• An 8-kilometer firebreak will be located in the area with the highest risk of forest fires in Guanacaste.

One hundred volunteers will work over the weekend to create an eight-kilometer protective perimeter that will help defend Barra Honda National Park, in Guanacaste, from forest fires.

The team, 50% of which is made up of certified forestry brigadiers, will create a firebreak to keep sensitive sectors of the protected area safe. The intervention consists of clearing the ground until the soil is exposed and free of vegetation, in order to reduce to a minimum the material that could serve as fuel for the flames. In the event of a fire, when there is no more flora to consume, the fire slows its advance and is extinguished.

On this occasion, the brigadiers will clear a strip four meters wide and three meters high. The intervention will take place in Barra Honda National Park because it is the territory with the highest risk of forest fires during this dry season, in the Tempisque Conservation Area.

Reserva Conchal, FIFCO’s hospitality division, organized the volunteer day as part of the corporate Climate Action strategy. Of the 100 participating volunteers, 44 are company employees. Of these, 14 are part of Reserva Conchal’s Emergency Brigade and are certified by the Fire Management program of the National System of Conservation Areas (SINAC).

The other certified volunteers are residents of neighboring communities, both independent and members of the Guanacaste Conservation Area Brigade (ACG), the Tamarindo Coastal Brigade (BRICA), and the Las Delicias Brigade (BRIDENA).

Non-brigade volunteers will participate in maintenance work in the visitor’s area of the national park, including cleaning the surroundings, embellishing the façade, and painting the facilities.

Climate resilience

The volunteer day will be carried out in partnership with the Barra Honda National Park administration, part of SINAC, the Santa Cruz Environmental Commission, and the community brigades.

With its Climate Action Strategy, Reserva Conchal and FIFCO seek to develop greater resilience to climate change, which forces the company and the communities to adapt, reduce their environmental footprint and manage their impacts in order to move forward.

As part of this commitment, FIFCO’s volunteer program Elegí Ayudar (I Chose to Help) and Reserva Conchal’s Emergency Brigade have been developing specific actions for the prevention of fire emergencies in Guanacaste since 2022.

Previous interventions have been carried out in Barra Honda, Santa Rosa, Palo Verde and Pocosol National Parks.