Meaning to Life | Exotic Caribbean

Archive for the ‘beach dredging’ Category

Wednesday, September 1, 2004
If you haven’t visited Boca Chica you might not know that we probably have the world’s finest natural swimming pool right in our own backyard. If you have visited our reef-protected lagoon pool, then you will surely have noticed a couple of small green islands to the west towards the Andrés end of the Boca Chica bay. If by any chance you should be motivated to venture into checking out the two deserted islands the lagoon itself is shallow enough at almost all points to allow you to wade out to the islands, or you can take the even more leisurely route and hire one of the small pedal boats and without much effort reach the nearer of the two islands in a few minutes.
As both islands are covered in lush green vegetation it is certainly not apparent from the shore that the origin and composition of the islands are quite different.
La Matica, the smaller of the two, is the first that you come to from the Boca Chica side. It is about 200 yards in length and was used as a zoo park for a number of years. The 1950s was a turning point for La Matica, because a hurricane swept the zoo park away never to be re-established, and in the same decade dredging of the existing underwater channel into the Boca Chica-Andrés port area resulted in the formation of the other island named at the time La Piedra (The Stone) which is significantly bigger than La Matica at some 700 yards in length. La Matica is covered in long-term evolving vegetation including different kinds of mangrove, aspen and sea grape whereas the vegetation of La Piedra derives from what man, wind, waves and birds have brought in over the last fifty years with the most notable result being a substantial area of Australian pine giving the island its now more familiar name of Los Pinos.
Plans were laid down quite some years ago for a walkway to be built from the shore to a point midway between the islands and develop the ensuing environment for visitors to fish, bathe and swim. These plans have been resting in some bureaucratic drawer for a good many years now and so these largely undisturbed islands continue as the roosting location for a number of species of birds such as herons and white-crowned pigeons which can be seen heading off to their night time perches as they fly by the Playa Vista terraza at dusk.

Meanwhile seven years later:
With so many development plans yet unfulfilled in Boca Chica it is not a surprise to note that the islands remain under the natural control of the roosting birds. However, as explained in the post on the Caucedo Peninsula Development their nightly view over to the west has changed considerably and not necessarily to their liking.

Thursday, November 6, 2003
The theme of the last blog entry has subsided from the front pages of the national newspapers but not from the attention of people who live on or promenade along the beach in Boca Chica due to the constant eyesore of the continuing erosion of the sand in certain parts.
Regrettably the answer to our question of how the situation could be allowed to deteriorate to such an extent when so many have identified a commonly beneficial goal has not been answered, but we surely still would like that answer and here and now promise to deliver objective reports along the way if and when we hear reliable news.
Meanwhile we do note that a dredger still sits moored in the bay, waiting for common sense to prevail and get the job done to the benefit of all in Boca Chica.

Meanwhile seven years later:
Very regrettably that dredger left along with the hopes of many for what has turned out be a very long time. Meanwhile the relevant members of the Vicini Group and the government are presumably still wrestling with their respective ego issues.