In June 2022, the Pollution Division of the Centre of Research and Environmental Management of Transport (CIMAB) in Cuba conducted water sampling in the Guanabo watershed and its coastal zone in support of the GEF IWEco Cuba sub-project. CIMAB is one of the Regional Activity Centres for the Cartagena Convention’s Protocol Concerning Pollution from Land-Based Sources and Activities (LBS).
This activity formed part of the National Component 2.2.1 which focuses on the establishment of a systematic monitoring programme for biodiversity in the four intervention areas of the sub-project (Guanabo watershed, Arimao watershed, Agabama River Basin, San Juan watershed).
Physical, chemical, biological and bacteriological parameters were evaluated as quality indicators, in the surface waters of the river (four sampling stations) and in the coastal zone of influence (four other sampling points). The results obtained, together with those included in the environmental baseline of said ecosystem, will contribute to evaluating the impacts of good agricultural management practices implemented at the Recreo 5 Farm located in northern part of the watershed.
The results of the monitoring programme will also contribute to evaluating the effectiveness of other intervention actions carried out in the Guanabo watershed to achieve the sustainable management of biodiversity.
The IWEco Cuba National sub-project is implementing integrated environmental management approaches, identifying and monitoring environmental indicators, utilizing mechanisms for strengthening cross-sectorial and inter-institutional coordination, and providing capacity-building in sub-project intervention areas. This sub-project is supporting the Government of Cuba in the development of alternative models and options for addressing a wider range of stresses affecting the biodiversity conservation within watersheds and coastal areas elsewhere in the country through up-scaling and replication.
Visit the project page to find out more and learn about the Cuban species featured in the project’s biodiversity poster series: https://iweco.org/countries/cuba.
