Six years ago Costa Rican park ranger Mauricio Steller fired his service weapon during an altercation with poachers on a remote beach in the country’s southwest. Now Steller is awaiting the results of an appeal to determine whether he’ll have to serve a 12-year prison sentence, handed down following his conviction in August for attempted murder. Steller’s conviction rekindled longstanding complaints by park rangers and environmentalists that park personnel receive far too little legal and funding support as they try to protect the country’s conservation lands. The problem, they argue, threatens the extensive park system that underlies Costa Rica’s reputation as a world conservation leader. “Right now illegal gold miners have more rights than park rangers,” says Mauricio Álvarez, president of the Costa Rican... [Log in to read more]