Stein, B.
Bailey Stein
5-10-2013
Professor Hindsley
Eckerd College
Costa Rica Red Tide Events and Their Coastal Management
Implications
Red tide events affect countries and industries worldwide and often devastate numerous
populations of native species. These destructive events happen to occur within and predominantly
damage coastal regions. The algae blooms which cause these red tide events are detrimental to a
multitude of sea dwelling creatures, and irritate many organisms near the coast, including human
populations. Costa Rica, which is known for its diverse wildlife, productive tourist based and agricultural
economy, and established awareness of environmental issues, is one of the coastal countries
detrimentally affected by red tide. Literally, Costa Rica means “rich coast” in Spanish, and the region
exhibits a variety of features which attract visitors who journey from all over the world for a glimpse of
this exotic and well-kept environment, as seen in Appendix I. This country only makes up about 0.25%
of the world’s landmass, but contains approximately 5% of the world’s biodiversity. The extensive
natural parks, beautiful shores, and various protected areas throughout Costa Rica beckon travelers to
this true ecotourism destination. The ecological environment is the foundation for the country’s
economy. Therefore, there are strict regulations on pollution and emissions from industry and factories.
However, events like the red tide can also have detrimental effects on the Costa Rican economy and
environment. These red tide events hurt the tourism industry of the country and create an environment
that deters visitors. Thus, the Costa Rican government pursues environmental management models and
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coastal conservation strategies in an effort to mitigate these red tide events, thereby, maintaining their
thriving economy and immense, healthy biodiversity.
The cause of the red tide is still unknown to the scientific world, but enormous research and
experimental efforts are constantly being conducted to find the culprit(s). Pollution has been marginally
identified as a potential link to the red tide algae blooms, thus, many governments have strict
regulations on pollution, especially in coastal communities like Costa Rica. Reports on red tide events in
Costa Rica mostly focus on the Nicoya Gulf, an inlet on the Pacific side of the country, which has been
greatly affected by these events. Some side-effects of these red tide events are the death and depletion
of many fish species, both large and small. Also, the algae blooms can wash onto land and harm beach
dwelling creatures such as, avian species and even humans. Human symptoms include irritation of the
eyes, problems with the respiratory system and a variety of other unfortunate physical ailments (VargasMontero, 1). Severe cases can include paralysis and death from the consumption of aquatic animals
which have absorbed toxins from the algae blooms (Vargas, M.). Human consumption of infected
oysters and mollusks has led to many illnesses (Norman). These human oriented problems severely
damage the ecotourism industry, prompting the Costa Rican governmental efforts to resolve or at least
lessen the destructive elements of the red tide.
According to a recent study of the Pacific edge of Costa Rica the incidence of red tide events are
on the rise. These phenomena have intensified both temporally and spatially within recent years
according to the journal entitled “Harmful blooms by noxious dinoflagellates in the Pacific coast of Costa
Rica” by JC Vargas. Additionally, the article states that the red tide events are lasting longer, occurring
more frequently and with less interruptions, as well as instigating massive fish kills and subsequent
malodorous waterways (Vargas, 5). The algae which cause these red tide blooms are now more
common along the coast of Costa Rica, due to current environmental conditions which provide a habitat
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conducive for the growth of this aggressive, invasive algae species. This prolific algae growth
environment appears to be caused by increased temperatures across the globe coupled with human
generated, environmentally degrading pollution. Management efforts across the globe, and in this case
Costa Rica, are focusing on the human activities which lead to pollution, in an effort to mitigate this
potential cause of red tide events. Vargas recommends the implementation of a permanent surveillance
program capable of monitoring these species of algae to determine their full effects and the causes of
their proliferation.
Management structure in many coastal countries is complex because there is no single agency
responsible for the management of the coastal zone and its resources. In Costa Rica, this often leads to
misinterpretations of how the coastal zone should be managed. However, President Figueres was the
primary strategist of environmental policy for Costa Rica. He had a strong passion toward coastal
protection due to his personal attachments to the ocean and scuba diving. In a journal article entitled
“Saving Costa Rica” the author discusses the policies implemented by Figueres to save the coasts of
Costa Rica for future generations. He established the Coastal Marine Commission to oversee the
projects being launched in the new marine ecosystem recuperation program. This commission works
with the University of Costa Rica to create awareness about the importance of the ocean and its wildlife
as a renewable and natural resource. Many fish species struggle for survival due to poaching and
overfishing. President Figueres planned to enforce protection of these mid-ocean areas through the
use of government patrol boats and spotter planes. Although all these plans were thoughtfully
considered, few were actually implemented and maintained (Tzimoulis). Ways to ensure
implementation and continuation of environmental policies would include developing a single
overseeing agency responsible for the coastal zone, while still including the stakeholder’s views and
principles of good governance. The integration of programs which facilitate good economic health as
well as environmental health would also help the country establish a more balanced management
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structure in which all parties are content (FIG Policy Statement). Establishing this type of management
structure would help deter pollution along on the coasts of Costa Rica and ultimately limit the frequency
of red tide events.
Management systems and efforts are in progress in Costa Rica to establish a method for altering
the approach to red tide events and how to diminish their environmental and economic impact. Costa
Rica has many decentralized agencies which are meant to protect the environment and coastal areas. In
recent years these agencies have been organized and orchestrated, resulting in one agency called The
Ministry of Environment and Energy or MINAE. This agency is organizationally complex because it is
formed by so many decentralized bodies, yet it is constantly being changed and re-evaluated to ensure
present awareness in addressing current issues. Costa Rica’s current number 3 ranking in the
Environmental Performance Index (EPI) is a testament to the success of the MINAE. The EPI indicates
how close a country is to accomplishing its established environmental policy goals, therefore, showing
that Costa Rica is rising above many other countries and maintaining their rich environment through
successful policy and goal accomplishments. Many of these successes come from the Green Agenda
which is incorporated within the Ministry. This agenda works toward strengthening processes and
projects of conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. It also facilitates funding efforts and
administration of 169 protected areas around the country, including both terrestrial and marine areas.
Education and encouragement regarding the importance of respecting the environment, and goals
surrounding the achievement of a low-emissions economy, are also a primary concern of the Green
Agenda (Minae). A field activity which is used to accomplish a goal of the agenda is a system called
Payments for Environmental Services (PES). This new and innovative program is a way to encourage
environmentally friendly behaviors from private landowners and other coastal dwellers through
monetary incentives. This program distributes money in exchange for the provision of environmental
service rights to their property. The four main goals of this program are to lower carbon emissions,
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protect water resources, protect biodiversity, and preserve the natural scenic beauty of the country for
scientific and tourism purposes. These goals display how much Costa Rica depends on their beautiful
coastal environment for economic survival and how keeping the waterways pristine is of substantial
importance.
The civilian population is also a dictating factor in the regulation of Costa Rica red tide because
they are the determining factor of pollution along the coast. Many Costa Rican municipal water users
are even willing to pay extra for the cost of environmental protection of the water sources, showing
their determination to keep their country in pristine condition and stop events that further degrade
their country and environment. The PES program spreads its contractual arrangements between both
public and private landholders to maintain a balance in the country’s environmental conservation. The
public contracts often contain larger land holdings, and thus, have lower per acre transaction costs.
However, the downside of the public contracts include that the property must often be shared with
governmental users who have side objectives and who do not have established environmental concerns,
the land lease payments are less flexible, and additional service provisions are more difficult to
negotiate. The private landholder contracts, although smaller in size, normally do not contain shared
use clauses, often are openly negotiable with lease payment arrangements, and are frequently open to
additional service provisions. No one way of management can be perfect for maintaining the pure
environment in Costa Rica; however, the PES facilitates the development of future efforts and programs
which will increase the management strategies and help provide a better understanding for future
management systems (Bollman).
International negotiations are also a method in which Costa Rica environmental protection is
initiated. These negotiations facilitate management efforts in Costa Rica with the extension of funds for
the protection of the diverse environment. Costa Rica has one of the most diverse and unique
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assemblages of wildlife on the planet, thus, many international organizations and donors are willing to
contribute monetarily to the protection of this resource. Costa Rica uses these relations to establish
funds for reforestation, restoration, and conservation projects. These types of projects help lower the
release of carbon emissions into the atmosphere, since plants absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen
and humans and factories release carbon dioxide and use oxygen. The Global Environmental Facility
and Conservation International uses its resources to finance investments in the protection of
biodiversity in Costa Rica. The Costa Rican government clearly focuses on the development of programs
which help to maintain the pristine environment of the country and lessen the adverse effects and
events which can harm their ecosystem. Red tide events are one of these which are detrimental to the
health of the ecosystem. The effects of red tide are wide and hurt many aspects of a coastal community
and are currently being monitoring and researched to find ways for diminishing its effects.
Although it has not yet been determined what absolutely produces the red tide events, it
appears that human and factory generated pollution contributes to coastal algae growth and the
subsequent red tide, fish kills, toxic coastline waterways, and toxic seafood and air infiltrates. The
MINEA and PES are two governmental organizations which are attempting to mitigate the red tide issues
in Costa Rica. The Ministry of the Environment and Energy with its Green Agenda helps set goals and
maintain organizational strategies for creating objectives which will help preserve the Costa Rican
environment and coasts from detrimental factors, like red tide. The reforestation efforts, also limit the
carbon emissions into the atmosphere, while the PES helps regulate the pollution on both public and
private lands that are accepted into the program, as well as protection of water resources. All of these
regulations and agencies are implemented by the government to manage the coastal implications of red
tide and the possible human actions and factors that cause an increase in frequency of the blooms.
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The current president of Costa Rica, Laura Chinchilla, is also concerned with environmental
protection within the country. She has stated that “There are no passengers in this planet; we are all
crew members.” This statement provides an example of her perspective for Costa Rican environmental
policy, which is that every person plays their role in degradation and therefore the population must all
focus on limiting pollution, conserving the natural environment and obeying the laws put into place for
the preservation of this unique and beautiful country (United Nations). Costa Rica will continue to
develop its agricultural and tourism industries. The red tide events do damage Costa Rica by degrading
their ecotourism industry. Continued efforts by the Costa Rican government must be made to mitigate
this frequent occurrence. The creation of MINEA and PES are definitely steps in the right direction. The
further organization of the Ministry of the Environment and Energy, creating one single agency which
oversees and directs all others will greatly facilitate Costa Rica’s fight against coastal pollution and the
frequency of red tide events. Costa Rica is an environmental and ecological gem and its biodiversity
must be maintained and managed.
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Works Cited
Bollman, Melissa, and Scott D. Hardy. “Evaluating Institutional Performance: Payments for
Environmental Services in Costa Rica.” Latin American Policy 3.2 (2012): 195. Publisher Provided Full
Text Searching File. Web. 14 Apr. 2013.
"Costa Rica Declaration." FIG Policy Statement. International Federation of Surveyors, June 2008. Web.
30 Mar. 2013.
MINAE. "Agenda Verde." Historia - Ministerio De Ambiente, Energía Y Mares De Costa Rica. MINAET,
Apr.-May 2013. Web. 09 May 2013.
Norman, Clayton R. "In Nicoya Gulf, the Deadly Red Tide Lingers." Ticotimes.net. Tico Times, 30 Mar.
2012. Web. 09 May 2013.
Tzimoulis, Paul. “Saving Costa Rica.” Skin Diver 44.6 (1995): 14. Supplemental Index. Web. 30 Mar. 2013.
United Nations. "President Chinchilla Speaks about the Costa Rica Experience." Unu.edu. United Nations
University, 09 Dec. 2011. Web. 09 May 2013.
Vargas, JC et al. “Harmful Blooms By Noxious Dinoflagellates In the Pacific Coast of Coasta Rica.
“Hidrobiologica 18.1 (2008): 15-23. Science Citation Index. Web. 30 Mar. 2013.
Vargas-Montero, M, and E. Freer. “Algal Blooms Of the Toxigenic Diatom Pseudo-Nitzschia In the Gulfo
de Nicoya, Costa Rica. “Revista De Biologia Tropical52 (n.d.): 127-132. Science Citation Index. Web. 30.
Mar. 2013.
Vargas, M et al. “Red Tide Bloom Produced By Lingulodinium Polyedrum In Bahia Culebra, Papagayo
Gulf, Costa Rica.” Revista de Biologia Tropical/49 Suppl 2. (2001): 19-23. MEDLINE. Web. 30 Mar. 2013.
Watts, Jonathan. "Costa Rica Recognised for Biodiversity Protection." The Guardian. Guardian News and
Media, 25 Oct. 2010. Web. 09 May 2013.
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Appendix I
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