Costa Rica unveils plan against climate change

Costa Rica's Environment and Energy Ministry on Thursday released a plan devised to combat problems caused by climate change. "The National Climate Change Strategy Plan of Action" (ENCC) is a multi-sector scheme for managing water resources, energy, agriculture and transportation in an environmentally sustainable way, said the ministry. The ENCC will serve as a catalyst for assigning public- and private-sector resources based on development models that generate low greenhouse gas emissions, added the ministry. The plan aims to tackle communities and ecosystems' vulnerability to floods and droughts, while promoting public services to reduce private cars circulation. It also intends to promote renewable energy sources and meet domestic energy needs with fuels less polluting than oil, said the ministry, adding that the ENCC is part of Costa Rica's efforts to become the world's first carbon-neutral country by 2021.