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Manuel Antonio is one of Costa Rica's most popular tourist destinations. The protected areas of Manuel Antonio are the country's most visited National Park, as well as it's smallest. The intense agricultural development which has occurred here over the past several decades has left the park as a biological island, stranding its hundreds of tropical species, placing them in extreme danger of losing their remaining foothold in this extremely bio-diverse region. While recent tourism development has given these natural resources a social and economic value that Manuel Antonio has never before enjoyed, this same development is also putting many species at risk.

Playa El Rey is the most recent addition to the Manuel Antonio National Park, having been incorporated into the protected area 6 years ago. It is a narrow stretch of beach 14 kilometers long. It has been severly modified, with much of its orginal forerst replaced by Cocount Palms, a non-native and invasive species. It's mangroves have also been affected where rice plantations have been planted. Mangroves are one of the most important ecosystems on earth, providing many other services for both land based and marine ecosystems. This beach is also important as a marine turtle nesting site. The reforestation efforts proposed here will provide benifit to these endangered species as well, as Coconut Palm Tree roots prevent proper nesting behaviour for female marine turtles.