Panama gets low ocean health ranking

When it comes to ocean health Panama has one of the lowest ratings in Latin America according to a program, developed by scientists from the U.S. and Canada, to measure the quality of marine ecosystems.

On a rating scale of 1 to 100, Panama received 48 points and out of 171 countries, and was listed 129.
In the overall ranking 10 parameters were measured, such as coastal protection, sea biodiversity, clean water, the sustainability and quantity of extracted food, carbon storage and community fishing opportunities among others.
Each aspect was rated individually, and then the average produced . The lowest ratings for Panama were the impact of tourism on the coast (5 points out of 100) and sustainable extracted  food (7 of 100).
Felix Wing, director of the Center for Environmental Advocacy, said the study reflects what is happening. "There is no doubt that governments have forgotten the oceans and what remains is apathy," he said.
Silvano Vergara Deputy Administrator of the National Environmental Authority,(ANAM), said this is a long-standing problem in Panama, since by its geographical position, its seas and coasts are constantly exposed to human activity.