Costa Rica launches environmental initiatives.

• Author: Taylor, Dave
• Position: Environmental Intelligences

Costa Rica's new president Abel Pacheco announced in June an extensive plan to "transform Costa Rica into an ecological power," declaring a moratorium on new open-pit mining projects, cracking down on illegal logging, and designating new national parkland.

Costa Rica has a strong interest in promoting conservation, as tourism is the second-largest sector of the country's economy, after agriculture. One-quarter of the country has been granted protected status and nearly half of that is parkland. The new national park, the nation's 28th, will add 1,861 hectares to the 612,000 hectare park system.

An estimated 34 percent of the country's timber is harvested illegally, according to a 2001 government-commissioned study. The president's decree, which is legally binding, establishes a system to demarcate legally harvested timber and outlaws logging between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. on...