Ecomarkets

The development objective of the proposed project is to increase the production of environmental services in Costa Rica by supporting the development of markets and private sector providers for services supplied by privately owned forests, including protection of biological diversity, greenhouse gas mitigation, and provision of hydrological services. The global environmental objective of the proposed project is to foster biodiversity conservation and preserve important forest ecosystems through conservation easements on privately-owned lands outside of protected areas in the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor in Costa Rica. The project will strengthen offices within the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE), as well as local and regional non-governmental organizations, responsible for the execution, promotion, supervision, and monitoring of the forest conservation program. Results of project activities generating global benefits would include: (a) an additional 50,000 hectares of privately owned lands in Tortuguero, La Amistad Caribe, and Osa Conservation Areas incorporated into Costa Rica’s conservation easement program; (b) establishment of a financial instrument to support conservation easements in Costa Rica over the long term; and (c) increased landowner participation in, and benefits from, forest conservation-related activities within the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor in Costa Rica.