When you think about the countries keen on energy efficiency and renewable energies, Costa Rica is one of the first ones that pop in your mind. In the last 5 years 99% of Costa Rica renewable energy has been 99% produced by solar, hydroelectric, and geothermal power mostly. This is possible mainly due to Costa Rica’s geographic advantage over the other countries, essentially due to its high concentration per capita of rivers, dams, and volcanoes.
More than a decade ago, the former administration of Costa Rica announced the national goal to become the second carbon-neutral country in the world. This proposal, officially presented to the United Nations Framework for Climate Change Convention (UNFCCC) in 2010, has the aim for Costa Rica to become 100% carbon neutral by 2021.
The concern on eradicating single-use plastic came up in 2017 after the country lived on renewable energy for two whole months. Now, the country intends to be the first completely carbon-free country in the world! Way to go, Costa Rica!
Costa Rica – The biodiversity heaven
Being very rich in biodiversity, Costa Rica has shown it is incredibly environmentally friendly by actively reforesting the country. In addition, Costa Rica also selected a third of the country to become natural reserves. In fact, since the 80’s, the government has realized the importance of natural energy sources. And has since made several efforts to underline the importance of this environmental protection. Costa Rica government has closed zoos, reforested some areas, and also started denominating protected areas.
It is safe to say that for the last years Costa Rica has generated 99% of total energy by using renewable sources. In fact, Costa Rica was the stage for the biggest hydroelectric plant in Central America to be born. Moreover, they have other smaller hydroelectric plants, along with several wind turbines and a solar plant.
Life without Plastic
After the rise of these environmental issues, Costa Rica started to have some concerns regarding the usage of plastic. In fact, last year during the World Environment Day, the country declared its intention to become plastic free until 2021. Thus, ideally, plastic becomes replaced by other sources. These alternatives are made of reusable and recyclable materials (completely rejecting petroleum-based alternatives). To reach its goals, Costa Rica has the complete financial and environmental support of the United Nations Development Program. New laws, incentives, and measures to promote clean energy become implemented, aiming to reduce the country’s emission of carbon dioxide.
Taking the first steps to “Decarb” the country, the nation’s president announced the ban of fossil fuels. Costa Rica wants to become the first nation worldwide to live carbon free. The main concern on reducing these carbon emissions is, of course, public transportation. Carlos Quesada intends to completely remove gasoline and diesel from the countries public transportation system. Actually, these innovative ideas are getting the support of several sustainability experts. They claim this is a very big idea, for such a small country! In fact, most experts think this situation should be an example for the rest of the world.
If you are inspired by this article and want to get to know more about sustainable energy in Costa Rica, come and visit us at our Rapture Surfcamp in Costa Rica!
