{"id":12649,"date":"2019-08-09T11:20:01","date_gmt":"2019-08-09T16:20:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fundacioncarlosslim.org\/english\/?p=12649"},"modified":"2019-08-09T11:20:02","modified_gmt":"2019-08-09T16:20:02","slug":"restoring-the-colorado-river-estuary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fundacioncarlosslim.org\/english\/restoring-the-colorado-river-estuary\/","title":{"rendered":"Restoring the Colorado River estuary"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Estuaries\nare the cradle of the ocean, places where many species of fish and shellfish\nare born and which protect them until they are of a sufficient age to emigrate\nto deeper waters. These unique coastal areas, where the river meets the sea,\nwhere fresh water mixes with salt water, are also compatible with a multitude\nof plants, birds and marine species, many of which can only be found in a\nsingle place on earth.  Estuaries are\nsome of the most productive ecosystems of the world, but also one of the most threatened.\nAnd when an estuary is seriously degraded, the effects have repercussions\nthroughout the food chain for those who depend on fish for their subsistence\nand the local economy in general. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The estuary of the Colorado River in Baja California, where the Colorado River meets the Sea of Cortes, is one of these threatened estuaries. It provides a critical habitat for hundreds of thousands of coastal birds and is where shrimp, corvina (a local bass) and other marine fish are spawned and raised. Research in the two pasts has shown that the marine fisheries in the Upper Gulf of California depend on the flows of fresh water from the Delta. Twelve of the 13 species which represent 98 percent of the commercial shipments from the Upper Gulf call for low salinity water during their early development.\u00a0 This data suggests that an increase in river water creates a larger nursery for these fish, which in turn increases the adult population in subsequent years.\u00a0 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In 2002, 55\nscientific experts and resource managers representing both Mexico and the\nUnited States drew up priorities to guide future conservation of the Colorado\nRiver Delta and the Upper Gulf of California. As part of this process, the\ngroup identified the estuary as one of the 15 priority conservation areas in\nthe region.  Following the suggestions\narising from the workshop and published in a 2005 report, the Sonoran Institute\nM\u00e9xico combined forces with a large number of partners to improve the habitat\nof the estuary and helped to save the many species and the work which depends\non this ecosystem.  Included in this\neffort are Pronatura Noroeste, The Nature Conservancy, University of Arizona,\nComisi\u00f3n Nacional para \u00c1reas Naturales Protegidas, Centro de Investigaci\u00f3n en\nAlimentaci\u00f3n y Desarrollo, Universidad Aut\u00f3noma de Baja California, and the\nComisi\u00f3n Estatal de Servicios P\u00fablicos de Mexicali.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since 2014,\nthe Alliance WWF- FCS.<\/strong>  has supported the Sonoran Instituto\nM\u00e9xico<\/strong> by means of the Project \u201cImproving the estuarine habitat of\nthe Colorado River: reconnecting the river and the sea\u201d<\/strong>. Get to know the\nproject in the next video:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nAlliance WWF -Carlos Slim Foundation<\/strong> works in six priority regions\n(Mesoamerican Mexican Reef, Chihuahuas Desert, Gulf of California<\/strong>,\nMonarch Butterfly, Oaxaca and Chiapas) with local, national and international\npartners, combining efforts and financial and human resources in the field of\nsustainable development and conservation of the biodiversity. Likewise, it\nworks hand-in-hand with federal and state government agencies in order for the\ninvestments to contribute to complying with national and regional goals.   <\/p>\n\n\n