A new bill seeks to reactivate the INTREGENTIAL BOARD FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF THE PUERAS DE PUERTO RICOwhich has been practically inoperative since its creation more than 25 years ago, despite efforts to implement its objectives, which, to a large extent, seek to increase the safety of bathers and ensure the good management and maintenance of these public spaces.
“This measure was radi -the last four; There were some drowning incidents on the beach and several running deaths occurred ”said the senator Nitza Moránauthor of the Senate Project 236which proposes to amend the Law 293-1999recognizing that his original proposal was not successful and tries to be considered in the current ordinary session.
“It is a tool that we saw that I was there, but that I was not tempered to the times.”he said about the Board.
The measure also proposes the creation of a Life body. “In 2024, we lost 28 drowned people and Puerto Rico is a tourist and aquatic destination,” said Morán, in statements to The new day.
Broadly speaking, the project – referred to the Tourism, Natural and Environmental Resources Commission – contemplates a restructuring of the Board that reflects the reorganization of agencies, as well as the creation of a new “comprehensive work plan” and the development of a mobile application to inform citizens about the conditions of the beaches.
Since its creation 25 years ago, the Board had to be made up of the heads of various agencies with interference in the administration of the beaches, as well as other members. However, some of these entities have been eliminated or consolidated, such as the Environmental Quality Board, which is now under the Natural and Environmental Resources Department (DRNA). Under the new proposed law, the composition of the Board is reduced from 11 to 9 members, including the DRNA secretary as director and two members of the private sphere that belong to the related tourism or academic sector with the management of the beaches as a resource.
1 /11 | These are 11 of the Most Dangerous Beaches in Puerto Rico. Beach in Guánica whales.
In addition, the project underlines the importance of coordinating efforts with state and federal agencies to guarantee compliance with environmental and security regulations. According to the measure, the Board should present a new “comprehensive work plan” before June 30, 2025. This plan will include strategies for the conservation and proper use of beaches, as well as the mitigation of the coastal erosion.
As part of modernizations, the measure orders the creation of the mobile application Beach Segura PR/Safe Beach PRwhich would provide real -time information on the safety and conditions of the beaches. The application would identify beaches with lifeguards, dangerous areas and those certified with the distinction Blue flagwhich guarantees high standards of environmental quality and safety. Morán proposes that the creation of said application is in charge of the Puerto Rico Innovation and Technology Service.
However, one of the main issues that, for years, has prevented the appropriate operation of the Board has been the lack of a budget that allows the execution of initiatives, said the director of the director Sea Grant Puerto Rico program and who was a representative of the academic sector in the agency, Ruperto Chaparro.
“The Board never worked, because it had no budget”Chaparro said. “The first thing you have to have is a budget with which they can work, they gave the Board all that the paper endures, but without a budget”.
In 2017, in fact, Another bill proposed to eliminate the Boardfor having breached with the functions and duties entrusted to him in favor of the main natural, recreational and tourist resource of the island. Instead, the measure proposed to create the State Council for the Management of Beaches, whose main objective would be to establish the public policy guidelines regarding the management of the coast, mitigation plans and Climate change.
Chaparro recalled that, in Puerto Rico, for the past three decades, around 30 people have died per year drowned on the beaches, so it “urges” to attend the aspect of safety with lifeguards. He also mentioned that the Board, if it worked as it should, would also ensure the development of basic structures – such as bathrooms, parking and safe access – as well as avoid constructions in the land maritime zone.
“There is a disorganization that the only way to solve it is with a real beaches board, that has a budget”he reiterated.
The amendments that the new project proposes do not establish a budget. Instead, the creation of a “Special Fund of the Integencial de Playas Board” is suggested, which would be nourished by government contributions – including the budgets of the agencies that are part of the Board – and private. The funds would be administered by the DRNA, and the Board should render an annual report to the governor on duty and the Legislative Assembly on the actions taken.