Estimates from the Health Ministry state that people throw nearly 300 tons of garbage in Costa Rica's streets, sewers, vacant properties and rivers every day.
The proposed construction of a landfill in the canton of Mora, 20 kilometers west of San José, has angered local residents who say they will fight to protect their natural resources. But time is running out.
A turtle researcher recently posted a video on YouTube of her colleague removing a plastic drinking straw from the nostril of an olive ridley sea turtle off the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. The woman has started a GoFundMe campaign to develop first aid kits for sea turtles in distress.
Until recently, the island’s biggest problem was garbage. Because there is no trash collection at all, locals have long resorted to burying or burning their rubbish.
