AGUA TICA is a water fund initiative located in Costa Rica´s Great Metropolitan Area (GAM). This area contains four of the seven main head of provinces of the country, concentrating 57% of the country´s population and 75% of its industry. AGUA TICA’s Board selected the following Ecosystem Services as primary goals to work in AOI: 1) Erosion Control for Drinking Water; 2) Erosion Control for Reservoir Maintenance; 3) Ground Water Recharge; and 4) Baseflow Control.
AGUA TICA is a water fund initiative located in Costa Rica´s Great Metropolitan Area (GAM). This area contains four of the seven main head of provinces of the country, concentrating 57% of the country´s population and 75% of its industry. This initiative impacts the two sub-watersheds of the Río Grande de Tárcoles (Río Grande and Río Virilla).
Biophysical data were collected from government agencies, non-governmental organizations, academia and private enterprises including: The National Meteorological Institute (IMN), the National Service of Ground Water, Irrigation and Drainage (SENARA), the National System of Conservation Areas (SINAC), Heredia´s Public Service Enterprise (ESPH), Costa Rican Technological Institute (ITCR), the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG) and FUNDECOR.
These data were used to run InVEST and RIOS software, an open source software developed by the Natural capital project of the Stanford University. Thanks to the availability of this software, AGUA TICA was able to identify priority areas of intervention and to establish an investment portfolio in a manner that will maximize the Initiative’s effectiveness.
AGUA TICA’s Board selected the following Ecosystem Services as primary goals to work in AOI:
1) Erosion Control for Drinking Water
2) Erosion Control for Reservoir Maintenance
3) Ground Water Recharge
4) Baseflow Control
Sarchí, Zarcero, Arenal, La Fortuna, Monteverde
