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Puerto Viejo, Limón, a small quaint surfing town in the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica, might soon change dramatically if governmental officials approve a multi-million-dollar mega-yacht project in the next month. “Grupo Caribeño, S.A.”, a U.S. and Dutch-funded company have submitted plans for a 398-slip marina that will cover 5 hectares of sea, which is larger in size than the town itself. The developers have announced plans to build an ecological marina and have claimed that the marina will boost the local economy by creating over 2000 jobs (less jobs after the construction is finished during a two year period). But local residents are not convinced the marina will be a good thing for their town. “The environmental impact in the area, the possible destruction of a world class wave, and the loss of character of our town that the marina will bring does not justify its benefits”, says local surf school owner, Hershel Lewis.
This controversial project could potentially impact a world class surfing spot, Salsa Brava, a heavy reef barreling wave, that has earned its reputation as one of Central America’s best. This world-class wave has not only been the destination site for thousands of national and international surfers and brought thousands of dollars to the local economy, but it also holds enormous importance in Costa Rica’s surfing history. The proposed marina will be built 1 km north of Salsa Brava’s reef, which could possibly partially block the swell window for the northeast swells. The marina will also completely destroy a beginner surfing wave, La Escuelita.
Local surfers and residents are asking for an in depth environmental impact-study that includes the affects on the wave and its surrounding environment. But developers have yet to address any potential negative environmental and economic impacts their project could have on the local community, and to date continue to pursue the project without addressing the surf community concerns. The Costa Rican surf community has created a site with in-depth information and petitions, in Spanish, to try to put a stop to the marina. Please visit their site: http://www.salvemospuertoviejo.com and sign their online petition at: http://www.salvemospuertoviejo.com/index.php/puerto-viejo/ACTUA.html. You can also join the effort by signing our letter addressed to the local governors of Talamanca and national representatives of Costa Rica.
An article published on April 18, 2008 in The Tico Times http://www.ticotimes.net/topstory.htm brings another issue developing around the project, where the indigenous groups in the area fear that the project will have a detrimental affect in their cultural heritage by completely modifying the area. Save The Waves’ environmental research director, Carla Graziosi, also agrees that the project might have a lot more negative repercussion than is thought. “This project could negatively affect the national economy,” claims Graziosi, “due to the potential devastating impact that this marina could have on ecotourism, and the destruction of Puerto Viejo’s waves and oceanic biodiversity, not to mention the cultural and historical heritage of the area.”
Save the Waves needs your support! A donation will greatly help us continue our conservation work, as well as our ongoing effort to educate the world’s government and industry leaders that surf spots are an invaluable and irreplaceable asset to any coastline.
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