
Phone________________________fax__________
email_____________________________________
We also encourage you to send individual letters and institutional letters
from organizations you belong to. (Please fax or email copies to me.)
What follows is the exact text of the letter followed by some background
information. In a separate file you will find a copy of the resolution
issued by the participants of the Regional Worskshop for the Conservation
of Sea
Turtles, held in Tortuguero Costa Rica, from September 26 to October 1 of
1997.
Thank you for your prompt attention.
Viva La Tortuga!
Randall Arauz
Central American Director
Sea Turtle Restoration Project, EII
Apdo 1203-1100
Tibas, San Jose, COSTA RICA
Phone/fax (506) 236 6017
email rarauz@caiari.ucr.ac.cr
Letter to President Arnoldo Aleman Concerning
Protection of Playa La Flor and Olive Ridley Turtles
PRESIDENT ARNOLDO ALEMAN
Republic of Nicaragua
Casa Presidencial
Managua, Nicaragua
Dear President Aleman:
The Nicaraguan government's protection of Playa La Flor to date has
allowed it to remain one of the world's most important nesting sites for
olive ridley sea turtles.
The olive ridley sea turtle is an endangered species protected
under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES)
and several other international treaties. Nicaragua is home to two
critical nesting sites for this species at Playa La Flor National Wildlife
Refuge and Chococente National Wildlife Refuge. These arribada beaches
are two of only approximately 6 such sites in the Eastern Pacific.
Recent information suggests that Playa La Flor is threatened by a
hotel construction project which has already brought and dumped many
truckloads of river rock inside the reserve. The present destructive
activities have begun without the proper environmental studies (as
specified in the General Law of the Environment), and are likely to
threaten this important nesting site while diminishing Nicaragua's
international reputation as a leader in sea turtle conservation.
The fate of this critical sea turtle habitat and the future of
Nicaragua's natural resources remain in your control. We urge you to
protect Playa La Flor Wildlife Refuge to the full extent of General Law of
the Environment of Nicaraguan for present and future generations of
Nicaraguans and for all humanity.
Sincerely,
(list of names to follow)
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Background Information
Playa La Flor, located on Nicaragua's Pacific Coast, is one of only two
arribada sites for the endangered olive ridley sea turtle in Nicaragua,
and is one of approximately six sites still remaining in the Eastern
Pacific.
* Approximately 15,000 olive ridley turtles nest at Playa La Flor each
year.
* Leatherback sea turtles also nest at the site regularly and green and
hawksbill sea turtles have also been reported to nest there occasionally.
* Playa La Flor has been protected as a National Wildlife Refuge for
several years, though its official status as a Wildlife Refuge was only
finalized in 1996.
* The Nicaraguan Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources
(MARENA) and the University of Central America (UCA) have been carrying
out efforts to develop sea turtle monitoring and research programs, as
well as community-based conservation programs.
* A landowner with inholdings inside the refuge (and directly behind the
nesting beach) has illegally and without permits begun construction
activities in recent months that threaten the nesting beach including:
* road building
* land clearing, second growth tree cutting
* fencing the nesting beach with barbed-wire, impacting nesting turtles
* planting of non-native vegetation (teak, melina, pine) in areas used
by nesting turtles and within the Refuge in general.
* illegal collection of river rock (70+ truck loads) and dumping
into refuge for future hotel construction site.
* allowing his cattle and horses to enter the nesting area and
trample nests
This is presumably for the construction of a hotel or high-priced
residences. The individual is quite influential with the present
government of Nicaragua and believes he can act with impunity.
* JA! ( Environmental Youth!), UCA (University of Central America) and
other Nicaraguan biologists and conservationists (representatives
from communities surrounding La Flor and Chacocente) have requested
support to pressure the Nicaraguan government to enforce the General Law
of the Environment, in order to protect Playa La Flor and the endangered
sea turtles that nest there.
* During the Regional Workshop for the Conservation of Central American
Sea Turtles, held in Tortuguero, Costa Rica, from September 26 to October
1 of 1997, the participating group voted unanimously to support a
Resolution directed toward the President of Nicaragua to protect Playa La
Flor and ensure the General Law of the Environment is fully enforced. An
electronic version with the signatures of the participants is enclosed as
a separate file.
SEA TURTLE RESTORATION PROJECT *
EARTH ISLAND INSTITUTE
VISIT OUR WWW SITE AND JOIN US
IN OUR EFFORTS TO SAVE THE SEA TURTLES
www.earthisland.org/strp/strpindx.html