The Port of Açu, in partnership with Tamar Project and the Mayor’s Office of São João da Barra, will promote five actions to release marine turtles that will be open to the public, starting on Friday, January 5. The action will be carried out once a week, with dates alternating between Fridays at 4pm and Saturdays at 5pm. The activity will take place in different parts of the coast to reach the whole community, and is part of the town’s summer calendar.
The first release will happen across from the Atafona beach center, beginning with a lecture on environmental awareness in the Science Space. The second release will take place on Grussaí Beach, across from the Food Court. Other actions are planned on Açu Beach, by the footbridge in Station 1 (near Grussaí Lake), and again near the Atafona beach center, when a closing ceremony will be held with the public.
IMG_1814.JPGThe goal is to increase awareness among residents and tourists about the importance of environmental preservation through education. Daniel Nascimento, Environment Coordinator of the Port of Açu, explained that the action enables his team to present to the community the Marine Turtle Monitoring Program, managed by the company since 2008. “We are very proud of the program developed to monitor marine turtles throughout the northern coast of Rio de Janeiro State. Our mission is to share knowledge and information with the community. Each one of us is responsible for understanding the animals’ dynamics and contributing to the preserve them,” said Daniel.
Every day, program monitors inspect 62 km (38 miles) of shoreline, registering all events related to the turtles. Monitoring efforts range from Pontal de Atafona, in São João da Barra, to Barra do Furado, in Campos dos Goytacazes. During mating season, from September until March, the team is also tasked with locating nests, identifying them and keeping track of them until hatchlings are born.
Since the beginning of the latest mating season, the program reported the birth of about 6,500 hatchlings. In the previous season, there were 87,000 hatchlings in total.
The Marine Turtle Monitoring Program follows technical guidelines set by the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio), Tamar and the State’s Environment Institute (INEA).
