Through The Lens: Las Reinas del Manglar, The Mangrove Queens
A Day of Mangrove Restoration With The Chomes Mollusk Harvesters Cooperative
If you haven't had the chance to explore my article “A Female Mollusk Harvesters' Co-op Takes Ecological and Economic Preservation into Their Own Hands,” I recommend starting there for a deeper understanding of the context behind this photo series. You can read the aforementioned story at this link. The following images didn't make it into the original piece, so they instead have found a home here.
I hope they offer valuable insight into self-sufficient shellfish management. The photos showcase a day of mangrove restoration efforts carried out by La Cooperativa de Molusqueros de Chomes, a predominantly female cooperative of mollusk harvesters based in Chomes, Costa Rica.
At the entrance of the Chomes Restoration Center, a repurposed plywood board declares, "Los manglares son ecosistemas únicos, especiales y vulnerables" (Mangroves are unique, special, and vulnerable ecosystems). As if an affirmation, signs like this one dot the trees overhead, informing visitors of the crucial significance of these coastal guardians.
The women beneath the accompanying forest canopy need no reminders of this fact.
It was this group, La Cooperativa de Molusqueros de Chomes (The Chomes Mollusk Harvesters Cooperative), who founded the restoration center as part of their efforts to enhance the health of nearby mollusk harvesting grounds. On the day of this photo shoot, they will plant over 1000 mangrove trees in critical shellfish habitat.
The day begins with a fireline. Members of the Co-Op seamlessly file in, chatting in the morning sun as they pass saplings hand over hand. At the end of the line, a young boy, a relative of the Cooperative’s President, deftly loads the mangroves into his grandfather’s fiberglass boat.
The pace is efficient but unrushed. This is not the cooperative’s first planting.
By this point in its nearly ten-year history, The Chomes Mollusk Harvesters Cooperative has hosted numerous restoration events and planted over 23,000 mangrove trees — all as part of its participatory mollusk management program.
Crafted in tandem with the San Jose Fishing Cooperative, CoopeSoLiDar, and Costa Rica’s Fishing and Aquaculture Authorities (INCOPESCA), this plan was a first of its kind. Not only was a community-driven management plan of this magnitude unprecedented, but it was also predominantly shaped by women— a demographic frequently underrepresented in fishing management and policy initiatives.
Thriving mangrove ecosystems translate to bountiful shellfish harvests and, therefore, to healthy profits for the cooperative. Mollusks thrive in the nutrient-rich root systems of the sub-tidal mangrove trees. Therefore, mangrove reforestation efforts became a large part of the cooperative's mollusk management plan.
Once the boat's bench seats are filled to the brim with saplings, a cooperative member drops off the first load of trees at the planting destination. Later, after the first-class passengers (the mangroves) are safely disembarked at their new location, the boat is loaded with eager cooperative members.
Planting begins right away. With rapid speed, one member of the cooperative makes holes in the soft earth, while another immediately fills the newborn divot with saplings. Cups of Coca-Cola are passed around to keep energy levels and spirits high. Children and adults chatter away while they work. Two puppies skirt between the legs of unsuspecting Co-Op members.
All in all, it takes about 5 hours to plant 1000 mangroves.
These trees will play a crucial role in the Chomes shellfish ecosystem and in the economic livelihoods of the cooperative members, the majority of whom are low-income women. Shellfish harvesting is the primary economic driver for members of this regional Co-op. Their financial success depends, in large part, on the health of the saplings and the other estuarine mangroves.
After hours of planting in the Costa Rican heat, it's time to return home. Children and puppies alike are loaded into the flat-bottomed skiff. En route to much-needed rest, the cooperative begins to wade through the shallow waters of the Nicoya Gulf. Between mollusk harvests, the Co-Op will continue its restoration efforts steadfastly championing the ecosystem that sustains their livelihoods.
See more photos of The Chomes Mollusk Harvesters Cooperative and read the full story at this link.
If you want to learn more about CoopeSoLiDar’s work you can visit their website here. The Cooperative offers a bevy of free online educational materials to help better inform the public about artisanal fishing and women’s rights in Costa Rica. More information about the Chomes Mollusk Harvesters Cooperative can be found on their website, linked here.