Page 14 - ARUBA TODAY

A14 LOCAL
Tuesday 4 sepTember 2018

Turtugaruba Foundation marks their first 15 years

the situation better for the
sea turtles. Again, more ho-
tel rooms? And even busier
beaches? These are choic-
es Aruba has to make. Do
we want to leave a place
for the sea turtles? Not only
Aruba, but the entire world
needs sea turtles! Sea tur-
tles play a vital role in keep-
ing our oceans healthy.
The Green Turtle, for ex-
ample, keeps the sea
grasses on the bottom of
the sea short and therefore
a healthy place for many
fish to deposit their eggs.
The Leatherback, the larg-
est turtle of the world, eats
mainly jellyfish and helps
maintain the balance be-
tween jellyfish and plank-
ton. Despite the threats
that exist on Aruba, the
turtles still keep coming.
That’s why today Turtuga-
ORANJESTAD ― Turtuga- which every early morning artificial light and artificial the sea. In the 90’s it was ruba is especially proud
ruba was founded on the beach was being mon- light is a mayor issue for sea still a common occurrence of the volunteers and the
September 3rd,2003 by a itored in which now there turtles, mother turtle usually to find a complete nest of many people and organi-
group of enthusiastic vol- is a good overview of sea comes on shore at night about 70 hatchlings on the zations of our community
unteers. Ten years earlier, in turtle nesting activities. looking for a dark beach to streets, dead, as cars drove that carry a warm place in
1993, a Sea Turtle Recovery make her nest. However… over them. Thanks to their their hearts for the sea tur-
Action Plan (STRAP) was in- There are 4 different sea a dark beach is hard to protection methods and a tles. We want to celebrate
troduced in Aruba and the turtle species that visit Aru- find here nowadays. Light lot of time and effort, the this later in the year, but at
rest of the Caribbean as an ba to lay their eggs, each causes stress and can result volunteers of Turtugaruba this moment the sea turtles
initiative of the United Na- with their own specific sea- in her returning to the sea have managed to get this need us more. All four spe-
tions Environment Program son: without laying her eggs. under control. But for a sus- cies are active now, which
(UNEP). Tom Barmes, who - Leatherback Sea Turtle - Artificial light causes disori- tainable solution there must means all hands on deck in
was working at DLVV (Dep- Lederschildpad - Driekiel entation for the baby sea be less light visible on the the field for us, the volun-
tartment of Agriculture, (March – September) turtles (hatchlings). beaches and a strict regu- teers. We strive to keep the
Husbandry and Fishery) - Loggerhead Sea Turtle - lation of it. Sea turtles simply sea turtles, our oldest ‘re-
was one of the writers of the Dikkopschildpad - Cawa- They crawl towards artificial need dark nesting beaches peat guests’, always com-
STRAP for Aruba, together ma (May – September) light sources (like street- for their survival. It is clear ing back to Aruba and get
with Karen Eckert, director - Hawksbill Sea Turtle - lights, hotel lights, etc.) that even more coastal de- the chance to reproduce
of WIDECAST (Wider Carib- Karetschildpad - Caret and then they don’t find velopment would not make here.q
bean Sea Turtle Conserva- (June – December)
tion Network). This is how - Green Turtle - Soepschild-
sea turtle conservation pad - Turtuga Blanco (July-
started on the island follow- November)
ing a plan that is still com-
plied with today. There also came a better
understanding and over-
Tom formed a group of view of the biggest threats
volunteers around him, to the sea turtles existence
because nature does not in Aruba and how these
know office hours, like an problems should be tack-
organization such as DLVV. led. Despite hard work, all
This group of volunteers those years, most problems
used the name Widecast have not really gone away,
Aruba and today there are but luckily and thanks to the
still a few of them active. enormous efforts from the
They first started protecting volunteers, the sea turtles
the Leatherback Sea Turtle are still here. On Aruba the
nests on Palm Beach and sea turtles are threatened
Eagle Beach. This group with extinction by pollu-
also investigated which tion, driving on dunes and
other species of sea turtles beaches with quads and
use Aruba as their nesting 4x4’s and the loss of nesting
habitat and which beach- beaches due to coastal
es are used by them. For a development on behalf of
period of 25 years a study tourism. Because coastal
has been conducted in development comes with