{"id":77,"date":"2025-02-22T21:33:07","date_gmt":"2025-02-23T01:33:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/paseoresponsable.com\/?page_id=77"},"modified":"2026-03-12T18:25:19","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T22:25:19","slug":"how-to-help","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/paseoresponsable.com\/es\/how-to-help\/","title":{"rendered":"Tu voz importa. Aqu\u00ed te explicamos c\u00f3mo usarla."},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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The only thing standing between the coastline and a bulldozer right now is public pressure.<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"Erosion<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Have you signed our petition?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Sign here<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Do This First.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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  1. Write to Congressman Pablo Jos\u00e9 Hernandez <\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
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    Pablo Jos\u00e9 Hern\u00e1ndez is the only person in the United States Congress who represents Puerto Rico. He sits on the House Committee on Natural Resources, the federal committee responsible for overseeing environmental policy in U.S. territories \u2014 which makes him exactly the right person to demand a federal investigation into what is happening on our coastline. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    As Resident Commissioner, he has the authority to formally request answers from FEMA, conduct federal oversight, and use his platform in Washington to hold the agencies responsible for this project accountable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

    Contact Resident Commissioner Hern\u00e1ndez and demand he investigate.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Step 1: Visit hernandez.house.gov<\/a> and scroll down to “Send me an Email,” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Step 2: The form will ask for your PR Zip Code (00677 is Rinc\u00f3n). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Step 3: Tell him you are aware of what is happening in Rinc\u00f3n, and you are asking him to use his position on the House Committee on Natural Resources to demand a federal investigation into the manipulation of FEMA flood zone designations and the use of federal funds in the Rinc\u00f3n Bike Path project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Don’t know how to word it? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    We have 3 Templates to Choose From<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Copy\/Paste this if you are a resident<\/strong><\/summary>\n

    “Dear Resident Commissioner Hern\u00e1ndez, My name is [NAME] and I am a constituent writing to ask for your help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I live in Rinc\u00f3n, Puerto Rico \u2014 one of the most beautiful coastal communities in the Caribbean \u2014 and our town needs your help. Since Hurricane Maria, the balneario and Stella community has been left with fallen homes, broken cement structures, collapsed boardwalks, and chain-link fencing half-buried in the sand. Our mayor has done nothing to clean it up. And now, instead of restoring what hurricanes have destroyed, and what other storms continue to destroy, the government is adding more cement, asphalt, and fill just a little farther down the coastline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The Rinc\u00f3n Bike and Pedestrian Trail, a project by the Puerto Rico Highways and Transportation Authority (ACT), is being built directly on our coast \u2014 over the wetlands at Step’s Beach and through the Tres Palmas Marine Reserve, which not only has one of the most important coral reef systems in the Caribbean, but also is a world class surfing wave. It moves forward with an environmental study that predates Hurricane Maria but our coastline is not the same as it was all those years ago. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    We have also learned through public records that the agencies involved manipulated the permitting process to avoid triggering a mandatory environmental review \u2014 specifically by misrepresenting which parcels of land the project was built on in order to avoid scrutiny under FEMA’s own flood hazard designations. The case Amigos de Tres Palmas et al. v. ACT, OGPe, et al.<\/em> is currently before the Aguadilla Superior Court with coastline construction paused pending a decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    What I am asking is simple: our coastline deserves protection, not more construction. We already have natural green spaces that are bike friendly and our community is actively in protest over this. Our beaches deserve to be cleaned up and protected through green initiatives, not buried under new cement. And the agencies responsible for this project deserve to be held accountable by someone with the power to demand answers at the federal level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Please use your seat on the House Committee on Natural Resources to investigate what happened here. The reef at Tres Palmas, and the coastline our community depends on, cannot be restored once they are gone.” <\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

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    Copy\/Paste this if you are a tourist that loves Rinc\u00f3n.<\/strong><\/summary>\n

    Dear Resident Commissioner Hern\u00e1ndez,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    My name is [NAME] and I am not a resident of Puerto Rico \u2014 but I am someone who loves it deeply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I have visited Rinc\u00f3n [for X years \/ since X year]. I come for the waves at Tres Palmas and Domes Beach, to snorkel the reef with my kids, and to walk and join community events at the Bosque de Armon\u00eda. I come back year after year because there is nowhere else quite like it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    What is being done to that coastline breaks my heart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The Rinc\u00f3n Bike and Pedestrian Trail wants to place cement and asphalt construction directly on the coast cutting through the Tres Palmas Marine Reserve, Step’s Beach, the Bosque de Armon\u00eda in between Maria’s Beach and the Lighthouse, and Dome’s Beach. The natural buffer that protects the shoreline from erosion and storm surge is going to be replaced with concrete that bakes under the Caribbean sun and serves no one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    If you have visited the Balneario of Rinc\u00f3n recently, you already know what cement does to a Caribbean beach when a storm comes through. There are fallen walls half-buried in the sand. Chain-link fencing. Destroyed structures that have sat there for years, making one of Rinc\u00f3n’s most beloved public beaches unsafe for families. Instead of cleaning up what storms have left behind, the government’s answer is to add more of the same to the beaches that remain. We are not against a bike path. We are against repeating a mistake. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    As a tourist who loves Rinc\u00f3n, we stand with Paseo Responsable and the community that is advocating for a bike path done in a responsible way. Please use your position on the House Committee on Natural Resources to investigate what is happening here and protect what is left of this coastline before it is gone for good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Rinc\u00f3n’s beaches belong to everyone who has ever loved them. We are asking you to stand up for them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Respectfully, [NAME] [CITY\/TOWN\/COUNTRY]<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

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    Copy\/Paste This if You are a Local Business Owner<\/strong><\/summary>\n

    Dear Resident Commissioner Hern\u00e1ndez,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    My name is [NAME] and I am a local business owner in Rinc\u00f3n, Puerto Rico.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Rinc\u00f3n’s economy runs on one thing: people who come here for the ocean. Surfers, snorkelers, families, eco-tourists \u2014 they come because of the waves, the reef, the natural coastline, and the trees that line our beaches. They stay in our hotels, eat in our restaurants, rent our boards, book our tours, and support our families. This is not a tourism economy built on nightclubs or casinos. It is built entirely on the natural environment that makes Rinc\u00f3n unlike anywhere else in the Caribbean.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Tres Palmas is the reason serious surfers put Rinc\u00f3n on their map. That wave exists because of the reef beneath it. Coastal armoring \u2014 cement walls, hard structures built directly on the shoreline \u2014 changes wave patterns. It accelerates erosion on neighboring beaches. It disrupts the reef systems that create the breaks surfers travel thousands of miles to ride. If that wave changes, the surfers leave. If you build a wall and guard rail on the beach, restricting safe rescue zones and accessible beach areas, tourists in general, will leave. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    We have watched the Balneario of Rinc\u00f3n sit in ruins \u2014 fallen cement walls and chain-link fencing, rotting in the sand \u2014 and our mayor has done nothing to clean it up. That is what hard coastal infrastructure looks like after a storm. And now, the government wants to add more of the same to the beaches our businesses depend on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    As a business owner, I have a deep respect for the law and for the permitting processes that exist to make sure development is done correctly and responsibly. What makes this situation so troubling is not just the construction itself \u2014 it is the fact that the agencies behind this project have manipulated those very processes in the name of development and economic progress, without seriously considering the devastating economic consequences it will have on the town they claim to be helping. You cannot build an economy on a coastline you have destroyed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    It is also important to be clear about what this project actually is. Do not let the name mislead you. This is not a path. This is large-scale coastal infrastructure \u2014 cement walls, filling in wetlands, heavy construction, and permanent structures built directly on one of the most ecologically sensitive and economically vital stretches of coastline in Puerto Rico. In fact, our Bosque de Armon\u00eda has already proven to prevent erosion on our coastline. Why would we want to destroy a nature based solution for more cement? The scope of what has been built, and what is planned, is nothing like what the words “bike path” suggest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The case Amigos de Tres Palmas et al. v. ACT, OGPe, et al.<\/em> is currently before the Aguadilla Superior Court with construction paused pending a decision. We are asking you to use your position on the House Committee on Natural Resources to investigate this project and protect the coastline that our entire local economy depends on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Construction on our coastline does not bring tourists to Rinc\u00f3n. Our ocean does. Please help us protect it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Respectfully, [NAME] Business Name Rinc\u00f3n, Puerto Rico<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

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    Did you send an email to Pablo Jos\u00e9 Hernandez? Hit the Like button below! <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n\n\n
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    Join Our Social Media Campaign<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    This is our coastline. This is what we are fighting for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    We are asking everyone who has ever surfed Tres Palmas, snorkeled the reef, walked through the Bosque de Armon\u00eda, or watched a sunset at Domes Beach to post your favorite photo and tag @rep.pablojosehernandez \u2014 Puerto Rico’s only representative in the United States Congress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Post your photo. Tag him. Tell him why this place matters to you. Surfers. Families. Business owners. Tourists. Locals. It does not matter where you are from. If you love this coastline, we need your voice right now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \ud83c\udf0a Tag @reppablojose
    \ud83c\udf0a Tag @paseoresponsablepr
    \ud83c\udf0a Use #SalvaTresPalmas | #SalvaRinc\u00f3n | #ParaisoSinCemento<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    These are not just beautiful places \u2014 they are the reason Rinc\u00f3n exists as a community, as an economy, and as a home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Caption Template for Followers to Use:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Hey @reppablojose \u2014 this is what we are fighting to protect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    [Insert personal story \u2014 a wave you surfed, a walk you took, a memory with your kids]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The proposed \u201cScenic Tourist Bike Route\u201d in Rinc\u00f3n threatens this fragile coastline.\u00a0The case is already in court. We need you to use your seat on the House Committee on Natural Resources to demand a federal investigation and protect what is left.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \ud83c\udf0a #SalvaRinc\u00f3n #SalvaTresPalmas #Para\u00edsoSinCemento #PaseoResponsable<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    Community Groups + Organizations That You Can Volunteer With<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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    Salva Rinc\u00f3n!<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Focus Area: Tres Palmas<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Salva Rinc\u00f3n! is a nonprofit 501c(3) community-based organization directed by Puerto Rican professionals and leaders,  supported by Rincoe\u00f1os who have generational roots, by the wider Puerto Rican community, and by the very diverse community of residents of Rinc\u00f3n, Puerto Rico, and beyond. Salva Rinc\u00f3n! is not opposed to progress and development. In fact, quite the contrary. We want to foster and encourage environmentally responsible, appropriately scaled development in Rinc\u00f3n, adjusted to neighbor concerns.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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    Volunteer form<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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    Surfrider Rinc\u00f3n Chapter<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Focus Area: Rinc\u00f3n, Aguada, and A\u00f1asco<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The Surfrider Foundation is dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of oceans, waves and beaches through a powerful network of activists.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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    volunteer here<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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    Rescate del Camino del Faro<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Focus Area: El Faro + Dome’s Trail<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    For all information regarding the Camino del Faro at Dome’s Beach, get in touch with this incredible organization that is dedicated to the preservation of our coastline and its public areas.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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    Get in touch<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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    Paseo Responsable is looking for volunteers!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    Interested in playing a larger role? From sharing flyers, brochures, social media assistance, translating, event coordination, and more – it takes a village to make a change. Contact us to see how you can help. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    Contact us<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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