San José Costa Rica
On October 9, 2023, through letter CRLP-01-2023, the citizen initiative Costa Rica Free of Drilling presented to the President of the Republic and the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE), a reaction to the proposal of the Costa Rican Union of Chambers and Associations of the Private Business Sector (UCCAEP) on hydrocarbons.
In the document they made a formal request with two aspects:
(i) To become a party in the decision-making processes related to oil exploration/exploitation and reforms to Decree No. 36693-MINAET, with access to the respective file
(ii) Request information and a certified digital copy of the international technical cooperation documents announced by the President on August 16, 2023: which friendly government was asked for assistance, how the process was formalized, what official response was obtained, and what procedures were carried out before the Ministry of National Planning and Economic Policy (MIDEPLAN), a public institution in Costa Rica responsible for advising the Presidency and coordinating the country's medium and long-term development strategies.
Given the lack of response and delivery of the requested supporting documents, the plaintiffs filed the appeal for protection on October 30, 2023.
Based on the foregoing, the Ministry of the Presidency reported that it forwarded the official communication to MINAE on October 27, 2023 (official communication PR-DP-1477-2023) as it is the competent body in environmental and energy matters. In official communication DVME-0152-2023, dated November 15, 2023, the Vice Minister of Energy (who had been notified and whose appeal was already being processed) explained that the country from which technical cooperation had been requested was Norway; that there was no formalization or procedures before MIDEPLAN, but rather an "experience between States" via email; and that Norway would forward the information to its Ministry of Petroleum and Energy. With this information, the Ministry requested that the appeal be dismissed, as the inquiry had already been addressed.
The plaintiff refuted the response, pointing out that the authority failed to provide a copy of the emails and documents mentioned.
On March 15, 2024, the Constitutional Chamber declared that the right to petition and access to information, as enshrined in Articles 27 and 30 of the Political Constitution, had been violated. This was because the response was only provided after notification of the amparo (constitutional protection) action and was insufficient to meet the formal request for documents. Therefore, the defendants failed to deliver the requested documents and supporting documentation. Furthermore, the Constitutional Chamber noted that, despite acknowledging the existence of these exchanges and files, the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE) did not provide the interested party with copies of these emails and records, thus violating the constitutional guarantees of access to public files and archives.
The ruling orders the Minister of Environment and Energy to provide the plaintiff with the documentation requested in the letter dated October 9, 2023, within five days of notification of the ruling, and condemns the State to pay costs, damages and losses arising from the facts.
This decision is relevant even though the Constitutional Chamber will not necessarily resolve the substance of oil policy. The climate component appears in the subject of the requested information: citizen participation in hydrocarbon decisions and the transparency of state actions related to fossil fuels. In other words, decisions about oil exploration and exploitation are not exclusively energy or economic decisions: they can affect the future trajectory of greenhouse gas emissions, dependence on fossil fuels, and compliance with Costa Rica's climate commitments.
The decision strengthens a necessary condition for proper climate governance: that public decisions related to fossil fuels are transparent, traceable, and subject to citizen scrutiny.
It is important to make a legal clarification: the ruling does not declare oil exploration unconstitutional, nor does it establish a prohibition on hydrocarbon exploitation, nor does it determine whether a particular oil policy is compatible or incompatible with Costa Rica's climate obligations. Its immediate focus is on the violation of the right to petition and access to information, as well as its relation to the principle of environmental precaution.
Decisions regarding oil activities require advance consideration of their potential environmental consequences. For this principle to operate effectively, the public must have access to the technical and administrative background information used by the authorities.
The climatic element of the case is the state's decision-making regarding the exploration and potential exploitation of hydrocarbons, an activity linked to fossil fuel policy and its potential effects on emissions and climate objectives. The significance of the ruling lies in its guarantee of effective access to the documents that support these decisions, strengthening transparency, citizen participation, and oversight of administrative actions in environmental and energy matters.
- Quantum Foundation
- “Drill-Free Costa Rica” Initiative
- Ministry of the Presidency
- Ministry of Environment and Energy -MINAE-
Costa Rica has a unique territorial context where a globally successful conservation policy coexists with major challenges in urban planning and sustainability.
The country boasts exceptional biodiversity and fragile ecosystems, making it highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Its location in the Central American tropics exposes it to extreme weather events such as hurricanes, tropical storms, droughts, and floods, which have increased in frequency and intensity due to global warming.
In Costa Rica, land-use planning and environmental management are based on a Right to a Healthy and Ecologically Balanced Environment, although they face challenges of institutional coordination and the challenge of guaranteeing territorial governance based on public access to information.
National laws
- Political Constitution articles 9, 27 and 30, and under the mandate of Law No. 909 7
- Law Regulating the Right of Petition
Beginning
- Principle of access to information
- Principle of maximum publicity
- Principle of Prevention