Constitutional Court Issues Protective Measures for Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge
Three provisional measures aimed at preventing irreversible environmental damage in Talamanca, Costa Rica.
The Constitutional Court of Costa Rica has established three protective measures in favor of the Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge, located in the Talamanca canton of Limón, with the aim of preventing severe and irreversible environmental damage.
This ruling, made on Wednesday, follows the failure to comply with a previous judgment issued in July 2019 that mandated the definition of the refuge’s boundaries.
The Minister of Environment, Franz Tattenbach Capra, has not executed this task.
On September 10, 2024, the Court confirmed the non-compliance with the prior ruling and reiterated the earlier orders.
The following measures have been imposed until further notice from the Court or until the final compliance report of the 2019 ruling is presented:
1. The granting of new concessions or permits, as well as the execution of previously granted concessions or permits by the Municipality of Talamanca, is suspended regarding the 20.1 hectares of land classified as forest within the coastal marine zone (ZMT) of the refuge.
2. A suspension is imposed on Directive No. 09-2023 from the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE), which establishes that the official boundaries of the refuge are as defined by a law declared unconstitutional in 2019. This law, known as No. 9223, recognized the rights of inhabitants in the Southern Caribbean and was enacted in April 2014.
3. A complete moratorium is declared on the granting of logging and forest exploitation permits by MINAE and the National System of Conservation Areas (SINAC) in areas belonging to seven forest blocks that are to be returned to the refuge in a formal, material, and regulatory manner.
Both new permits and already granted permits are immediately suspended, particularly a permit issued to the company Playa Manzanillo S.A., represented by businessman Allan Pacheco Dent.
This permit is currently under investigation by the Environmental Prosecutor’s Office, which suspects it was granted illegally in violation of the Forest Law.
Additionally, the General Prosecutor's Office has opened a separate case against Pacheco Dent, Minister Tattenbach, and President Rodrigo Chaves for an apparent crime of influence peddling.
This investigation was initiated following reports that, while this permit was being processed, Chaves, his cabinet members, and officials from the Presidential Office were attending parties at a family property belonging to the businessman in San José de la Montaña. During this period, Pacheco Dent was also visiting the Presidency and was appointed by Chaves in May 2023 to the National Film Commission, an entity under the Ministry of Culture and Youth (MCJ).
Moreover, the Court has requested collaboration from the Ombudsman’s Office, the General Comptroller’s Office, and the General Attorney’s Office to assist in monitoring compliance with the mandates of judgments 2019-12745 (July 10, 2019) and 2024-26300 (September 10, 2024).
The resolution specifies that whenever a monthly report is submitted to the Court by the Minister of Environment and Energy and the Executive Director of SINAC, they are to provide responses concerning their areas of competence.
Previously, the Court had ordered SINAC, an agency under MINAE, to delimit the 188 hectares of forest removed from the refuge in 2014. Following this task, it assigned the General Attorney’s Office the role of recovering lands that are state property.
It also stipulated that if there are private lands within the new delimitation, SINAC and other competent entities must impose all limitations established by environmental legislation to protect these forest areas.
This ruling, made on Wednesday, follows the failure to comply with a previous judgment issued in July 2019 that mandated the definition of the refuge’s boundaries.
The Minister of Environment, Franz Tattenbach Capra, has not executed this task.
On September 10, 2024, the Court confirmed the non-compliance with the prior ruling and reiterated the earlier orders.
The following measures have been imposed until further notice from the Court or until the final compliance report of the 2019 ruling is presented:
1. The granting of new concessions or permits, as well as the execution of previously granted concessions or permits by the Municipality of Talamanca, is suspended regarding the 20.1 hectares of land classified as forest within the coastal marine zone (ZMT) of the refuge.
2. A suspension is imposed on Directive No. 09-2023 from the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE), which establishes that the official boundaries of the refuge are as defined by a law declared unconstitutional in 2019. This law, known as No. 9223, recognized the rights of inhabitants in the Southern Caribbean and was enacted in April 2014.
3. A complete moratorium is declared on the granting of logging and forest exploitation permits by MINAE and the National System of Conservation Areas (SINAC) in areas belonging to seven forest blocks that are to be returned to the refuge in a formal, material, and regulatory manner.
Both new permits and already granted permits are immediately suspended, particularly a permit issued to the company Playa Manzanillo S.A., represented by businessman Allan Pacheco Dent.
This permit is currently under investigation by the Environmental Prosecutor’s Office, which suspects it was granted illegally in violation of the Forest Law.
Additionally, the General Prosecutor's Office has opened a separate case against Pacheco Dent, Minister Tattenbach, and President Rodrigo Chaves for an apparent crime of influence peddling.
This investigation was initiated following reports that, while this permit was being processed, Chaves, his cabinet members, and officials from the Presidential Office were attending parties at a family property belonging to the businessman in San José de la Montaña. During this period, Pacheco Dent was also visiting the Presidency and was appointed by Chaves in May 2023 to the National Film Commission, an entity under the Ministry of Culture and Youth (MCJ).
Moreover, the Court has requested collaboration from the Ombudsman’s Office, the General Comptroller’s Office, and the General Attorney’s Office to assist in monitoring compliance with the mandates of judgments 2019-12745 (July 10, 2019) and 2024-26300 (September 10, 2024).
The resolution specifies that whenever a monthly report is submitted to the Court by the Minister of Environment and Energy and the Executive Director of SINAC, they are to provide responses concerning their areas of competence.
Previously, the Court had ordered SINAC, an agency under MINAE, to delimit the 188 hectares of forest removed from the refuge in 2014. Following this task, it assigned the General Attorney’s Office the role of recovering lands that are state property.
It also stipulated that if there are private lands within the new delimitation, SINAC and other competent entities must impose all limitations established by environmental legislation to protect these forest areas.
