The Tribune

A LEADING environmentalist in The Bahamas said Costa Rica has shown every country in the Caribbean that preserving natural beauty pays, appealling to those who treasure flora, fauna and natural wonders above t-shirts and trinkets.

Lindsey McCoy, who was appointed CEO of the fast-growing environmental movement Save The Bays earlier this year, commented on the winning model Costa Rica has created after returning from her most recent re-discovery tour of the country that extends from the Atlantic to the Pacific with a central mountain range overlooking its coastlines.

“And with only a tiny fraction of the world’s land mass, Costa Rica holds 6 per cent of the world’s biodiversity,” said Ms McCoy.

“The jungles, the forests, the monkeys, the crocodiles – everything still has the feeling of being a little wild. Perhaps because they have done such a remarkable job of preserving what they have, especially the forests, they have created an oasis that appeals to anyone who wants to experience a place where the beauty of the natural world is all around you. We can do that here, too. We have so much to work with.”

Costa Rica was not always the poster country of good environmental management. In the 1960s and 70s, it was paying the price for deforestation to make room for cattle grazing. Coastlines were eroding. The once majestic land along with the variety of flora and fauna was declining faster in 20 years than it had in hundreds, sacrificing its majesty for the sake of farming and, in particular, a few wealthy farming families.

The political will to reverse the process, said Ms McCoy, spawned more than a decade of revival. Costa Rica signed on to 45 international treaties, created and funded a new environment and energy department, enacted reams of legislation with strong legs and regulations, won the buy-in from hoteliers and others in hospitality.

That about-face netted dramatic results.

Today, Ms McCoy noted, 25 per cent of the land is in national parks. Ninety-two per cent of the electricity is generated by renewable sources.

“Even more exciting is that once their policy changed and they realised the value of protected land they were able to restore much of the forests they had lost to logging and agriculture,” said McCoy.

“I have always respected Costa Rica for its focus on eco-tourism and promoting its natural resources, but when I started reading more about the country I realised its commitment to the environment goes even deeper ... clean energy, paying for environmental services and policy to go carbon neutral.”

It was Costa Rica, she recalled, that created the Certification for Sustainable Tourism, now a badge of honour sought after by those in the hospitality industry in many countries.

“The message is that Costa Rica took action to restore and protect what it knew made it a desirable tourist destination and a great place to live,” said Ms McCoy.

“The promise of a quick dollar from a developer paled by comparison to the promise of a life of beauty for the country.

“They understood that you did not have to give up jobs and economic growth to achieve tourism success. Just the opposite. Create the right environment and they will come.”