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Local Economy, Endangered Species at Risk and the Bush Administration Fails to Act Miguel Dávila's fishing nets are both his living and his heritage. But those nets are at risk of being hung out to dry forever. Dávila is a Puerto Rican fisherman and community leader who shares in the blessings of a coastal forest jewel called the Northeast Ecological Corridor, which could be destroyed if several proposed mega-resorts are approved. The 3,200-acre corridor contains unique and rare plant and animal species, forests, wetlands and coral communities.1, 2, 3 The corridor's beaches are one of the most important nesting grounds in the United States for the leatherback turtle, the largest sea turtle in the world.4 The corridor also provides a livelihood for dozens of fishermen like Dávila. This display of pristine beauty is at risk. The approval process for the Four Season's Hotels' San Miguel Resort and Marriott International's Dos Mares Resort, two of several residential-tourist projects proposed to be built in and around the corridor, is moving ahead rapidly because of insider contacts developers have within the Puerto Rican government.5 Local activists have pushed the federal government to see the corridor protected as critical habitat for endangered species including the Leatherback sea turtle, which scientists predict will go extinct in the Pacific Ocean within 10 years.6 But since taking office, the Bush administration has consistently denied critical habitat designations, denying National Academy of Science findings that protecting this land is essential to protecting endangered species. In November 2003, the US Fish And Wildlife Service issued a finding that the San Miguel Resort would not jeopardize the survival of the leatherback and hawksbill sea turtles that nest at the corridor, contrary to previous findings, prompting a coalition of local and national organizations to sue the agency for violating the Endangered Species Act.7 Area residents categorically reject the development projects, in large part because there is already an alarming lack of water in the area due to the demand created by existing tourist communities.8 And Dávila warns, "If things keep on like this we'll have no place to fish and will die of hunger. We don't want to be dependent on anyone. This is our heritage." Already, several resorts and marinas built near the corridor have closed fishermens' access to the sea. "Both the federal and local governments have failed us. Sea turtles need places to nest. Fishermen need places to fish. And residents need water to drink," says Luis Jorge Rivera-Herrera, member of the Initiative for Sustainable Development. While local leaders push both the Bush administration and local governments to act, Dávila wonders whether today will be the last day he'll use his nets. "This situation has impoverished us," Dávila says. "We have thirst for justice. We adamantly oppose the construction of the resorts." For more information contact: Patricia Burke Luis Jorge Rivera-Herrera
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