Faced with complaints about poor conditions and health problems in Manuel Antonio National Park, the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE) gave a press conference on Wednesday to talk about it.
The meeting was led by Deputy Minister of Environment Pamela Castillo, who announced a plan to address the problem immediately. The official said that the main problems currently have to do with wastewater systems, which can no longer cope with the large number of visitors arriving at the site.
Of course, the problem is not new. Temporary solutions have been implemented for nine years.
Another complaint from the tourism business sector in the area is related to the conditions in which it receives nationals and foreigners, since there are deficiencies in the ticket purchase system that creates long lines and uncertainty; in addition to the unhealthy conditions in bathrooms and the environmental impact of poor wastewater treatment systems.
In recent years, Manuel Antonio has had an average of nearly 400 thousand visits per year.
Some of the main urgent measures will be the regulation of the visits to this park during March and April: only 600 people will be allowed in at the same time (between Tuesday and Friday) and 800 during weekends.
Actions announced by the MINAE:
– Agreement with Coopealianza for three million colones to guarantee wastewater cleaning services in the park.
– Alliance with Costa Rica For Costa Rica Forever to build one of three modules of residual plants in March.
– 10 bathhouses will be incorporated temporarily and preventively to avoid health problems.
-The number of people who can enter per day, during the week, will be limited to 1,700.
– In the medium term, the online ticket purchase system is to be implemented.
– A sustainable tourism plan for the Quepos canton will be drawn up, including the design and promotion of tourist circuits in the area, so as to promote the distribution of the visit throughout the region.
-Alliances will be established with environmental organizations such as the Proparques Association to encourage volunteer programs to support maintenance works and environmental education.
Likewise, strategic investments for an amount of $500 thousand are being planned to address other less pressing problems.