The natural resources of Costa Rica most important are land use, wilderness areas, water and mineral resources. Costa Rica is a Central American country located south of Nicaragua and north of Panama.
It is considered one of the places on the planet with the greatest diversity of living organisms, since with an area of 51,100 kmtwo, Only 0.03% of the earth's surface is home to 4% of the species (Rodríguez, 2011; CIA, 2015).
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Ugalde et al. (2009) distinguish 5 bioregions in the country, which are defined by elevation and climatic conditions. These are:
-North pacific (PN), with annual precipitation between 1,000 and 2,000 mm and temperatures between 18 and 34 ° C.
-South Pacific which has slightly lower rainfall and higher temperatures compared to the NP.
-Caribbean slope, defined by persistent rainfall throughout the year and high temperatures, which produces high humidity.
-Middle lands, at elevations between 700 and 1700 masl, characterized by cool temperatures ranging between 18 and 30 ° C.
-Highlands, at elevations greater than 1700 meters above sea level where we find cloud forests and colder temperatures.
The great biological diversity of Costa Rica is due to its position between two great land masses, its irregular topography and its tropical climate. It is estimated that this country has around 11,000 plant species, of which 9,555 were already known in 2006 (Rodríguez, 2011).
In addition, 1,239 species of butterflies, 205 species of mammals, 850 species of birds and more than 100,000 species of invertebrates have been recorded (Vaughan, 1993).
A factor that gives even more importance to the wildlife of Costa Rica is the fact that a large part of the species present are threatened or in danger of extinction (Figure 2).
Percentage of vertebrate and plant species with threatened and endangered populations (Rodríguez, 2011).
The main agricultural products of Costa Rica are bananas, coffee, sugar, and beef. Agroforestry or agroforestry is commonly practiced by combining one or more crops such as coffee (Coffea arabica L.), cocoa (Theobrorna cacao L .), or sugar cane (Saccharum cvs L.) with shade from native trees to increase yield and improve soil conditions (Somarriba and Beer, 1987).
Regarding livestock, the main product of Costa Rica is cattle. Chacon (2015) mentions that in the country there are a total of 93,017 agricultural farms, of which 37,171 have cattle destined for meat production (42.1%), milk production (25.6%) and dual purpose (32%). It should be noted that the livestock sector contributes 28.59% of the country's total greenhouse gas emissions. (Chacón and Quesada, 2015).
In the last century, Costa Rica experienced one of the highest rates of deforestation among countries in the world, mainly due to the transformation of native forests into agricultural fields, the country lost half of its forest cover between 1950 and 1990.
In the early 1990s, only 6 percent of the country's land area was intact forests. However, this trend reversed with the growth of a system of national parks, which in recent decades have preserved more than 10 percent of the country's primary forests (Chase, 1998).
In theory, the most prominent direct environmental benefit of ecotourism is its incentive value for the preservation of natural and semi-natural environments (Weaver, 1999).
Currently, Costa Rica has more than two dozen national parks, reserves and wildlife refuges distributed throughout the country..
Costa Rica had an enormous expansion in foreign tourism between 1987 and 1993, as the visit of foreign tourists to Costa Rica's national parks increased by almost 500 percent (Menkhaus and Lober, 1996)..
The protected areas of Costa Rica have been very important in the current development of the country since they have encouraged tourism.
They have also provided ecosystem services through the conservation of native ecosystems, have improved infrastructure in remote areas, have provided opportunities for environmental education, and have led to poverty reduction in neighboring communities (Andam et al. 2010).
However, some environmental impacts derived from ecotourism are recognized, such as pollution, habitat modification, social impacts and cultural deterioration. Despite the potential negative impacts, many countries such as Costa Rica have adopted ecotourism as a source of economic development (Boza, 1993).
In Costa Rica, the System of Protected Wild Areas is made up of 169 areas (Figure 3) that cover 26.21% of the continental national territory and 0.09% of the marine extension (SINAC 2009). Most of the area under conservation is under the management of NPs that constitute 12% of the country (Boza, 1993).
Figure 3. Protected Wild Areas of Costa Rica (SINAC, 2009).
Costa Rica does not currently produce oil, and aside from minor deposits of coal, no other sources of fossil fuel have been discovered..
However, Costa Rica is located in one of the rainiest areas on the planet and the water resources from the abundant rains have allowed the construction of several hydroelectric plants, which has made it self-sufficient in all energy needs, except oil products. For transport. (Velasco, 2002)
The first historical record of gold was in 1820 in the mining district esparza and montes de Aguacate. The first systematic exploitation of gold occurred in Rio Carate in 1978. Lead and silver were produced at the Santa Elena mine until 1933. (Villalata, 1986).
Gold extraction is one of the most destructive and polluting activities, which is why in 2002 Costa Rica prohibited the exploitation of new open pit gold mines (Cederstav 2002).
In conclusion, Costa Rica is a country that has opted for a more sustainable development through ecotourism and the preservation of its natural resources.
However, it still has many challenges ahead, such as the protection of its threatened species and the recovery of many natural areas fragmented by the bad practices of the past..
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