Costa Rica has Doubled Their Forest Cover : A Breath of Fresh Air

The Costa Rica Star
By Carol Blair V.

Here’s something brilliant that Costa Rica has achieved in the last thirty years: They have doubled their forest cover. Half of Costa Rica’s land surface is now covered with trees. Those trees can absorb a massive amount of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere – and we can all breathe easier for it. Bravo!
No one would have predicted this outcome back in 1983 when a meager 26% of Costa Rica had forest cover. Uncontrolled logging had led to a catastrophic reduction in trees compared to the 1940s when three-quarters of the country was covered in lush rainforests and native woodlands. As a result of a continued environmental focus by policymakers and government decision-makers, 2019‘s statistics indicate that forest cover has increased to 52% — just about double the 1983 levels.
How is it that the country that can’t get their roads repaired, their government uncorrupted, their indigenous people integrated, their economy prospering, etc., was able to knock this issue right out of the park?
It seems that Costa Rica understands one fundamental concept that many other countries do not. That concept sated simply is this: A healthy economy cannot exist without a healthy environment. The Costa Rican economy is based on this premise. Keep the environment healthy, and Costa Rica will remain a tourist magnet, bringing in unlimited tourist dollars, employment opportunities, and international travelers who can learn lessons they take home with them at the end of their vacations.
Dr. Robert Blasiak of the University of Tokyo has been studying Costa Rica for many years. This is his conclusion as to Costa Rica’s environmental successes.
“The underlying recognition that a healthy economy cannot exist over the long-term without a healthy environment seems to have found resonance in Costa Rica and laid the foundations for decades of environmentally conscious decision-making within both the public and private sectors. Perhaps one of Costa Rica’s greatest contributions to the world can be its simple demonstration that it is possible for a nation to establish a system of environmental ethics shared by the public and private sectors that carries benefits for the entire country.”
AMEN.


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