Costa Rica Home Show

Paradise Profits will be present at the 2009 ExpoCasa along with their Costa Rica Environmental Development Group which includes green building products and sustainable development team.

The 6th annual Expo Casa will be returning to Costa Rica this year from Aug. 5 to 9 at the Centro Ferial PIMA in Cenada, Heredia.  The event is the largest show of its kind in Costa Rica, expecting 15,000 visitors over the five days.

Potential real estate buyers, investors or developers will find a wide range of services presented in one venue:  building materials suppliers, architects, builders, interior design professionals, experts in environmental construction, real estate agencies, relocation services, as well as legal and financial services and educational materials such as books about investing in Costa Rica real estate.

The PIMA center offers ample parking, and the show coordinators have provided large, attractive, and furnished modules for visitors to feel comfortable when speaking with presenters, or even to negotiate a deal.  The event has proven to be a massive success in the past and is expected to have its largest turnout of both expositors and visitors.

Schedule:
Wed. Aug 5:  Grand Opening 1 p.m. Inauguration 5 p.m.
Thursday and Friday Aug. 6 & 7:  1 p.m – 10 p.m.
Saturday Aug. 8:   10 a.m – 10 p.m.
Sunday Aug. 9:  10 a.m. – 8 p.m.

Directions: If traveling west from San Jose:  use exit for Mall Real Cariari, continue toward Barreal Heredia, one km turn right in front of large company building of URSA.  Enter PIMA/Cenada.

If traveling east from the airport:  use exit for Mall Real Cariari, cross over bridge and continue straight toward Barreal Heredia, one km turn right in front of large company building of URSA.  Enter PIMA/Cenada.

Fees:
Entrance is free.
Parking 1,500 colones

For more information, you may contact the organizers at: Congrex de Costa Rica
Tel. 506 2204-7204  2588 2439 / (506) 2588 2440• Fax: (506) 2588 2442 •
E-mail: Ivannia.mora@congrex.com

Compressed Earth Block

Costa Rica, recently voted the “greenest and happiest” nation in the world, is poised to become a model for sustainable development.  It is no secret that the development boom has not always been good for the environment, especially when the typical construction is done with concrete block and steel rebar which is used to meet earthquake-proof codes and because it is what the local builders are accustomed to using.  However a new company, Eco-Bloques, has recently landed in Costa Rica with a revolutionary green building product, Compressed Earth Blocks (CEB) which can be made on-site with local materials.

Compressed Earth Blocks are made with abundant local materials of sand, clay, and aggregate material that can be found at just about any construction site.  The earth that is moved when clearing home sites is now put to use instead of wasted, or ending up as runoff into local rivers and streams.  It is the ultimate sustainable local building material and it costs less than concrete block.

Concrete has the highest embodied energy of any traditional building material.  Actually, concrete itself has an inherently low embodied energy, but it must be quarried, produced and transported.  Additionally, it is the most widely-used material in existence, thus producing a high net effect of emissions.  So widespread is the use of concrete, that nearly 2 tons is produced for every person on the planet.

Building Materials Embodied Energy

The use of modern Compressed Earth Blocks seems to have originated in the 1950s in South America, but not until the 1980s did many European countries provide standards which enabled widespread acceptance and use.  Earth blocks are exceptionally strong, always exceeding 1,000 PSI.  CEB constructions will last centuries vs. today’s several-decades maximum.  One company has been making machines for 20 years, and is now in 70 countries, with over 2,000 machines in operation.

CEB Made On-site

CEB also capitalizes on thermal mass which allows for heat retention in winter and heat release in summer. CEB structures are virtually soundproof and are thus ideal for urban environments, also providing these environments with more pleasing aesthetics and increasing overall temperature stability.   Earth blocks can be used to build green homes, condo buildings, landscape walls, roofing tile, floor tiles, and brick road pavers.

CEB Floor Tiles

Compressed Earth Blocks will save builders and developers money, and gives their projects an authentic green appeal.  As the majority of people become more conscious of sustainable living, this green building product will give developers the power to market sustainable elements in their project.  Developers will also experience savings reflected in the cost-per-block and the lack of transportation costs, while sustainably allocating waste soil on the project site.

Saving money and time, building green, and not giving up quality, make using Compressed Earth Blocks a no-brainer and a win-win for everyone.

Compressed Earth Blocks will be on display by Eco-Bloques at the ExpoCasa August 5th – 9th in Cariari Costa Rica.  For more information or a quote for your project in Costa Rica, please email us at paradiseprofits@gmail.com or visit our website.

Anyone who has done basic research on Costa Rica knows that the country is a world leader in the green revolution.  With over 25% of the land preserved and 95% of the electricity produced with renewable resources, this famously peaceful democracy has been recently voted the “greenest and happiest” nation on Earth by the independent organization New Economics Foundation.  As a politically and economically stable “developing” country, Costa Rica may be one of the safest and most opportune countries to invest in.

Costa Rica’s government, committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2021, has launched very attractive incentives for sustainable development projects.   These incentives have spawned many green investment opportunities into fields like forestry, renewable energy generation, biofuel production, sustainable building, landfill biomass extraction, and many more.

Reforestation Investments

Reforestation and sustainable timber has long been a focus in Costa Rica.  Investing in such projects has provided incentives for residency, and now monetary compensation is available from the Costa Rican government.  A forest preservation project may receive up to $300 per year, per hectare; and a reforestation project is eligible for $150 per year, per hectare.  The legal process to qualify for these credits costs around $5,000 and takes less than 4 months to complete.

In addition, many private forestry and reforestation projects are producing certified emission reduction (CER) credits, also known as carbon offset credits.  The Costa Rica government also engages in this practice for its vast forest reserves.  These projects are offering wholesale investments into their programs, and then selling the carbon offsets credits on the open markets for very healthy returns for their investors.

Wind Power Development

Until recently, the government-run monopoly I.C.E (Institute of Costa Rican Electricity) made it very difficult for private developers to produce electricity.  Since the ratification of CAFTA (Central American Free Trade Agreement), Costa Rica has already deregulated telecommunications and is now planning to open the electricity market.  New incentives are being offered to developers to build renewable energy plants of 7 megawatts or larger.  Once their plans are approved, developers will be able to import all necessary materials “duty free,” and may be exempt from paying operating taxes for a period of time.  These projects are also eligible for creating certified carbon offset credits with substantial value, thus making them even more attractive to investors and developers.

Geothermal Power Plants

The production of biofuels is yet another industry where Costa Rica is providing similar tax-based incentives to entrepreneurs.  Biodiesel production is expected to be the leading biofuel, as the country produces a large supply of palm oil.  Jatropha, a new high-yielding oil crop, is being grown and studied in Costa Rica for future use in biodiesel production.  Additionally, sugar-based ethanol production is incentivized as well and has great potential.

Finally, revolutionary methane extraction techniques are being developed for landfills, along with garbage reduction and recycling technology that offers another exciting opportunity for green development in Costa Rica.  One firm has applied for permissions to implement such a plan for some Costa Rica landfills.  This technique reduces actual landfill garbage by 90%, removes all recyclable materials, and produces fuel pellets that can be used for electricity production, while creating valuable carbon offset credits.

With the prospect of Cap and Trade legislation being passed in the United States and a president who is pushing G-8 members to sign on to reduce global carbon emissions, these green development projects appear to be solid investments with terrific potential for high yields.  These environmentally friendly projects, when executed responsibly, represent the emerging concept of Conscious Capitalism.

Email us for more information about specific investment opportunities:  ParadiseProfits@gmail.com

President Oscar Arias signed the law over a year ago to deregulate the communications industry.  Since then, SUTEL (Superintendent of Telecommunications) has approved 7 companies to begin providing competing internet service throughout Costa Rica.

The companies to achieve licensing are CRWIFI S.A., Dodona SRL, Intertel Worldwide S.A., Worldcom de Costa Rica S.A., Call My Way NY S.A., Redes Inalambricas de Costa Rica S.A., and JASEC.

The companies will now be allowed to operate in competition with long-standing state monopolies Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE) and Radiographica Costarricense S.A. (RACSA).  This competition should bring a rush of new technology and more expansive coverage throughout Costa Rica.

The telecommunications and cell service providers have also been deregulated and are expecting to begin offering competing services immediately.

International Airport in Liberia Costa Rica

The Tico Times reported that President, Oscar Arias, signed a contract to build a new $35 million terminal at Liberia’s Daniel Oduber International Airport, in the Guanacaste province.

Solarium Commercial Complex

The new terminal is expected to serve 1,500 additional passengers per day in a multi-level facility of 23,000M2 of new construction.  President Arias announced that the project will be fast-tracked with hopes of inaugurating the new building before he leaves office.

The international airport has already become a popular airport, receiving nearly 454,693 passengers in 2008.  This new expansion is on the tail of a recent $6.7 million expansion by MOPT of airplane hangar space.

Other modern commercial growth has been exploding in the Liberia area including the 1 million square-meter mega-complex Solarium (http://www.solariumcr.com/main.php) and Latin America’s best private hospital CIMA (www.hospitalcima.com) is building a new hospital in Liberia.

CIMA Hospital San Jose

CIMA Liberia will be Guanacaste’s first state-of-the-art private hospital and is estimated to be completed by early 2011.

Already this year, Costa Rica was ranked the 8th Most Stable Country in the world by The Economist, the 5th Cleanest Country in the world by Yale’s Environmental Performance Index (EPI), the first country to be designated a “BioGem” by the Natural Resource Defense Counsel.   Now, it has been recognized as the “Greenest and Happiest” country on the Planet by the British independent research group New Economics Foundation.

The report, The Happy Planet Index 2.0: Why good lives don’t have to cost the earth, published Saturday 4 July 2009, by NEF (the new economics foundation) presents the results of the second global study of the Happy Planet Index (HPI).  The new Index is based on comprehensive data for 143 countries around the world, representing 99 per cent of the world’s population, and Latin American nations featured nine of the Top 10 spots.

Costa Rica Pristine Beaches

In a report released Saturday, the group ranks nations using the “Happy Planet Index,” which seeks countries with the most content people.  In addition to happiness, the index by the New Economics Foundation considers the ecological footprint and life expectancy of countries.

“Costa Ricans report the highest life satisfaction in the world and have the second-highest average life expectancy of the new world (second to Canada),” the organization said in a statement.

They “also have an ecological footprint that means that the country only narrowly fails to achieve the goal of … consuming its fair share of the Earth’s natural resources.”

Costa Rica Waterfall

The Central American country, tucked between Nicaragua and Panama, touts its lush rain forests and pristine beaches. Its president, Oscar Arias Sanchez, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1987 for trying to help end civil wars in several Central American countries.

The runner-up was the Dominican Republic, followed by Jamaica, and Guatemala.  The United States sunk to the 114th spot, while Britain ranked mainly due to its hefty consumption and massive ecological footprint.  The United States was greener and happier 20 years ago than it is today, the report said.

“As the world faces the triple crunch of deep financial crisis, accelerating climate change and the looming peak in oil production, we desperately need a new compass to guide us,” said Nic Marks, founder of the foundation’s center for well-being.

The world is finally realizing Costa Rica as more than just a vacation spot.  Costa Rica’s excellent stance on the environment, political and economic stability, perfect climate, and lower cost of living continue to draw foreign retirees from across the globe.

To read the actual study please visit:

http://www.neweconomics.org/gen/happyplanetindex040709.aspx

Costa Rica Culture