Costa Rica no longer ranks in the world’s top ‘green’ countries

Is Costa Rica really as green as it says it is? Not according to Yale’s Environmental Performance Index (EPI).

Costa Rica ranked 54th out of 178 other countries in the index, a major tumble from fifth place in 2012. The drop can be attributed to the addition of new categories into the index.

Wastewater treatment was the country’s Achilles heel in terms of ranking. Costa Rica only scored a 0.9 out of 100 possible points in the category, placing the country at 125th in the world.

Considering its ambitious plans to become the first carbon-neutral country by 2021, Costa Rica also performed poorly in the climate and energy category, pulling in a score of 38.46 and placing 98th.