Category: News
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Virilla Bridge Continues To Create Traffic Havoc
Benjamín Sandino is perhaps the most hated man in Costa Rica. As the national director of the Consejo Nacional de Vialidad (Conavi), he has had to close down completely the most important highway in the country, not once, but twice in the period of two weeks and to fix the same problem.
We are talking about the repair work at the Virilla bridge on the autopista General Cañas, a problem that has plagued the westbound lanes of the bridge for more than a year, as work crews made constant an non-lasting repairs over the time.
Two weekends ago, Sandino decided to close the autopista for 52 continuous hours to, once and for all, replace the metal plate that spans the north half of the bridge.
But that work lasted a total of 48 hours, as heavy traffic loosened the plate again and all the work and efforts were for not.
During the past week, temporary day closures and complete night closures, allowed work crews to prepare the bridge for the installation of a bean underneath the bridge to, hopefully, put an end to the all the traffic interruptions.
As such the autopista from the Juan Pablo II bridge in La Uruca to the La Castella, east of Cariari, has been closed since Saturday morning early and scheduled to re-open Monday morning at 6am, with all the repairs made and long lasting.
However, many Costa Ricans don’t have much faith in the work and that there will be no more interruptions or closures on the bridges. Some went as far as saying that they have more faith in former president, Rafael Angél Calderón, who is in the last days of a corruption and embezzlement trial, being re-elected than in Sandino and the Conavi.
The reality is that the bridge is the main link between San José and Alajuela and to points in Puntarenas and Guanacaste and the interruptions at the bridge have been a nightmare for many, with a heavy price paid in time and waster gasoline, as traffic has backed up for more than 2 hours on the alternate routes through Heredia and Santa Ana.
Costa Rican Airline Nature Air is role model for responsible tourism
By Shefali Lall
21 July 2009 [MEDIAGLOBAL]: Since 2004, the Costa Rican airline Nature Air has stood as the world’s first certified carbon-neutral airline. The airline has committed itself to limiting the negative effects of air travel on the environment through a variety of programs and initiatives that promote responsible tourism.
Air travel produces carbon dioxide emissions that intensify the greenhouse effect and consequently aggravate climate change. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Special Report on Aviation and the Global Atmosphere, “Although it is less than 100 years since the first powered flight, the aviation industry has undergone rapid growth and has become an integral and vital part of modern society. In the absence of policy intervention, the growth is likely to continue. It is therefore highly relevant to consider the current and possible future effects of aircraft engine emissions on the atmosphere.”
Nature Air has done just that. The airline seeks to counteract 100 percent of all its flight emissions through projects to improve fuel efficiency, protect and conserve tropical forests, safeguard biological corridors, and advocate environmental funding for local communities. “We are always thinking, ‘what more can we do?’” Nature Air representative Ronald Jimenez told MediaGlobal.
Nature Air, which currently operates flights throughout Central America, minimizes its carbon footprint through the use of fuel-efficient twin-engine fleets, controlled aircraft weight, and careful route planning.
Through the use of precise calculations on carbon emissions over a 12-month period from all flights, regardless of the number of passengers per flight, Nature Air determines the carbon dioxide emissions from one galloon of fuel. The calculation methods followed are processed through the Forestry Financing Department of the Costa Rican Government and consistent with guidelines established by the IPCC.
Once Nature Air has computed its fuel consumption and carbon emissions, it implements and invests in environmental projects required for sufficient carbon offsetting. The airline’s not-for-profit Carbon Offset Program directs its funds to reforestation projects throughout Costa Rica. Nature Air has also signed agreements with Fondo Nacional de Financiamiento Forestal, the Costa Rican Forestry Financing Department of the Ministerio de Ambiente, Energía y Telecomunicaciones, and the Ministry in charge of Environment and Energy.
Currently, Nature Air works with projects that are supported by the government of Costa Rica, which guarantees that the projects have acquired proper certification.
Nature Air also supports several initiatives in Costa Rica geared toward social responsibility and sustainable tourism, including the employment of local people for both administrative and operational positions, as well as the recycling of paper, plastics, and oils in office locations.
The airline has also founded Aerotica, Costa Rica’s first alternative fuel station that utilizes bio-fuel, and the NatureKids Foundation, an organization that teaches English language skills and self-empowerment techniques to the local communities. “When our company was started, our CEO believed that we should return something to our country, Costa Rica,” Jimenez told MediaGlobal. “We’re also teaching the people how to recycle and how to save energy,” Jimenez added.
Mexico beats Costa Rica on penalties
CHICAGO (AP) — Mexico squeezed past Costa Rica on penalties on Thursday to set up a CONCACAF Gold Cup final against its archrival, the United States.
The game finished 1-1 after extra time after two goals in the closing minutes of regulation time, before Mexico goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa pulled off a vital save in the shootout and Carlos Vela converted the winning penalty.
It will be Mexico’s sixth trip to the Gold Cup final, with its only loss coming two years ago at the hands of the Americans. The final is Sunday at the Meadowlands in New Jersey.
“We’re very happy as a team. This was a struggle against a very good team, but now we are through to the final,” Ochoa said.
Mexico blew several chances to put the game away in the second half and in the first period of extra time. But El Tri were faultless in the shootout, converting all their spotkicks while Ochoa pulled off his key block.
The decisive penalty came on Costa Rica’s third shot. Froylan Ledezma, whose goal in the 93rd minute sent the game into extra time, put his shot on target but Ochoa dived to his left and knocked the ball away with his hands.
Sunday’s final is sure to be highly charged, as all games between the United States and Mexico are. That the two have a World Cup qualifier Aug. 12 at Azteca — where the Americans have never won — only adds to the drama.
“We’re not focusing on that right now, we’re focusing on our next match,” Ochoa said. “What’s important is the match coming now, and we need to play well against them before we can start looking forward to (Aug. 12).”
At least Mexico will have its coach back. Javier Aguirre’s three-game suspension for his altercation with Panama’s Ricardo Phillips during group play ended with Thursday night’s game.
Though Mexico had few of its regular starters — like the United States in the first semifinal — any victory these days is big. El Tri has had a succession of coaches, bad losses and a surprisingly slow start to World Cup qualifying. Mexico is fourth in the CONCACAF region right now, with only the top three teams getting automatic spots in South Africa next year.
“This win tonight in this tournament is going to energize us,” Aguirre said through a translator.
Mexico had a chance to go ahead in the 56th minute when a penalty was awarded for handball against Costa Rica captain Freddy Fernandez. But Miguel Sabah’s shot was low and easily stopped by Ticos goalkeeper Keilor Navas.
Mexico finally broke through in the 88th minute when Guillermo Franco scored from the edge of the 6-yard box. Navas swatted at the ball, but it bounced backward and over the goal line.
Mexico’s celebrations were short-lived. Three minutes into stoppage time and seconds from the final whistle, Alvaro Saborio headed the ball forward and Ledezma beat Juan Carlos Valenzuela for it. Ochoa had no chance to stop the fierce shot from 10 yards, and the game went to extra time.
Bill would tax gambling and sports betting in Costa Rica
Within the next two weeks, the Costa Rica Finance Ministry will send a bill to the Legislative Assembly proposing a 2 percent tax on income earned by the gambling, gaming and betting industry. The ministry estimates that the tax would generate up to $85 million for the government coffers if passed.
Total income in the gaming industry is calculated by money earned by casinos, as well as by the online betting industry, which includes gambling games like poker as well as betting on sports. There are 46 operating casinos in Costa Rica as well as 300 gambling-related businesses, including call centers that receive calls for gambling and betting purposes.
If the bill is passed, a regulatory body would ensure that gambling locations and affiliates are licensed and honor the new tax. The regulatory body would be comprised of Finance Ministry and other financial, security and tourism officials.
Though the anticipated financial gains of the tax would pump a large sum of money into the Costa Rican state, companies and employees within the gaming industry are concerned about potential ramifications. Gambling has seen significant drops in revenue in 2009 and the tax would further reduce overall earnings.
Jorge Hidalgo, vice president of the Costa Rican Association of Casinos, said the industry is among the hardest hit by the recession. “Activity has fallen about 35 percent, and in addition to that we have fewer work hours and have had to let go about 500 employees,” he said.
The bill is anticipated to reach the Legislative Assembly on Aug. 3.
Honduras talks postponed, Arias has new proposal
TEGUCIGALPA (Reuters) – Honduras’ de facto government said on Wednesday a new round of talks aimed at defusing the country’s political crisis had been delayed and that it was waiting for a new proposal from mediator Costa Rica.
“I am waiting for a new proposal” from mediator Costa Rican President Oscar Arias, Carlos Lopez, Honduras’ interim foreign minister and negotiator, told local television. “We are waiting for a call.”
(Reporting by Simon Gardner, Esteban Israel and Gustavo Palencia; editing by Mohammad Zargham)
Costa Rica government says Honduras talks to resume on Wed
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (Reuters) – Talks to resolve the political crisis in Honduras will resume on Wednesday, a source from the Costa Rican government serving as a mediator between ousted President Manuel Zelaya and the interim government told Reuters on Sunday.
The source, requesting anonymity, said the interim government of Roberto Micheletti requested 72 hours to study a proposal put forward by Costa Rican President Oscar Arias.
(Reporting by Ana Isabel Martinez; Writing by Mica Rosenberg)
Costa Rica President Arias: Stop reckless funding of Latin American militaries
Costa Rican President Oscar Arias, Nobel Peace Prize winner and current mediator of the Honduran standoff, had an interesting op-ed piece in the Washington Post last week.
Arias writes that the current Honduran conflict is not an anomaly but the natural outgrowth of governments spending more on their militaries than on the basic human needs of their people. The Honduran conflict, says Arias, “demonstrates that the combination of powerful militaries and fragile democracies creates a terrible risk.”
“Until we improve this balance,” Arias continues, “we will always leave open the door to those who would obtain power through force — whether a little or a great deal, approved by the majority or only by a few.
Costa Rica abolished its own army in 1948. Oscar Arias was elected to a second term as President of Costa Rica in 2006.
Court rules on Costa Rica, Nicaragua issue
The International Court of Justice Monday gave both Costa Rica and Nicaragua partial victories in their border dispute over the San Juan River.
The world court at The Hague in the Netherlands ruled Costa Rica has commercial navigational rights on the river under the 1858 Treaty between the two Central American countries.
However, the court’s ruling posted on its Web site also said Nicaragua has the right to require Costa Rican vessels to check in at Nicaraguan posts at both ends of their route on the river and that passengers be required to carry passports or identification documents.
The court ruled people, including tourists traveling on the San Juan river on Costa Rican vessels, are not required to obtain Nicaraguan visas or buy Nicaraguan tourist cards.
In addition, the court said, local inhabitants on the Costa Rican bank have the right to navigate the river for purposes of “the essential needs of everyday life which require expeditious transportation.” Nicaragua is to respect the rights of Costa Ricans living along the river bank to fish for subsistence purposes.
Official Costa Rican vessels can use the river “in specific situations” to provide essential services to its citizens but not to carry out police functions, including transporting personnel between police border posts, the court ruled.
Nicaragua has the right to issue departure clearance certificates to Costa Rican vessels but not to charge for them, the court said.
Nicaragua also can impose timetables for navigation on vessels navigating the river and require Costa Rican vessels to display the Nicaraguan flag if they have masts or turrets.
Costa Rica tops good life survey
Costa Rica, the country of fewer than 5m people sandwiched between Panama and Nicaragua, tops a new global ranking for combining a happy and long life with limited environmental degradation.
The country blends beautiful countryside, a great diversity of species and has long since got rid of its army. The merger of its energy and environment ministries has reversed deforestation and helped it produce 99 per cent of its energy from renewable sources. It has also scored highly, relative to other developing countries, in surveys of poverty, press freedom and democracy.
The Happy Planet Index, “Why good lives don’t have to cost the earth”, published on Saturday by the UK-based new economics foundation, combines measures of life expectancy, happiness and ecological footprint to assess the sustainability of growth in 143 countries.
That the top 10 in the list of “greenest and happiest” nations is dominated by Latin America might raise a few eyebrows, as the region is better known in the western imagination for its slums, inequality and coups. Zimbabwe languishes at the bottom along with a dozen other south, east and central African countries.
But the Latin Americans score highly, the report suggests, due to non-material aspirations and strong social capital among friends and relatives. The grim performance of the developed world might also prompt some westerners to cast doubt over the value of the report. Among the rich nations, the highest placed country is the Netherlands – but it manages only 43rd.
The UK languishes midway down the table – 74th, behind Germany, Italy and France but ahead of Japan and Ireland. The US fares particularly poorly, in 114th place. The western countries have long life expectancy and people are reasonably happy, but the countries suffer in the rankings due to their ecological footprint, reflecting high levels of consumption.
The challenge for the west, the report says, is not to keep increasing incomes but to aim for more meaningful lives and stronger social ties. That might be a leap too far in the near term but the index is released when policymakers are exploring broader measures of progress rather than a desire to boost growth. French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s “Commission on the measurement of economic performance and social progress” is due to report soon.
Critics of such measures and summary indices say they are based on arbitrary data and calculations but most welcome their contribution to the policy debate.
“HPI is one of the several attempts to go ‘beyond GDP’ and to bring attention to important aspects of our life,” Enrico Giovannini, chief statistician at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, said. But, he added, “It is impossible to capture in a single indicator the complexity of our society.”
