Hi folks, I thought this earlier post might be worth repeating.  Matt

Why is deforestation occurring in Manuel Antonio?

Manuel Antonio has become perhaps the single most important tourism destination in Costa Rica.  The Cost Rican Tourism Board (ICT) estimates that one in four international tourists visits Manuel Antonio.  Manuel Antonio is so popular because of the existence of the Manuel Antonio National Park which combines beautiful protected beaches and lush tropical rainforest.  The forests in the area teem with wildlife such as sloths, monkeys, parrots, and toucans.  The park is also the largest protected area for an endemic sub-species of monkey called the Costa Rican Red-Backed Squirrel Monkey, or Mono Tití.  Manuel Antonio has become a major attraction and has helped promote the tourism industry in Costa Rica as a whole.  Nature tourism is now big business for Costa Rica accounting for 8% of GDP and 20% of the foreign exchange produced by exports.  Tourism is a $1.5 billion a year industry for Costa Rica, with 1 in 4 tourists visiting Manuel Antonio!

Once a sleepy backwater (only about 15 years ago) foreign capital has now moved into Manuel Antonio take advantage of the fact that many foreign visitors who fell in love with the place as tourists now want to buy a little piece of paradise to keep for their own.  The real estate market is booming and Manuel Antonio is starting to suffer from its success.  Wanting to own a dream home in paradise is not a problem per se.  The problem lies in the fact that your neighbor wants a dream home, and her neighbor, and his neighbor next to him, etc.  Currently the municipal government has not put any limitations on lot size for building, thus many houses and condos are being built on the entire lot with little left over for the sloths and monkeys.  The irony is that real estate web sites promote the wonderful biological diversity of the area yet the very selling and development of these properties is systematically destroying the jungle which is what attracted people to Manuel Antonio in the first place!  Google “Manuel Antonio real estate” and you will see what I mean.

Almost all of the money to develop these condos and trophy homes is coming from the United States, Canada, and Europe, in that order I believe.  Most of the real estate agents and developers are from those three places as well.  Thus, the sleepy backwater of Manuel Antonio is being subjected to an onslaught of foreign capital which makes good money flipping houses for foreign buyers yet leaves a destroyed natural paradise behind.

However all is not lost!  Costa Rica and local Manuel Antonians had the foresight to create the Manuel Antonio National Park and strong environmental legislation.  If the laws protecting the forests are applied we can protect forest corridors which are essential to the survival of the area’s wildlife and for the biological health of the park …and that is exactly what the Fund for Costa Rica is trying to do!

How is deforestation occurring in Manuel Antonio?

Costa Rica has pretty strict laws regarding the protection of its forests.  Basically, neither secondary nor primary growth forests are allowed to be cut down.  Thus, under most circumstances it is not legal to remove the forest to build condos, homes, hotels, or parking lots.  This is an extremely valuable tool in the fight to conserve the country’s biodiversity.  The problem, however, is enforcement.  The local Environmental Ministry (MINAE) offices are desperately under-funded.  There are few resources for staff and even less for gasoline and equipment.  Given the millions of dollars coming in to urbanize the forests, MINAE finds itself in a difficult position, much like the little boy with his thumb in the dike.  Thus developers have discovered that they can remove the forest and break ground on a project and often MINAE doesn’t have the resources to come out to investigate.  Even when they do investigate it is difficult to prove that a forest was there in the first place.

Cutting Down a Forest in Manuel Antonio- Step 1: Socolar

Socolar is a term which means “cutting out all the underbrush and plants in a forest”.  When a developer has decided that he wants to illegally build on a patch of land currently covered by forest, the first thing he does is hire one or more campesinos to move in with machetes and remove every single plant except the trees.  Thus, where once there was a beautiful, thick, and vibrant forest only a stand of trees is left.

Cutting Down a Forest in Manuel Antonio- Step 2: Cut Down or “Ring” the trees

After a forest has been socolado (only the trees are left) then the trees are cut or “ringed”.   Ringing a tree means cutting a ring in the bark around the trunk.  This will kill the tree and the tree is subsequently cut.

Cutting Down a Forest in Manuel Antonio- Step 3: Remove the Evidence

As soon as the trees are cut then they are removed and ground is broken on the project.  If MINAE isn’t able to get to the site before the trees are removed then it is very difficult to prove to a judge in court that the forest was there in the first place.  This is why it is so important for inspectors from SETENA (see post from Nov. 23) to accurately state the land use at the time environmental viability is granted for a development project.  It is also worth investigating why so many forested properties are listed as “cropland” in the Costa Rican National Property Registry.  If a SETENA inspector does not state that forest is on the property and the Property Registry does not state that a property is forested, even with aerial photographs it is difficult for MINAE to prove that a forest was there unless they have trees.

The Fund for Costa Rica is working closely with MINAE to help stop illegal deforestation.  FCR has established regular patrols in the Manuel Antonio area to identify illegal “sócola” and cutting as soon as it happens.  We take pictures and GPS points, and we inform MINAE immediately so that they can halt the deforestation and be able to present proof of the damage done in a court of law.