Costa Rica’s Constitutional Chamber ordered the suspension of all concessions and permits in the Gandoca-Manzanillo National Wildlife Refuge, a protected area in Costa Rica’s Southern Caribbean. The Court also suspended previously granted permits, aiming to prevent serious and irreparable environmental damage to the refuge’s maritime-terrestrial zone—a coastal area safeguarded under environmental laws. These precautionary measures will remain in effect until case 2019-12745 (file 14-019174-0007-CO), filed by environmental advocates, is reviewed or until a new ruling is issued.
The decision halts the issuance of new concessions and the execution of existing ones granted by the Municipality of Talamanca on 20.1 hectares of forested land within the refuge. It also nullifies Directive 09-2023 of the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE), which had redefined the refuge’s boundaries under Law No. 9223, in force since 2014. Additionally, the Court imposed a total moratorium on logging and forest harvesting permits by MINAE and the National System of Conservation Areas (SINAC), suspending even prior approvals like permit 011-2024-ACLAC-SLT, linked to businessman Allan Pacheco Dent.
The Case
The ruling stems from a legal battle involving Pacheco Dent, whose company, Playa Manzanillo S.A., owns two properties between Playa Grande and Punta Uva. Initially, Pacheco Dent sought permission from the Amistad-Caribe Conservation Area (ACLA-C) to cut 94 trees for a road as part of an urban development project. After this request was denied, a private forestry regent he hired submitted a new application to cut 29 trees in an area classified as “wooded pastures” and 50 more under a certificate of origin, claiming the land held a forest plantation rather than native forest.
In February 2025, the Prosecutor’s Office filed charges against Pacheco Dent and others for land-use change violations and offenses against natural resources, citing activities on properties within the refuge’s original boundaries—before Law 9223 excluded several hectares in 2014. The case highlights ongoing tensions over development in this ecologically sensitive region.
