Caborrojeños Pro Salud y Ambiente
Encyclopedia
Caborrojeños Pro Salud y Ambiente, Inc. (Caborrojeños for Health
and Environment
) is an environmentalist
organization based in Cabo Rojo
, Puerto Rico
.
The organization was founded in 1990 by a group of concerned residents who wanted to improve the livings standards of Cabo Rojo and Puerto Rico
in general. The organization's first president and main driving force was Efrén Pérez Rivera
, an ecologist and retired professor of the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez
. The group has been involved in several major projects including the creation of a visitors' center, the Centro Interpretativo, in the Salinas area, near the Los Morrillos Lighthouse
, where volunteers provide guided walking tours that allow visitors to experience the local wildlife and fauna.
The group was also actively involved in the preservation of Isla de Ratones
(Mice Island), a small island off the coast of Cabo Rojo. The island has been suffering from significant erosion during the past decades. Caborrojeños Pro Salud y Ambiente, with the help of the local government, planted mangroves and launched a project to repopulate the local coral
population in order to stop the erosion.
The group was part of the alliance of environmental groups that fought the installation the carbon
power station
Cogentrix.
Caborrojeños Pro Salud y Ambiente was actively involved in the reconstruction effort of the Los Morrillos Lighthouse, achieving a grant from the U.S. Federal government to restore the historic building. However, political moves and the inactivity of Cabo Rojo mayor Santos Padilla doomed the plan and the federal grant was lost.
In 1999, the group received the Urban Community Award, presented by the Puerto Rico Forestry Conference Annual Convention. In 2003, the organization was awarded the Environmental Protection Agency
Environmental Quality Award The group was also recognized by the Miranda Foundation.
The current president is retired college professor Dr. Pedro Valle Carlo
.
Health
Health is the level of functional or metabolic efficiency of a living being. In humans, it is the general condition of a person's mind, body and spirit, usually meaning to be free from illness, injury or pain...
and Environment
Natural environment
The natural environment encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally on Earth or some region thereof. It is an environment that encompasses the interaction of all living species....
) is an environmentalist
Environmentalism
Environmentalism is a broad philosophy, ideology and social movement regarding concerns for environmental conservation and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health seeks to incorporate the concerns of non-human elements...
organization based in Cabo Rojo
Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico
Cabo Rojo is a municipality situated on the southwest coast of Puerto Rico and forms part of the San Germán–Cabo Rojo metropolitan area as well as the larger Mayagüez–San Germán–Cabo Rojo Combined Statistical Area....
, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
.
The organization was founded in 1990 by a group of concerned residents who wanted to improve the livings standards of Cabo Rojo and Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
in general. The organization's first president and main driving force was Efrén Pérez Rivera
Efrén Pérez Rivera
Efrén Pérez Rivera is a former college professor and noted Puerto Rican environmentalist leader.-Biography:Efrén Pérez Rivera was born on March 10, 1929 at Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, where he lived during his first years. At the age of four, he moved with his family to Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico...
, an ecologist and retired professor of the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez
University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez
The University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez or Recinto Universitario de Mayagüez in Spanish , is a land-grant, sea-grant, space-grant state university located in the city of Mayagüez, Puerto Rico...
. The group has been involved in several major projects including the creation of a visitors' center, the Centro Interpretativo, in the Salinas area, near the Los Morrillos Lighthouse
Los Morrillos Lighthouse
Los Morrillos Light, also known as Faro Los Morrillos de Cabo Rojo, is a historic lighthouse located in the municipality of Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico.-History:...
, where volunteers provide guided walking tours that allow visitors to experience the local wildlife and fauna.
The group was also actively involved in the preservation of Isla de Ratones
Isla de Ratones
Isla de Ratones is a small island located near the Joyuda Lagoon in Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico. The island is a popular spot for snorkeling.-History:...
(Mice Island), a small island off the coast of Cabo Rojo. The island has been suffering from significant erosion during the past decades. Caborrojeños Pro Salud y Ambiente, with the help of the local government, planted mangroves and launched a project to repopulate the local coral
Coral
Corals are marine animals in class Anthozoa of phylum Cnidaria typically living in compact colonies of many identical individual "polyps". The group includes the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secrete calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton.A coral "head" is a colony of...
population in order to stop the erosion.
The group was part of the alliance of environmental groups that fought the installation the carbon
Carbon
Carbon is the chemical element with symbol C and atomic number 6. As a member of group 14 on the periodic table, it is nonmetallic and tetravalent—making four electrons available to form covalent chemical bonds...
power station
Power station
A power station is an industrial facility for the generation of electric energy....
Cogentrix.
Caborrojeños Pro Salud y Ambiente was actively involved in the reconstruction effort of the Los Morrillos Lighthouse, achieving a grant from the U.S. Federal government to restore the historic building. However, political moves and the inactivity of Cabo Rojo mayor Santos Padilla doomed the plan and the federal grant was lost.
In 1999, the group received the Urban Community Award, presented by the Puerto Rico Forestry Conference Annual Convention. In 2003, the organization was awarded the Environmental Protection Agency
United States Environmental Protection Agency
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is an agency of the federal government of the United States charged with protecting human health and the environment, by writing and enforcing regulations based on laws passed by Congress...
Environmental Quality Award The group was also recognized by the Miranda Foundation.
The current president is retired college professor Dr. Pedro Valle Carlo
Pedro Valle Carlo
Dr. Pedro Valle Carlo , born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, is a retired college professor and noted environmentalist leader based in western Puerto Rico....
.