The continued success of Alberto Brenes as a biological reserve cannot be trivialized. Though the establishment of a site as a biological reserve is a great feat in and of itself, it does not ultimately envisage future success; the success or failure of a protected area ultimately depends on the extent to which ecological processes that support biodiversity can be sustained. This requires careful design and adequate implementation. As my peers and I witnessed, Alberto Brenes utilizes wise use of natural and human resources, both by capitalizing on the resources contained within its boundaries and by serving as a learning site for students to explore and demonstrating approaches to conservation and sustainable development to students. One example within the reserve is deploying the abundant rivers within RBAMB to generate hydroelectric power. 47%, (7600 Ha) of the upper basin of the San Lorenzo River is located inside RBAMB. A turbine in the nearby San Lorencito River is used to generate hydroelectricity to power the reserve station. In addition, continued success of a reserve is also aided by long-term commitment from international and national research institutions with conservation priorities that parallel that of the reserve. I was told that at the moment, funding for the reserve is challenging, as it requires visiting and requesting aid from different departments within the University of Costa Rica. The reserve is currently working on establishing an official budget that will stand for each year.
While only 7800 hectares, Alberto Brenes is highly representative of the rich diversity of Costa Rica. Alberto Brenes is characterized by a rugged mountain system; altitudes ranging from 600m to 1700m enable a wide diversity of organisms suited to different climates to reside within the reserve. Temperatures are moderate, staying around 21 degrees Celsius, and an average rainfall of 138 inches. This warrants 80% of the park as premontane, 10% as low montane and another small fraction as very humid montane. As a natural laboratory, dozens of flora and fauna have been discovered within the reserve, as well as a new family and several novel genera of plants. While at the reserve, we learned some of the plant taxonomy of flowering plants and we were exposed to a wide variety of reptiles, amphibians, and arthropods. Insects and arachnids were our omnipresent guests, both outside as well as inside the station! We learned that in order to promote genetic diversity and species richness, it is important that a reserve does not stand in isolation, but has a buffer zone of protected area around it. Currently the persistence of migratory species relies on them surviving a portion of their migratory cycle in forest fragments outside of the protected zones. The University is working on trying to establish surrounding areas as protected zones in order to sustain migration and limit populations from being stranded in isolates where they would encounter the adverse synergisms of habitat degradation, poaching and resource exploitation. Despite the benefits of reserve expansion, overcoming the sociopolitical, financial, and institutional constraints necessary to establishing buffer zones is a challenge in itself.
The successful implementation and continued success of Alberto Brenes must be ascribed to the persistent dedication of a small group of passionate individuals who, despite insurmountable odds, work tirelessly on behalf of the reserve, raising funds, negotiating legal work, establishing a physical presence within the park and garnering local and national support. During the evening, we were given a presentation on the reserve and shown photos of previous student groups from decades past. While looking at a vintage photo of the first group of students that ever visited the park in 1979, it suddenly became apparent at just how quickly technology and the world around us is changing. As somebody that appreciates nature, it makes me anxious to think that our environment is changing just as quickly and we are restricted in our ability to halt the degredation. However, before our departure from the reserve, we also posed for a group photo. It was at that moment that I became hopeful. Because even though we were smiling into a DSLR lens camera that would fully capture our unkempt states with full precision, I realized that just like the first group of students in 1979, we are students with similar interests leaving with incredible memories, insight and inspiration. Hopefully decades from now, future students will garner these same feelings when looking at our photo.
AUTHOR: Heather Haj
