The ambitious proposal of Panama  Mayor José Luis Fabrega mimicking Barcelona and Rio de Janeiro to recover a beach on the city waterfront. has put a spotlight on pollution levels and garbage in the Bay and rivers running into it.

 The beach would run between Bella Vista and Calidonia, at a cost of $120 million, has sparked a debate as Fábrega plows ahead with the intention of having the beach ready in 2022.

The last time the population the coastal area for recreation was in the early 1960s

Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute Stanley Heckadon says the proposal is technically viable since there has been some advance in the sanitation of rivers in Panama City.

The first stage  of the  sanitation program for  the city and the Panama Bay has  been  18 years in the making   with the first stage, from San Felipe to Tocumen airport, with a  billion-dollar investment

The scientist explained that the marine waters come from east to west, that is, from Tocumen towards the center of Panama City, and all those waters have to be treated.

 “The important thing is sanitation…, I think that for the city of Panama to recover its beach, which was lost in 1960, would add to people's quality of life,” he said adding that if it is not done at this time, pollution will be greater in the coming decades.

, Tatiana de Janon, former head of the Sanitation Program, said that the water quality of the bay has already improved greatly, and will continue to improve with the work they have to continue doing sanitation in the basin of the Matasnillo river and the areas of Calidonia and Bella Vista.

"I think it's an excellent project for citizens to appreciate the sea even more and take better care of it, not throwing garbage on the street or in the rivers," he said.

He said that the recovery of the beach will depend on how much the City Hall works hand in hand with the sanitation program; of the support given by the Government to it; that sewage systems continue to be operated with the same quality level of quality they had so far; and that the authorities have a comprehensive education and trash plan.

Current reality
Rafael Díaz, head of the Coordination Unit of the Sanitation program of Panama, said that said the entity is in total readiness to act to help the mayor’s project.  but the definitive solution to clean up the Matasnillo river basin, which flows into the  Bay. must be taken into consideration.

Since 2006 they have been coordinating the development of works to eliminate the sources of pollution in the Bay including the design and construction of the Balboa Avenue coastal interceptor system and the construction project for the improvements to the sanitary sewer system of Punta Paitilla and Punta Pacifica, in the San Francisco district.