Biodiversity under threat in Costa Rica

The small Latin American country of Costa Rica is generally known as ‘environmentally friendly’, and therefore has become a paradise for thousands of ecotourists. The Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT, Instituto Costarrecense de Turismo) has initiated an expensive advertising and image promoting campaign with the slogan ‘Costa Rica – no artificial ingredients’. The target groups are North American citizens (USA and Canada), between 25 and 54 years of age, who earn $75,000 or more a year, and have a university education (Tico Times, 7 Aug. 1998). In 1999, the number of tourists reached 1 million (Tico Times, 17 Dec. 1999). A quarter of the country is considered to be protected (see Fig. 11.1). The World Bank and the Global Environmental Facility (GEF) have spent millions of dollars to support official nature conservation measures and the responsible governmental departments. NGOs provide information and environmental education on site.

Nevertheless, the current condition of the biodiversity in Costa Rica is disappointing. Despite regulations, management initiatives and international financial support, Costa Rica, formerly densely forested, has become an agricultural country. Virgin forests have become rare and are found nowadays only in remote or protected areas. Since the arrival of multinational companies, large areas have been transformed into monocultures, resulting in the pollution of both soil and water.