The successful cooperation with Costa Rica on climate policy and biological diversity is being further strengthened. The Federal Environment Ministry is supporting a new project geared towards conserving the unique natural habitats and biological diversity of Costa Rica with up to 6 million euro.
Through its commitment to biodiversity conservation Costa Rica plays an important role in nature conservation. Its goal is to be among the first countries to meet the goals of the Strategic Plan of the international Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Costa Rica is home to a host of different micro climates and ecosystems. In terms of biological diversity the country which is as small as Lower Saxony ranks among the top 20 countries worldwide.
Costa Rica has recognised the value of nature conservation. The country’s wealth of nature and biodiversity attract 1.5 million tourists every year. Today, a good quarter of its land area is under nature conservation (reserves, national parks and protected areas). Approximately 160 protected areas are distributed throughout the country: coastal areas, islands, rainforest, cloud forests, dry forests, vulcanoes, reliefs, rivers and waterfalls.
Networking these areas presents a challenge and is vital for the survival of many species as certain species migrate annually during the dry and the wet season. Many other species in isolated habitats are threathened by climate change. Corridors between biotopes are to be established to form a biotope network which allows these species to move freely to new areas.
As part of its national biocorridor programme Costa Rica is currently working on improving the biotope network. The project under the International Climate Initiative (ICI) supports Costa Rica in doing so. Within the framework of this project, project partners elaborate guidelines and procedures for the designation of biocorridors and the identification of protection measures. Local administrations, communities, the private sector, farmers and forest owners will be integrated into the planning process and sustainable financing instruments for implementation will be developed to ensure sustainability.