Bosque del Pueblo (''People's Forest'') is one of the 20 forest units that make up the public forest system of
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
. The 738-acres forest is located in the municipality of
Adjuntas
Adjuntas (, ) is a small mountainside town and municipality in Puerto Rico located central midwestern portion of the island on the Cordillera Central, north of Yauco, Guayanilla, and Peñuelas; southeast of Utuado; east of Lares and Yauco; an ...
and it comprises a preserved zone which was endangered of being developed as a
quarry
A quarry is a type of open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some jurisdictions to reduce their envi ...
between the years 1980 and 1995. The forest is located in lands shared by the Adjuntas barrios or districts of Vegas Arriba,
Vegas Abajo
Vegas Abajo is a rural barrio in the municipality of Adjuntas, Puerto Rico.
History
Puerto Rico was ceded by Spain in the aftermath of the Spanish–American War under the terms of the Treaty of Paris of 1898 and became an unincorporated territo ...
and Pellejas de Adjuntas. In addition to preserving the forest, the reserve is important to the preservation of the hydrological basins of the Pellejas and Viví Rivers, and many of the tributaries of the
Arecibo River
Arecibo (; ) is a city and municipality on the northern coast of Puerto Rico, on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, located north of Utuado and Ciales; east of Hatillo; and west of Barceloneta and Florida. It is about west of San Juan, the ...
have their sources in the forest lands. The forest also functions as an ecological corridor between the Guilarte,
Río Abajo
Río Abajo is a corregimiento within Panama City, in Panamá District, Panamá Province, Panama with a population of 26,607 as of 2010. Its population as of 1990 was 33,155; its population as of 2000 was 28,714. It is a West Indian neighborhoo ...
The area where the forest was established is rich in
gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...
,
silver
Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...
and
copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...
deposits and was intended to be developed as an open-air mine. Between the years 1980 and 1995 the cultural and environmentalist community group ''Taller de Arte y Cultura-
Casa Pueblo
Casa Pueblo is a non-profit environmental watchdog community-based organization in Adjuntas, Puerto Rico, headed by Alexis Massol-González, a civil engineer and winner of the 2002 Goldman Environmental Prize.
'' lobbied against the construction of quarries in the area, and in 1995 the Puerto Rico government agreed to prevent mining from being developed in the forest lands. The forest was established and is managed by both the
Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources
The Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources (PRDNER) is the executive department of the government of Puerto Rico tasked with protecting, conserving, developing, and managing the natural and environmental resources in Puert ...
, the Community Management Agreement Group and
Casa Pueblo
Casa Pueblo is a non-profit environmental watchdog community-based organization in Adjuntas, Puerto Rico, headed by Alexis Massol-González, a civil engineer and winner of the 2002 Goldman Environmental Prize.
, now a non-profit environmental watchdog community-based organization in
Adjuntas, Puerto Rico
Adjuntas (, ) is a small mountainside town and municipality in Puerto Rico located central midwestern portion of the island on the Cordillera Central, north of Yauco, Guayanilla, and Peñuelas; southeast of Utuado; east of Lares and Yauco; and ...
.
Ecology
The forest reserve is an important breeding site for the migratory black-whiskered vireo ( ''Vireo altiloquus''). The forest is also home to several endangered species including the Puerto Rican broad-winged hawk (''
Buteo platypterus brunnescens
The Puerto Rican broad-winged hawk (''Buteo platypterus brunnescens'') is an endangered subspecies of the broad-winged hawk (''B. platypterus''). It is a small hawk that occurs in Puerto Rico, inhabiting the Toro Negro State Forest.''Accipiter striatus venator'').
Recreation
The forest reserve is open to the public and offers interpretative trails, a recreational and picnic area, a plant nursery, and a realistic replica of a native
Taíno
The Taíno were a historic Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean, indigenous people of the Caribbean whose culture has been continued today by Taíno descendant communities and Taíno revivalist communities. At the time of European contact in the ...
ceremonial court and batey. The non-profit organization Casa Pueblo also hosts a butterfly house, a store that sells traditional arts and crafts, a small antiquities museum, and a café. Casa Pueblo also offers educational tours, classes and talks on environmental issues, and cultural workshops. Camping is allowed in the forest under certain restrictions and reservations must be made beforehand.
See also
*
Casa Pueblo
Casa Pueblo is a non-profit environmental watchdog community-based organization in Adjuntas, Puerto Rico, headed by Alexis Massol-González, a civil engineer and winner of the 2002 Goldman Environmental Prize.
*
List of Puerto Rico state forests
This article lists state forests in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
Puerto Rico state forests
The following are Puerto Rico state forests. Note on the area: As of August 2013, the Government of Puerto Rico is engaged in an ongoing plan of land p ...