Karen Tiburcio

Mr. Keith Schoen

10
th
Grade English
21/11/2011
Tragedy of the Common: An Annotated Bibliography
Torres,Ruben.WRI. Coastal capital: Economic Valuation of Coral Reefs in the Dominican
Republic. World Resources Institute. April 2010. WEB. November 2011.
Marine Ecosystems are very important for the people and the economy of the Dominican
Republic. The natural resources, in this case the coral reefs, are the main tourist attraction,
and they provide a home for their native fish. Unfortunately, these habitats are endangered
by pollution, overfishing and many other factors
The World Resources Institute is a reliable source because it has a good claim that is clear,
easy to prove, supports its topic, and it is complex .The supporting evidence is reliable
because it connects back to the claim ,its clear, and shows specific details about the topic .
It is not objective because it is debatable. It leans towards one opinion and that can be
debated.
This article supports my topic because it talks about The Tragedy of the Commons
occurring in the Dominican Republic, and it shows an specific situation occurring with the
coral reefs ,which is the common, and the place where they are endangered.
W. Stoffer,Richard. Fao. When Fish Is Water: Food Security and Fish in a Coastal
Community in the Dominican Republic. Fao. Corporate Document Repository. N.D. WEB.
November 10
th
2010.
The people from the coastal community of Buen Hombre, Dominican Republic, have been
receiving threats for the past 20 years. Capitalists from other cities are hired to go there and
drag illegal nets across delicate reefs and end up killing thousands of fish per year.
This article is not very reliable because it has a simple claim though, the claim makes sense
and relates to the rest of the information in the paper. The evidence is also reliable because
it specifically relates to the topic, and the claim. It is objective because it talks about a
series of events that happen through the year in that community that ruin the marine
ecosystems, and its leaning towards one opinion.
This article would be good for my topic because its talking about a Tragedy of Commons
that occurs with the coral reefs in that community in DR, and it talks about how they are
important for the communitys survival.
McGoodwin, James. Understanding the Cultures of Fishing communities: A Key to Fisheries
Management and Food Security. Rome. Fao. 2001. Print.
The nature of the marine ecosystem that is been taken the most possible advantage from is
what tells the cultural characteristics of the fishing communities. The endurance of some
marine species is also important to the endurance of the culture. The cultures of fishing
communities is rooted to a particular marine ecosystem because they might have species
that are only born there. This also makes other communities and countries around depend
on them. Thats why if their marine ecosystem has problems, then the others will be
affected to.
It doesnt have a very good claim so its not very reliable, but it has specific details that
connect to the topic. It is debatable so its not objective. It also lists a lot fact that support
my topic.
I think this article will help me with my article because it has a lot of interesting facts that
relate to my topic. The details are very specific and it talks about ways that marine
ecosystems are affected by human activity.

N.A. Wastewater, Sewage and Sanitation. Unep. January 2008. WEB. November 10 2011.
Wastewater is any water that is contaminated by chemicals or pollution that comes out of
industries, factories, domestic residences ect. Sewage is wastewater that is contaminated by
feces and urine that usually comes from communities. Sewage and wastewater realesed into
the ocean affect human health and the environment in many ways. Contamination of marine
environment by sewage can affect the human health because if the water is contaminated
and we eat he fish that live in the contaminated water, we can get diseases from that. Also
swimming in those waters can cause us to get diseases too. This can also affect the
environment because if wastewater with large amount of chemical elements, is realesed
into the oceans it can kill the marine species.
This article has a complex, clear claim. It relates to its topic and it has specific details and
examples that support the topic and claim. This article is not objective because its leaning
towards one opinion. It has good supporting evidence and the information is clear and
logic.
This article would be very good for my topic because it teaches me the threats of
contaminating the water ,and it gives me examples of how humans and the environment are
affected by the water contamination. This talks about the common which is the oceans and
the tragedy which is contamination.

N.A. Dominican Republic.WRI. World Resource Institute. June 2010. WEB. November 2010.

The northern Eastern part of the Dominican Republic has a river the biggest river runoff in
the country. Since there are a lot of freshwater and sediments being delivered near the coral
reefs which makes their growth limited. In Montecristi is the largest barrier coral formation
with 64 km of length. About 80% of the Dominican coral reefs are threatened by human
activity,artesanial overfishing, unemployment and of the coastal communities to feed their
families.
This article has a complex, clear and strong claim that sums up the whole article. It relates
to my specific topic and lists lots of good facts that support my topic. It also sites where
they got all of their information, and you can see it is a reliable website.
This is very good for my research paper because it talks about the place where we visited
and we experienced and saw the river runoff and how it contaminates the local beaches. It
relates to my common and my tragedy too.
J. Goreau, Thomas. Coral Reefs, Sewage, and Water Quality Standards. October 1994. WEB.
November 2011.
Coral reefs are the most important marine natural resource for most of the Caribbean
Islands because the economy of these islands mostly depends on fishing and tourism. In
order to protect the coral reefs, you need to protect the coastal infrastructure and
employment. The causes of reef damage are caused by nature (hurricanes, erosion, climate
change) and human activity(overfishing, illegal nets, pollution). In order to protect the coral
reefs all over the world, we would need everyones participation. People would need to stop
using illegal nets and being careful while they do in water activities.
This article has a complex claim ,and it relates to the main topic. It is very factual and it
gives a lot of specific details and solutions for my problem. It cant be debatable because
its a very factual article and the solutions they give you are not things you can debate.
I think this article would be very good for my topic because it has good supporting
evidence that talks about my topic. It talks about human activity being the main cause of
coral reef damage and it shows me the exact activities that cause the damage. I could use
this to identify the human activity that is damaging the reefs in the D.R.

Tavarez, Francisco. Local and External Fishermen. Director of Parque Nacional Montecristi.
Montecristi,D.R. November 16 2011.
The local beach on Montecristi is dirty and contaminated in the mornings by the trash and
sediments that come from the Rio Yaque. In the afternoon the wind cleanses the beach and
it changes from a grayish color to its normal blue. The 80% coral reefs on the Montecristi
area are affected by the erosion and pollution that comes from the Rio Yaque. The things
we do up here in the mountains ends up on the river and affects the corals.
I think he reliable because he lives here and he is able to experience and deal with these
problems. He also has to think about solutions for this problem too because he is affected
by the issue because he lives in that community. The way he talks is genuine and you can
see how hes been living through the contamination in Montecristi area. He didnt give
many specific facts,but he covered well the general topic.
I think he was a good source because unlike our other expert that lives in the city, he lives
in a community where the coral reefs are affected by water in lands and are contaminated
by pollution and erosion which is my specific topic.
Luis, Angel. Cleansing Fish. Environmental consultant. Montecristi,D.R. November 16
2011.
Large companies that dump chemicals into ocean water have to pay huge fines because that
causes a big environmental damage. There are various types of fish that help clean the
ocean from the sediments that come from erosion. The lionfish, even if it is a invasive
specie in the Dominican, it helps clean the coral reefs. Also Sea Urchins eat the mud or
sand from erosion and help coral reefs to grow again. Cleansing fish have decreased 50%
after the lionfishs appearance.
He was very confident when he talked and he answered peoples questions without
hesitation. It looked like he knew what he was talking about and that enjoys studying these
things. He said many specific facts about the fish population decreasement and he has
investigated a lot.
I think that cleansing fish are a solution to the problem of erosion affecting coral reefs
because like the urchins, they eat all the dirt bringing the corals back to life.