May

23

Greenpeace Denies Endorsing Marina

May 23, 2008 | Tags: Economic Development, Environment | Leave a Comment

Greenpeace has denied any endorsement of the marina project proposed for Puerto Viejo.

The newspaper Seminario Universidad of the Universidad de Costa Rica had quoted Walter Coto, an ex-government minister who now acts as the lawyer for Grupo Caribeño Internacional S.A., saying that the company projects “a design and use of construction techniques certified by the ecological organization Greenpeace.”

The article was first published in February, but got the attention of Greenpeace when it was referenced by the Argentinian news source Argenpress.info Tuesday.

“Greenpeace does not have, nor has had, any kind of relationship with the Grupo Caribeño Internacional S.A.,” said Milko Schvartzman, the ocean campaign co-ordinator for Greenpeace Latin America.

“Greenpeace has not certified any project of that corporation and does not dedicate itself to certifying projects,” he added

The organization’s statement also said that it opposes projects that have a negative effect on the environment. After analyzing documents by scientists and environmentalists about the marina, it continues, Greenpeace manifests its opposition to the marina project.

Due to pressure from environmentalists, who say the five-star marina resort will damage nature reservations near Puerto Viejo, the company has already said it will only be constructing a marina with 100 slips for yachts rather than the originally planned 398.

Source: A.M. Costa Rica: Greenpeace denies it has approved Puerto Viejo marina plan