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Indigenous Resistance Stalls Colombia's Potential Renewable Energy Boom in La Guajira

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Thursday, February 20, 2025

CABO DE LA VELA, Colombia (AP) — Giant wind turbines tower over a cemetery sacred to Zoyla Velasquez and her Indigenous Wayuu community, native to the La Guajira region in northern Colombia.This arid, wind-swept region, dotted with cacti and roaming herds of goats, holds immense potential to position Colombia as a wind and solar energy leader. However, resistance from the Wayuu community has stalled many proposed projects by multinational companies and the government. The Wayuu have concerns about the environmental and cultural impacts and the lack of prior consultation in what's one of the nation’s poorest regions. Now, these companies are also eyeing the region’s offshore wind farm prospects.“This cemetery is sacred to us, the Wayuu,” 64-year-old Velasquez said in Spanish, though she is more comfortable speaking in her native Wayuunaiki. Wayuu leaders say what is threatened isn’t the cemetery itself but the spirituality of the territory. “It is here that the bones of our ancestors rest. That's what matters most to us.”The region could generate approximately 15 gigawatts of wind energy, according to Colombia’s Mining and Energy Planning Unit, which could power up to an estimated 37.5 million homes annually. It's part of Colombia’s just energy transition, aiming to replace fossil fuels with renewables while supporting vulnerable groups like Indigenous peoples. The Wayuu say this isn’t happening.Construction started on the La Guajira 1 wind farm — which looms over the cemetery near Cabo de la Vela — in 2020 after a mix of legal processes, government backing, and controversial negotiations and unsatisfactory prior consultation. It faced significant opposition from the Wayuu and has been producing electricity since 2022, but is not yet hooked up to the interconnected system. “Wayuu spirituality is the fundamental base of our life and existence,” said Aníbal Mercado, a “Palabrero,” head of the regional Wayuu council. He wasn't part of the consultations due to his staunch opposition. “If something disturbs the peacefulness of our dead, they’re affecting spiritual peace and tranquility. And as long as (the turbines) are there, there is going to be direct violation, anxiety and impact.” EDITOR’S NOTE: This is part of a series of on how tribes and Indigenous communities are coping with and combating climate change.A lot of the population also preserve traditional, semi nomadic ways of living on “rancherias,” which are thatched-like roofed huts, made from dried cacti and mud, herd cattle and goats, and many are armed. They also have a traditional governance system and laws based on their cultural and spiritual practices. Critics warn that the government’s push to expedite approvals for other developments could escalate tensions. “La Guajira has been very sought after by these companies,” Samuel Lanao, head of Corpoguajira, La Guajira’s environment authority told The Associated Press in Riohacha, the region's capital. “When a foreign company enters these territories with the intention of exploiting renewable energies, there is always going to be a clash."Colombia's government has committed to respecting Indigenous rights through legal frameworks like the 1991 Constitution, which recognizes Indigenous autonomy, and international agreements that ensure their right to prior consultation and participation in decisions that affect them. The 2016 Peace Agreement also touched on Indigenous communities’ rights, land restitution, and participation in political processes.Social issues have begun to spook companies, with 57 planned projects stalled, according to Indepaz, a Bogotá-based development organization with extensive research on the matter. While some projects are Colombian, the majority involve international companies from Brazil, Europe, U.S. and Canada.“It’s clear they’re worried. There’s been a slowdown in the progress of these energy transition projects precisely because of that conflict,” Lanao said. “I believe that the national government plays an important role in achieving a community-company agreement.” Colombia’s environment ministry did not respond to requests for comment. The region is home to Cerrejon, one of the largest open-pit coal mines in the world and a major player in Latin America’s mining sector, which has been in operation since 1985. The mine has just nine years left in its lifespan, and its closure, without alternative plans in place, will deal a significant blow to the region’s economy.“You can imagine what this energy transition means to us,” Lanao said. “This renewable energy sector comes to supply the income that the coal exploitation gives us today in La Guajira.”Developing wind projects in Guajira is key to guaranteeing a reliable supply of electricity in Colombia, says Margarita Nieves, founder of Colombian Offshore Wind Research Network and La Guajira native. Nieves added for La Guajira, it represents an opportunity to have a new industry that will generate employment, position it as a center for the production of goods and services for the wind energy sector, and contribute to meeting the electricity demand of its inhabitants.But the issue is also causing internal friction within the Wayuu community which stems from differing views on economic benefits, with some supporting development for financial gain. The AP spoke to several Wayuu families living near wind turbines who do not oppose the companies operating there, as they have received financial assistance and housing.Others are not convinced.“An old saying goes that if you’ve never owned a chicken, manure looks like an egg to you,” Mercado, the Palabrero, said when asked about those in the community who accept help from the companies, which is much less than what he'd consider fair compensation. “There are many communities that have never had anything. In the midst of so much need, so much crisis, so much hunger, any little penny that they are being offered now seems like a miracle cure and the greatest wealth in the world to them,” he said. New offshore plans also shunned Companies are now carrying out studies for offshore wind farms, which is also enraging the Wayuu, especially traditional fishers, known as Apalanchii. Lanao, of the environmental authority, says just because the project is in the sea, it does not mean the communities do not have influence.The Apalanchii use traditional fishing techniques, with nets, hooks and sometimes spearfishing. It is not only a means of sustenance but also a culturally important activity which they say ties them to their ancestors and the land.“We are really worried about the offshore wind farms,” said fisherman Aaron Laguna Ipuana, 57, during an early morning fishing trip in Cabo de la Vela with his crew. “They're going to displace us and the sea is everything to us. It sustains us."Mercado says the government needs to do more to ensure Wayuu people are involved. “We are concerned that these projects continue and that the government is letting them go ahead, without even coming to say what is going to happen and what is in the interest of the Wayuu people," said Mercado. “The Wayuu defend their territory with blood and death, if necessary,” he said. At the cemetery, Velasquez, dressed in a traditional Wayuu robe and headscarf, gently strokes and observes the graves alongside her sister and young niece. In the background, the turbine blades continue to turn.“The nobility of a Wayuu is used by companies,” Velazquez says. “May they do something good for us ... the way we want it.” The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Photos You Should See - Sept. 2024

The La Guajira region in northern Colombia, home to the Indigenous Wayuu community, holds vast potential for renewable energy, especially wind power, but projects have faced resistance

CABO DE LA VELA, Colombia (AP) — Giant wind turbines tower over a cemetery sacred to Zoyla Velasquez and her Indigenous Wayuu community, native to the La Guajira region in northern Colombia.

This arid, wind-swept region, dotted with cacti and roaming herds of goats, holds immense potential to position Colombia as a wind and solar energy leader. However, resistance from the Wayuu community has stalled many proposed projects by multinational companies and the government. The Wayuu have concerns about the environmental and cultural impacts and the lack of prior consultation in what's one of the nation’s poorest regions. Now, these companies are also eyeing the region’s offshore wind farm prospects.

“This cemetery is sacred to us, the Wayuu,” 64-year-old Velasquez said in Spanish, though she is more comfortable speaking in her native Wayuunaiki. Wayuu leaders say what is threatened isn’t the cemetery itself but the spirituality of the territory. “It is here that the bones of our ancestors rest. That's what matters most to us.”

The region could generate approximately 15 gigawatts of wind energy, according to Colombia’s Mining and Energy Planning Unit, which could power up to an estimated 37.5 million homes annually. It's part of Colombia’s just energy transition, aiming to replace fossil fuels with renewables while supporting vulnerable groups like Indigenous peoples. The Wayuu say this isn’t happening.

Construction started on the La Guajira 1 wind farm — which looms over the cemetery near Cabo de la Vela — in 2020 after a mix of legal processes, government backing, and controversial negotiations and unsatisfactory prior consultation. It faced significant opposition from the Wayuu and has been producing electricity since 2022, but is not yet hooked up to the interconnected system.

“Wayuu spirituality is the fundamental base of our life and existence,” said Aníbal Mercado, a “Palabrero,” head of the regional Wayuu council. He wasn't part of the consultations due to his staunch opposition. “If something disturbs the peacefulness of our dead, they’re affecting spiritual peace and tranquility. And as long as (the turbines) are there, there is going to be direct violation, anxiety and impact.”

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is part of a series of on how tribes and Indigenous communities are coping with and combating climate change.

A lot of the population also preserve traditional, semi nomadic ways of living on “rancherias,” which are thatched-like roofed huts, made from dried cacti and mud, herd cattle and goats, and many are armed. They also have a traditional governance system and laws based on their cultural and spiritual practices.

Critics warn that the government’s push to expedite approvals for other developments could escalate tensions.

“La Guajira has been very sought after by these companies,” Samuel Lanao, head of Corpoguajira, La Guajira’s environment authority told The Associated Press in Riohacha, the region's capital. “When a foreign company enters these territories with the intention of exploiting renewable energies, there is always going to be a clash."

Colombia's government has committed to respecting Indigenous rights through legal frameworks like the 1991 Constitution, which recognizes Indigenous autonomy, and international agreements that ensure their right to prior consultation and participation in decisions that affect them. The 2016 Peace Agreement also touched on Indigenous communities’ rights, land restitution, and participation in political processes.

Social issues have begun to spook companies, with 57 planned projects stalled, according to Indepaz, a Bogotá-based development organization with extensive research on the matter. While some projects are Colombian, the majority involve international companies from Brazil, Europe, U.S. and Canada.

“It’s clear they’re worried. There’s been a slowdown in the progress of these energy transition projects precisely because of that conflict,” Lanao said. “I believe that the national government plays an important role in achieving a community-company agreement.”

Colombia’s environment ministry did not respond to requests for comment.

The region is home to Cerrejon, one of the largest open-pit coal mines in the world and a major player in Latin America’s mining sector, which has been in operation since 1985. The mine has just nine years left in its lifespan, and its closure, without alternative plans in place, will deal a significant blow to the region’s economy.

“You can imagine what this energy transition means to us,” Lanao said. “This renewable energy sector comes to supply the income that the coal exploitation gives us today in La Guajira.”

Developing wind projects in Guajira is key to guaranteeing a reliable supply of electricity in Colombia, says Margarita Nieves, founder of Colombian Offshore Wind Research Network and La Guajira native.

Nieves added for La Guajira, it represents an opportunity to have a new industry that will generate employment, position it as a center for the production of goods and services for the wind energy sector, and contribute to meeting the electricity demand of its inhabitants.

But the issue is also causing internal friction within the Wayuu community which stems from differing views on economic benefits, with some supporting development for financial gain.

The AP spoke to several Wayuu families living near wind turbines who do not oppose the companies operating there, as they have received financial assistance and housing.

Others are not convinced.

“An old saying goes that if you’ve never owned a chicken, manure looks like an egg to you,” Mercado, the Palabrero, said when asked about those in the community who accept help from the companies, which is much less than what he'd consider fair compensation.

“There are many communities that have never had anything. In the midst of so much need, so much crisis, so much hunger, any little penny that they are being offered now seems like a miracle cure and the greatest wealth in the world to them,” he said.

New offshore plans also shunned

Companies are now carrying out studies for offshore wind farms, which is also enraging the Wayuu, especially traditional fishers, known as Apalanchii.

Lanao, of the environmental authority, says just because the project is in the sea, it does not mean the communities do not have influence.

The Apalanchii use traditional fishing techniques, with nets, hooks and sometimes spearfishing. It is not only a means of sustenance but also a culturally important activity which they say ties them to their ancestors and the land.

“We are really worried about the offshore wind farms,” said fisherman Aaron Laguna Ipuana, 57, during an early morning fishing trip in Cabo de la Vela with his crew. “They're going to displace us and the sea is everything to us. It sustains us."

Mercado says the government needs to do more to ensure Wayuu people are involved.

“We are concerned that these projects continue and that the government is letting them go ahead, without even coming to say what is going to happen and what is in the interest of the Wayuu people," said Mercado.

“The Wayuu defend their territory with blood and death, if necessary,” he said.

At the cemetery, Velasquez, dressed in a traditional Wayuu robe and headscarf, gently strokes and observes the graves alongside her sister and young niece. In the background, the turbine blades continue to turn.

“The nobility of a Wayuu is used by companies,” Velazquez says. “May they do something good for us ... the way we want it.”

The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Photos You Should See - Sept. 2024

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The UK Says at an Energy Summit That Green Power Will Boost Security, as the US Differs

Britain has announced a major investment in wind power as it hosts an international summit on energy security

LONDON (AP) — Britain announced a major investment in wind power Thursday as it hosted an international summit on energy security — with Europe and the United States at odds over whether to cut their reliance on fossil fuels.U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the government will invest 300 million pounds ($400 million) in boosting Britain’s capacity to manufacture components for the offshore wind industry, a move it hopes will encourage private investment in the U.K.’s renewable energy sector.“As long as energy can be weaponized against us, our countries and our citizens are vulnerable and exposed,” U.K. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband told delegates.He said “low-carbon power” was a route to energy security as well as a way to slow climate change.Britain now gets more than half its electricity from renewable sources such as wind and solar power, and the rest from natural gas and nuclear energy. It aims to generate all the U.K.’s energy from renewable sources by 2030.Tommy Joyce, U.S. acting assistant secretary of energy for international affairs, told participants they should be “honest about the world’s growing energy needs, not focused on net-zero politics.”He called policies that push for clean power over fossil fuels "harmful and dangerous," and claimed building wind turbines requires "concessions to or coercion from China" because it supplies necessary rare minerals.Hosted by the British government and the International Energy Agency, the two-day summit brings together government ministers from 60 countries, senior European Union officials, energy sector CEOs, heads of international organizations and nonprofits to assess risks to the global energy system and figure out solutions. Associated Press writer Jennifer McDermott contributed to this story. ___The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Photos You Should See - Feb. 2025

Steelhead trout rescued from Palisades fire spawn in their new Santa Barbara County home

After a stressful journey out of the burn zone in Malibu, the endangered trout have spawned in their adopted stream in Santa Barbara County.

Wildlife officials feared critically endangered steelhead trout rescued from the Palisades fire burn scar might not be up for spawning after all they’d been through over the last few months.After their watershed in the Santa Monica Mountains was scorched in January, the fish were stunned with electricity, scooped up in buckets, trucked to a hatchery, fed unfamiliar food and then moved to a different creek. It was all part of a liberation effort pulled off in the nick of time. “This whole thing is just a very stressful and traumatic event, and I’m happy that we didn’t really kill many fish,” said Kyle Evans, an environmental program manager for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, which led the rescue. “But I was concerned that I might have just disrupted this whole months-long process of getting ready to spawn.” Steelhead were once abundant in Southern California, but their numbers plummeted amid coastal development and overfishing. A distinct Southern California population is listed as endangered at the state and federal level. (Alex Vejar / California Department of Fish and Wildlife) But this month spawn they did.It’s believed that there are now more than 100 baby trout swishing around their new digs in Arroyo Hondo Creek in Santa Barbara County.Their presence is a triumph — for the species and for their adopted home.However, more fish require more suitable habitat, which is lacking in Southern California — in part due to drought and the increased frequency of devastating wildfires. Steelhead trout are the same species as rainbow trout, but they have different lifestyles. Steelheads migrate to the ocean and return to their natal streams to spawn, while rainbows spend their lives in freshwater.Steelhead were once abundant in Southern California, but their numbers plummeted amid coastal development and overfishing. A distinct Southern California population is listed as endangered at the state and federal level.The young fish sighted this month mark the next generation of what was the last population of steelhead in the Santa Monica Mountains, a range that stretches from the Hollywood Hills to Point Mugu in Ventura County. They also represent the return of a species to a watershed that itself was devastated by a fire four years ago, but has since recovered. It’s believed that there are now more than 100 baby trout swishing around their new digs in Arroyo Hondo Creek in Santa Barbara County. (Kyle Kusa / Land Trust for Santa Barbara County) The Alisal blaze torched roughly 95% of the Arroyo Hondo Preserve located west of Santa Barbara, and subsequent debris flows choked the creek of the same name that housed steelhead. All the fish perished, according to Meredith Hendricks, executive director of the Land Trust for Santa Barbara County, a nonprofit organization that owns and manages the preserve.“To be able to … offer space for these fish to be transplanted to — when we ourselves had experienced a similar situation but lost our fish — it was just a really big deal,” Hendricks said. Arroyo Hondo Creek bears similarities to the trout’s native Topanga Creek; they are both coastal streams of roughly the same size. And it has a bonus feature: a state-funded fish passage constructed under Highway 101 in 2008, which improved fish movement between the stream and the ocean.Spawning is a biologically and energetically demanding endeavor for steelhead, and the process likely began in December or earlier, according to Evans.That means it was already underway when 271 steelhead were evacuated in January from Topanga Creek, a biodiversity hot spot located in Malibu that was badly damaged by the Palisades fire.It continued when they were hauled about 50 miles north to a hatchery in Fillmore, where they hung out until 266 of them made it to Arroyo Hondo the following month.State wildlife personnel regularly surveyed the fish in their new digs but didn’t see the spawning nests, which can be missed. VIDEO | 00:16 Steelhead trout in Arroyo Hondo Creek in Santa Barbara County Steelhead trout in Arroyo Hondo Creek in Santa Barbara County. (Calif. Dept. of Fish & Game) Then, on April 7, Evans got a text message from the Land Trust’s land programs director, Leslie Chan, with a video that appeared to show a freshly hatched young-of-the-year — the wonky name for fish born during the steelheads’ sole annual spawn.The following day, Evans’ team was dispatched to the creek and confirmed the discovery. They tallied about 100 of the newly hatched fish. The young trout span roughly one inch and, as Evans put it, aren’t too bright. They hang out in the shallows and don’t bolt from predators.“They’re kind of just happy to be alive, and they’re not really trying to hide,” he said.By the end of summer, Evans estimates two-thirds will die off. But the survivors are enough to keep the population charging onward. Evans hopes that in a few years, there will be three to four times the number of fish that initially moved in.The plan is to eventually relocate at least some back to their native home of Topanga Creek.Right now, Topanga “looks pretty bad,” Evans said. The Palisades fire stripped the surrounding hillsides of vegetation, paving the way for dirt, ash and other material to pour into the waterway. Another endangered fish, northern tidewater gobies, were rescued from the same watershed shortly before the steelhead were liberated. Within two days of the trouts’ removal, the first storm of the season arrived, likely burying the remaining fish in a muddy slurry. Citizen scientists Bernard Yin, center, and Rebecca Ramirez, right, join government agency staffers in rescuing federally endangered fish in the Topanga Lagoon in Malibu on Jan. 17. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) Evans expects it will be about four years before Topanga Creek is ready to support steelhead again, based on his experience observing streams recover after the Thomas, Woolsey, Alisal and other fires. There’s also discussion about moving around steelhead to create backup populations should calamity befall one, as well as boost genetic diversity of the rare fish.For example, some of the steelhead saved from Topanga could be moved to Malibu Creek, another stream in the Santa Monica Mountains that empties into Santa Monica Bay. There are efforts underway to remove the 100-foot Rindge Dam in Malibu Creek to open up more habitat for the fish.“As we saw, if you have one population in the Santa Monica Mountains and a fire happens, you could just lose it forever,” Evans said. “So having fish in multiple areas is the kind of way to defend against that.”With the Topanga Creek steelhead biding their time up north, it’s believed there are none currently inhabiting the Santa Monicas. Habitat restoration is key for the species’ survival, according to Evans, who advocates for directing funding to such efforts, including soon-to-come-online money from Proposition 4, a $10-billion bond measure to finance water, clean energy and other environmental projects.“It doesn’t matter how many fish you have, or if you’re growing them in a hatchery, or what you’re doing,” he said. “If they can’t be supported on the landscape, then there’s no point.”Some trout will end up making their temporary lodging permanent, according to Hendricks, of the Land Trust. Arroyo Hondo is a long creek with plenty of nooks and crannies for trout to hide in. So when it comes time to bring the steelhead home, she said, “I’m sure some will get left behind.”

Chicago Teachers Union secures clean energy wins in new contract

The Chicago Teachers Union expects its new, hard-fought contract to help drive clean energy investments and train the next generation of clean energy workers, even as the Trump administration attacks such priorities. The contract approved by 97% of union members this month represents the first time the union has…

The Chicago Teachers Union expects its new, hard-fought contract to help drive clean energy investments and train the next generation of clean energy workers, even as the Trump administration attacks such priorities. The contract approved by 97% of union members this month represents the first time the union has bargained with school officials specifically around climate change and energy, said union Vice President Jackson Potter. The deal still needs to be approved by the Chicago Board of Education. If approved, the contract will result in new programs that prepare students for clean energy jobs, developed in collaboration with local labor unions. It mandates that district officials work with the teachers union to seek funding for clean energy investments and update a climate action plan by 2026. And it calls for installing heat pumps and outfitting 30 schools with solar panels — if funding can be secured. During almost a year of contentious negotiations, the more than 25,000-member union had also demanded paid climate-educator positions, an all-electric school bus fleet, and that all newly constructed schools be carbon-free. While those provisions did not end up in the final agreement, leaders say the four-year contract is a ​“transformative” victory that sets the stage for more ambitious demands next time. “This contract is setting the floor of what we hope we can accomplish,” said Lauren Bianchi, who taught social studies at George Washington High School on the city’s South Side for six years before becoming green schools organizer for the union. ​“It shows we can win on climate, even despite Trump.” The climate-related provisions are part of what the Chicago Teachers Union and an increasing number of unions nationwide refer to as ​“common good” demands, meant to benefit not only their members in the workplace but the entire community. In this and its 2019 contract, the Chicago union also won ​“common good” items such as protections for immigrant students and teachers, and affordable housing–related measures. The new contract also guarantees teachers academic freedom at a time when the federal government is trying to limit schools from teaching materials related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. “Black history, Indigenous history, climate science — that’s protected instruction now,” said Potter. Chicago Public Schools did not respond to emailed questions for this story, except to forward a press release that did not mention clean energy provisions. Training Chicago’s students for clean energy jobs The union crafted its proposals based on discussions with three environmental and community organizations, Bianchi said — the Southeast Environmental Task Force, People for Community Recovery, and ONE Northside. The Southeast Environmental Task Force led the successful fight to ban new petcoke storage in Chicago, and the group’s co-executive director Olga Bautista is also vice president of the 21-member school board. People for Community Recovery was founded by Hazel Johnson, who is often known as ​“the mother of the environmental justice movement.” And ONE Northside emphasizes the link between clean energy and affordable housing. Clean energy job training was a priority for all three of the organizations, Potter said. Under the contract, the union and district officials will work with other labor unions to create pre-apprenticeship programs for students, which are crucial to entering the union-dominated building trades to install solar, do energy-efficiency overhauls, and electrify homes with heat pumps and other technology. The contract demands the district create one specific new clean energy jobs pathway program during each year of the four-year contract. It also mandates renovating schools for energy efficiency and installing modern HVAC systems, and orders the school district to work with trade unions to create opportunities for Chicago Public Schools students and graduates to be hired for such work. “The people in the community have identified jobs and economic justice as being essential for environmental justice,” said Bianchi. ​“I’ve mostly taught juniors and seniors; a lot expressed frustration that college is not their plan. They wish they could learn job skills to enter a trade.” Chicago schools progress on solar, energy efficiency, and electrification Installing solar could help the district meet its clean energy goals, which include sourcing 100% of its electricity from renewables by this year. The district has invested more than $6 million in energy efficiency and efficient lighting since 2018, and cut its carbon dioxide emissions by more than 27,000 metric tons, school district spokesperson Evan Moore told Canary Media last fall as contract negotiations were proceeding. The schools are eligible for subsidized solar panels under the state Illinois Shines program, and they can tap the federal 30% investment tax credit for solar arrays, with a new direct-pay option tailored to tax-exempt organizations like schools.

Costa Rica Proposes Strict Penalties for Illegal National Park Entries

Costa Rica is cracking down on illegal entries into its national parks and protected areas, citing dangers to visitors and environmental harm. Franz Tattenbach, Minister of Environment and Energy (MINAE), has called on lawmakers to approve a bill imposing fines of up to ¢2.3 million (approximately $4,400) on individuals and tour operators who access these […] The post Costa Rica Proposes Strict Penalties for Illegal National Park Entries appeared first on The Tico Times | Costa Rica News | Travel | Real Estate.

Costa Rica is cracking down on illegal entries into its national parks and protected areas, citing dangers to visitors and environmental harm. Franz Tattenbach, Minister of Environment and Energy (MINAE), has called on lawmakers to approve a bill imposing fines of up to ¢2.3 million (approximately $4,400) on individuals and tour operators who access these areas without authorization. Over 500 unauthorized entries into Costa Rica’s 30 national parks and reserves, have been reported so far this year. High-risk areas like Poás, Turrialba, Rincón de la Vieja, and Arenal volcanoes are frequent targets, where illegal tours bypass safety protocols. Unscrupulous operators promote these “exclusive” experiences on social media, often lacking insurance, safety equipment, or trained guides. “These operators abandon clients if intercepted by authorities, leaving them vulnerable in hazardous areas,” Tattenbach said. Poás Volcano National Park, closed since March 26 due to seismic activity and ash emissions, remains a hotspot for illegal tours. The proposed bill, under discussion by MINAE and the National System of Conservation Areas (SINAC), would introduce fines ranging from ¢1.3 million to ¢2.3 million ($2,500 to $4,400) for unauthorized entry, targeting both operators and participants. If a rescue operation is required, involving the Costa Rican Red Cross or MINAE personnel, an additional fine of ¢2.3 million ($4,400) could be imposed. Current laws penalize illegal entry under Article 58 of Forestry Law 7575, with three months to three years in prison, but enforcement is inconsistent. The new bill aims to strengthen deterrence. “These hikes involve steep slopes, toxic gases, and the risk of volcanic eruptions, which can be fatal,” Tattenbach warned, citing the 2017 Poás eruption that closed the park for over a year. Illegal entries also threaten Costa Rica’s biodiversity, which includes 5% of the world’s species. Unauthorized trails disrupt ecosystems and increase risks of poaching, according to Jorge Mario Rodríguez, Vice Minister of Environment. The Volcanological and Seismological Observatory of Costa Rica (OVSICORI) monitors volcanic activity to inform park closures, but illegal tours undermine these safety measures. Increased Surveillance SINAC, the Costa Rican Fire Department, Red Cross, and Police Force will intensify surveillance going forward, targeting high-risk national parks and roadways to prevent unauthorized access, wildlife extraction, hunting, and trade in protected flora and fauna. “These operations safeguard our natural heritage and ensure visitor safety,” Tattenbach said. SINAC’s year-round efforts have intercepted numerous illegal tours in 2025. Visiting Parks Safely: MINAE and SINAC urge visitors to use authorized operators and purchase tickets via the SINAC website or park entrances. Guided tours, available through platforms like Viator or Get Your Guide, offer safe experiences in parks like Manuel Antonio or Corcovado. Tourists should check park statuses before planning visits, as closures due to volcanic activity or weather are common. “Respecting regulations protects both you and Costa Rica’s natural treasures,” Rodríguez said. Preserving Ecotourism: As the proposed bill awaits Legislative Assembly review, MINAE urges compliance to maintain Costa Rica’s status as a global conservation leader. For updates on the bill or park regulations, visit MINAE’s Website The post Costa Rica Proposes Strict Penalties for Illegal National Park Entries appeared first on The Tico Times | Costa Rica News | Travel | Real Estate.

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