A battle has started over the interpretation of the 1995 law that created Las Baula National Marine Park, in the northwest province of Guanacaste, whilst this continues, one big loser has already emerged, the leatherback se Turtle!

in 1989 1,376 individual female leatherback's were recorded as nesting in Las Baulas, which has since been in almost free fall mode, with last year seeing just 125, even more worryingly is this years count of just 57. Something needs to be done and fast, if this species is going to avoid extinction.

The beach is question is known as Playa Grande, and ranks as the most important nesting area in the whole of Costa Rica for the leatherback's and among the top 5 in the world. The main issues that have arisen, simply put, are that government attorneys, environmentalists and many other people feel that whilst the national marine park itself is 50m of protected beach land, an extra 75m should be kept clear to allow the turtles some space away from humans and development which could endanger them. Many people have bought pieces of this land, and the government now wants to take it back and stop all development in order to save the leatherback's.

Currently people are unsure as to what the outcome of this argument is going to be, but it is certain that should the government attempt to reclaim the land of the many super rich foreign investors, the matter will be taken to an international court, tarring the reputation of Costa Rica, which is certainly something they don't want in such an international investment market.

Whatever the outcome, everyone is in agreement on one issue; these turtles need to be helped before yet another species is wiped out off the face of our planet. Look out for more updates on this story in the coming weeks.

In what was a shock decision for many Costa Rican residents and especially unbelievable to pro-CAFTA president, Oscar Arias, last week it was announced that the long running and hotly debated issue on whether to accept or reject the Central American Free Trade Agreement with the United States, would go to a binding referendum. It is not 100% certain however, as 130,000 signatures need to be collected in order for the referendum to go ahead. This seems to be little more than a formality however, with so many people having views on the subject.

It is widely believed that the signatures will be collected in just 2 or 3 days, and that the referendum will be confirmed very shortly. We hope to bring you news on the date of the referendum and the overall outcome in the coming weeks, and also take a look at the impact to the country either accepting CAFTA or rejecting it could have on the country.