ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a discussion of the meanings of El Yunque to the Puerto Rican population, and how culture is an imperative in resource management. It also reviews the complex cultural and sociopolitical forces that coalesce at the Caribbean National Forest, Ethnographic and other data obtained by an interdisciplinary research team is used to depict the cultural dimensions associated to a resource management situation. El Yunque is located in the Sierra de Luquillo mountain range in the northeast of Puerto Rico, with peaks ranging from 3,000 to 3,500 feet. The Forest Service has increased the total amount of acres left by the Inspección de Montes since 1898, from 12,384 acres to the present day 27,846 acres distributed throughout seven municipalities. El Yunque receives an estimated half a million visitors per year. Most visitors use the recreational facilities located in Highway 191 corridor. El Yunque is visited by a variety of people from different ethnic backgrounds and nationalities.
