Improvement of the Karst Forest's Mata de Platano Field Station

Mata de Platano是一个占地53公顷的保护区，位于一大片保护区内。Mata de Platano最初是由一个环保组织建立的，现在由美洲公共关系大学管理。Mata de Platano位于西印度群岛波多黎各北部喀斯特带，位于岛上最大的未破碎和最多样化的森林中。岛上22%的人口使用源自喀斯特带的地下水，就其地貌、生态和地下特征而言，该地区被认为是荒野。然而，从科学的角度来看，该地区受到的关注不如波多黎各东部火成岩土壤中的潮湿森林。对生态系统进行这种不平衡审查的主要原因是缺乏一个能够为进行长期生态研究提供急需的基础设施的实地站。Mata de Platano自然保护区在其场地内包含一个站立的混凝土结构，将使用该奖项的资金进行修复，以建立一个能够维持长期研究和教育活动的中心。该站的建立将大大提高我们对喀斯特森林的认识；增加学生，包括低收入少数民族学生的研究经验；作为一种附加价值，将有助于保护具有高度生物多样性的森林。

Mata de Platano is a 53 ha reserve within a large area set aside for conservation. Originally established by an environmental organization, Mata de Platano is now managed by Inter American University of PR. Located in the northern karst belt of Puerto Rico on the West Indies, Mata de Platano lies within the largest unfragmented and most diverse forest in the island. Twenty-two percent of the island population uses ground water that originates in this karst belt, and the region is considered wilderness in terms of its geomorphic, ecological, and subterranean features. Nevertheless, the area has received less attention from a scientific point of view than the wet forest in the igneous soils of eastern Puerto Rico. The major reason for this unbalanced examination of ecosystems is the lack of a field station capable of providing much needed infrastructure for the pursuit of long term ecological studies.Mata de Platano Nature Reserve contains within its premises a standing concrete structure that will be restored using funds from this award in order to establish a center capable of sustaining long-term research and educational activities. The establishment of this field station will greatly improve our knowledge of karst forests; increase the availability of research experience for students, including low income minority students; and as an added value will contribute towards the conservation of forests with high biotic diversity.