This project led by the For The Oceans Foundation seeks to save from extinction one of the last living dinosaurs on our planet, several of whose species are seriously threatened. It is scheduled in two consecutive stages:
FIRST STAGE: Its objective is to demonstrate that even when the Ostional Beach Socio-Environmental project is considered a success, in fact it creates a legal gap to the furtive collection of eggs in other hatching beaches for sea turtles, due to the incapacity of the authorities to control the traceability of its marketing and the authenticity of the Certificates of Origin of Playa Ostional.
Our team of environmental lawyers and biologists work in the collection of data and evidence for the proposal of a new regulation adjusted to the real possibilities of its enforcing.
SECOND STAGE: Once the inefficiency of the authorities to enforce the current legislation has been proven, an application and a bill will be presented to the Legislative Assembly (Costa Rican Congress) to ban the human consumption of sea turtle eggs throughout the national territory.
To avoid a negative impact on Ostional’s special social regime, egg collection will continue to be permitted within the parameters of its scientific justification (University of Costa Rica), but all eggs collected on that beach will be sold to a limited number of companies engaged in the production of pet food, which will make it easier to monitor the traceability of eggs by government inspectors.
Our Foundation is also aware of the human health risks associated with the consumption of these eggs since the Ministry of Health and several NGOs have warned that they contain high levels of toxic metals, such as mercury and cadmium, in addition to dangerous micro-organisms such as salmonella.
Despite we are aware that the ingestion of these products is a culturally ingrained habit, the only way to stop the illegal collection of sea turtle eggs and minimize the health risk is to ban their public consumption throughout the country.
