Verdant rainforests, illustrious culture, and a law forbidding the sale of sub-par coffee, Costa Rica is a Central American paradise enriched with impeccable biodiversity and environmental bliss.
With over 30 national parks, 200 volcanic formations (containing 5 active volcanoes), and over 500,000 diverse species, the country has championed the duty of conservation in a tireless manner – enforcing the protection of over a quarter of its land from potential exploitation.
A strong proponent of renewable energy, 99% of its electricity is generated via hydropower, wind, geothermal energy and solar, making it one of the most environmentally friendly countries on the planet.
Its efforts haven’t waned and only last month it announced that it will expand its protected ocean area from 2.7 percent to more than 30 percent of its territorial waters in an unprecedented bid to combat degradation. “The environmental impact of this expansion will be profound,” said Ana Gloria Guzmán, executive director of Conservation International, adding that “Extending the reach of the surrounding area… will help ensure safe passage for critical migratory marine species, many of which are endangered.”
Orange peel fertiliser
However, methods to ensure preservation and prevent the deterioration of the environment haven’t always been so conventional. For example, in the mid-’90s, 12,000 tons of orange peel were unloaded onto a barren pasture in a Costa Rican national park!
In 1997, Daniel Janzen and Winnie Hallwachs, both ecologists at the University of Pennsylvania, presented an offer to a local orange juice manufacturer located along the border of Área de Conservación Guanacaste, suggesting that if they donated part of its forested land, the company could deposit orange peel waste on barren land for biodegradation.
But a year after the contract was signed, a rival company won a lawsuit arguing the procedure had “defiled a national park”, consequently leaving the land overlooked for the next 15 years.
However, in 2013, Jonathan Choi, a senior studying ecology and evolutionary biology at Princeton, decided to evaluate the area, studying the effects of the operation.
“The site was more impressive in person than I could’ve imagined,” Choi said. “While I would walk over exposed rock and dead grass in the nearby fields, I’d have to climb through undergrowth and cut paths through walls of vines in the orange peel site itself.”
Choi’s research team evaluated two sets of soil samples to determine whether the orange peels enriched the soil’s nutrients – the differences they found were dramatic: “The area fertilized by orange waste had richer soil, more tree biomass, greater tree-species richness and greater forest canopy closure.”
Insect citizenship
One of Costa Rica’s defining characteristics is its interspersion of nature and wildlife within its culture, however, this was taken to another level when former mayor Edgar Mora granted official citizenship to insects, plants and trees!
Now known as “Ciudad Dulce”, or Sweet City, Curridabat (A suburb of San José) introduced this initiative to transform the area into a haven for urban wildlife. Grey, industrialised areas are now being subsumed by an influx of greenery and vegetation, allowing native wildlife to flourish.
“Years ago,” says Irene García Brenes of Curridabat Municipality “when we started talking about the need to recognise native bees as the centre of urban design, a member of the City Council asked: “How can we talk about bees when we are still dealing with drinkable water issues in our city?”
While her party believed the relationship was clear, it was obvious an alternative approach had to be taken to illustrate the effects. Now that the whole spectrum of living organisms are considered citizens in their own right, this allows planning to adapt to their benefit and displays the vital role they play in the health and wellbeing of the city.
Brene added that this feature could act as a “blueprint that can be reproduced to generate prosperity in other cities around the world”, stating that this initiative started with a simple question: “How can we add value to the planet instead of subtracting it?”.
It’s patently clear wildlife conservation is a central tenet of Costa Rica’s Pura Vida philosophy. With such bountiful natural beauty and diverse ecology, who can be surprised?
The popularity of Costa Rica is soaring this year! Smooth travel, easy connections and open borders, this beautiful country is looking to be the Hottest Wildlife Destination of 2022. Contact us on enquiries@odyssey-world.co.uk to learn more about Costa Rica and plan your next authentic travel experience!