In the wake of this historic victory, however, environmentalists now face the challenge of addressing the concerns of several thousand fishermen in this isolated area who would like more stable jobs and better education, health care and infrastructure here. Otherwise, environmentalists acknowledged, they now run the risk of being seen as rich interlopers with little credibility. Kennedy is a lawyer for the Natural Resources Defense Council, an American environmental group. On the east side of the lagoon, residents must truck in their drinking water from the nearest desert oasis, which is several hours away. There is no high school, and only parents that can afford room and board send their children away to study.
Doctors only visit the area every few weeks.
And there is no power source except for a few solar panels. Many of the fishermen already are developing campsites and whale watching for tourists here. But that activity only lasts for several months out of the year. Most have to seek work elsewhere or return to fishing full-time to make a living. Jorge Peon, a fisherman who also owns a landing strip near the lagoon, said most local residents turned against the project because they feared it would spoil their fishing and nascent whale-watching operations.