Trust created to protect Cocos Island and the Seamounts in Costa RicaTrust for the Conservation and Management of Marine Protected Areas in Costa Rica (Coco Island National Park and Seamounts Marine Management Area)
- Details
- Published on Thursday, 09 February 2012 17:00
- Written by MarViva
(Publímetro). The conservation foundation MarViva today announced the creation of a trust of at least two million dollars that will be used to support the conservation of Costa Rica’s marine areas, especially Coco Island, a World Heritage Site.
At a press conference, MarViva president Roberto Artavia indicated that this trust with the private company Aldesa will be used to buy a patrol boat that will be donated to the Ministry of Security’s National Coast Guard Service.
Artavia also explained that it will be possible to invest in training for personnel on issues of biodiversity as well as scientific research.
This initiative will promote the protection of Coco Island, recognized globally as a World Heritage Site and one of the richest natural marine areas on the planet due to the presence of hundreds of species including sea turtles, sharks and corals, many of them unique in the world.
It will also encompass the Seamount Marine Management Area around Cocos Island, a feeding, resting and transit site for hundreds of species that move around the Pacific.
This area, created last March via a decree by Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla, is considered an "oasis" in the American Pacific and it is the second largest marine protected area in the region after the Galapagos Islands.
The main threats to Costa Rican marine areas are illegal fishing and shark finning, the practice of capturing sharks, cutting off their fins and throwing the body back into the sea.
The design of the trust will allow other organizations to make donations that MarViva hopes will also reach two million dollars.
At the press conference, Costa Rican Vice-minister of the Environment Ana Lorena Guevara stressed the importance of public-private partnerships for improving protection in the nation’s rich marine areas.
Guevara said that the Government has many goals to fulfill by 2014, including reaching agreements for marine protection and improving coordination in this aspect with countries such as Panama, Ecuador and Colombia, with which Costa Rica has marine borders.
She also stated that there is a project for the creation of an extensive and strong marine protected area system, similar to the one that covers nearly 30% of the nation’s territory with national parks and conservation areas.
