8 to 10 Tons of Trash Collected from Solarte Mangrove Dump Sites

On May 20, 2026, community members mobilized to clear waste out of two illegal mangrove dump sites of the southern side of Solarte Island. A third site was discovered during the outing. Around two dozen volunteers on five boats were split into two teams; each team working on one of the two dump sites that were originally identified. The results differ and are staggering.

– ARTÍCULO EN ESPAÑOL – 

Pau Sills from Ankay Conservation reports the following about one of the dump sites, located behind the Blue Coconut restaurant:

“There were orange bags that were filled with coconuts. I’m talking about 70 coconuts. They were already growing and had been there a while, which gave the sensation of someone who had cleaned out their yard. Underneath all the coconut bags there were transparent bags with styrofoam food containers and sodas. Finally, there were about 20 big black bags that were filled with dirty diapers. I’m talking about JUST diapers. It was insane. These were the oldest of the trash bags recovered.”

The idea of putting a natural material like coconuts into plastic bags and throwing them into mangroves was unsettling to the volunteers present. Jana Köbel of One Earth One Ocean, organizer of the cleanup, says that black bags full of diapers are common to find, based on her experience in cleanups near San Cristobal villages. She reported the results from the other Solarte dump site, which appears to be from a recent build in the area:

“There was a lot of construction stuff, empty paint cans etc., and a lot of styrofoam takeout containers so we’re thinking it might be a big construction site, for example for a hotel, and they buy takeout lunch for their workers every day.”

Readers of The Bocas Breeze, do you know of a recent project in that general vicinity?

Also discovered in the same dump site as the construction materials were bags filled with syringes and prescription bottles.

Jana calculated the statistics of the outing: “We had five boats. All but one did two tours. Our boat had 58 bags on the first tour and 50 on the second tour. So let’s say 450-500 bags. Each bag was about 15-25 kg. That’s roughly 8-10 tons of trash collected from the mangroves. And we’re not finished. Unbelievable.”

These mangrove cleanups seem to happen once or twice a year, that we know about. Every time The Bocas Breeze reports on them, there is a rightful clamor to address root causes of the issue.

People are always reminded that there is a need for more education about the environment, the role of mangroves and the consequences of using them as dump sites; both to the ocean ecosystem and also to the public image of the islands’ tourism-dependent economy in a market where sustainability is increasingly important to travelers.

Most of the voices from the crowd are calling to find culprits and punish them – make some examples.

According to Ley 51 de 29 de septiembre 2010 and Decreto Ejecutivo 1445 del 13 de diciembre 2011, the penalty for “depositing waste in unauthorized sites” carries a $1,000 fine for the first infraction and $5,000 for the second.

Offered every time are the same ideas to catch these elusive Mangrove Manglers:

(1) Go through the trash and find clues. This time there were no receipts or anything with a name on it. A 2023 clean up of Punta Manglar uncovered documents that pointed to three businesses. The evidence was presented to authorities, though there was little interest. Nothing ever happened.

(2) Others suggest setting up cameras to catch the perpetrator in the act. Though no one has yet to act on this notion before.

This time around may be different. Stay tuned to our WhatsApp groups to be involved in community action to surveil illegal dump sites. Not connected to The Breeze on WhatsApp yet? Text “add me” to +507 6537-0405 and we’ll send you an invite link.

Lastly, there has been a call for accountability and responsible waste management on the outer islands. This time seemed to be from a nearby village and a construction project. Other times it has been obvious that the dump site was frequented by a someone collecting trash from businesses outside of Isla Colon; acting as a legitimate trash collector, collecting payment, only to dump in the mangroves short of taking it to the Cholo Cabaña collection company in Saigon and pay the $1.50 per bag collection fee.

Gabina Cerrud of Cholo Cabaña urges outer islanders that hand over trash via boat to follow up and ensure the trash arrives, making her phone number available for people to verify: +507 6256-0069. This is one possible way to catch a polluter or at least start to identify who the actual legitimate trash collectors are.

Alexander Jairo Keppel of Bocas Pirates Dive Center, an ever-present participant in these cleanups, reflects on the outer island trash collection and mangrove dump situation:

“MiAmbiente (Ministry of Environment) needs a list of all the captains responsible that take trash since they all should be properly trained and maybe get a certificate to transport trash. It should be a free certificate and be mandatory for the residents, especially business or construction sites, to only hand over trash to proper certified trash transporters.

I also think they should request for businesses, construction sites, all big operations to operate properly and keep track of their trash; not rely on a local family. They can be the ones contacting Cholo Cabaña and telling them ‘I’m sending you a boat with 30 bags of trash’ then Cholo Cabaña when receiving the 30 bags says ‘we received your 30 bags. That will be $45.00.’ Then the business makes a bank transfer and boom! The mangroves are happy, and the transport person is happy. And the captains should be paid more by businesses because I can see why they might throw the trash in the mangroves. I mean those extra $45.00 are worth a lot to them. Ignorance or lack of education doesn’t equal evil. They should be educated and paid properly because it’s hard work.

And that’s it. And if maybe one day Cholo Cabaña contacts a business and says ‘The trash didn’t arrive.’ Well then first make sure the transporter is okay, since a boat full of trash in rough seas is no joke. And if he is okay, then MiAmbiente can do their thing and investigate where the trash went.

I don’t think this mission is too hard. I really think no one in their right mind would be okay with the trash being thrown directly over the mangroves; by showing them pictures and videos, by making people see what’s happening to their trash and understand how bad it is. People need to take responsibility and not be negligent to what’s happening around them. We need to all be united on this and we must take action.”

Are you united on this? What do you think would be effective actions to take to prevent mangroves from being used as a garbage dump?

Much respect to Jana Köbel of One Earth One Ocean for organizing this cleanup (pictured above), and to Francesco and Alex of Bocas Pirates Dive Center for their consistent support on these cleanups. Shout-out to the other dive shops that participated: Bocas Dive Center, Ankay Conservation, and Panama Dive School; to other supporting businesses: Fresco Bocas, Mono Loco Surf School, Bongzaii Ocean Tribe, and Bocas Surf Academy; and to all the volunteers who joined this effort.

Hopefully the next Bocas Breeze article about mangrove trash dumping is a success story about how the community has taken steps to prevent it.