In the past The Costa Rica Star has reported on Green Washing in Costa Rica, which lends itself to businesses being “too” Green when in reality, they are far from that fact. It makes it hard for legitimate businesses to compete when doing things honestly.

Elfinancierocr.com reports that in Costa Rica, “at a rate of four bills per year, since 2006 Parliament has provided 24 new regulations related to environmental issues.”

And opinions on whether these standards bring benefits to the country differ depending on the business sector consulted: “While the National Chamber of Tourism (Canatur) believe that laws such as the conservation of wildlife will lure more tourists, the National Agriculture and Agribusiness Chamber (CNAA) watches with concern in legislation and regulations that will make life difficult for producers. ”

According to Alvaro Saenz, president of the CNAA, the sector notes “incoordination, duplication, excessive environmental regulations and breach of the regulations by the state.”

Given the panorama riddled with regulations, the business leader said that the agricultural sector thinks that there shouldn’t be any more environmental laws approved until those that are in force have been properly implemented:

“What we want is legal certainty, so as to have clarity about associated costs and consequently profitability.”

If there is one thing that seems strange to the agricultural sector, Saenz said, it is “this cost-benefit analysis before giving life to an environmental law.”

The employer also criticized excessive penalties for companies that do not comply with the rules, while penalties are not created for government employees for the slow speed of analyzing environmental permit applications, made by the producers.

Source: ElFinancieroCR.com