How a Nation Famous for Conservation Is Fueling Its Own Destruction

Inside Climate News · By Johnny Sturgeon · last updated December 14, 2025 – 1:25 AM

Costa Rica’s fuel subsidies are funding widespread poaching and overfishing in supposedly protected waters.

By Johnny Sturgeon

In April 2022, a blue and white fishing boat sliced through the protected waters surrounding Costa Rica’s Isla San José at high speed. Its 75-horsepower engine churned the turquoise surface of the Guanacaste Conservation Area, a UNESCO World Heritage Site teeming with manta rays and bottlenose dolphins.

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