Texas oil a slippery issue in Costa Rica vote

At issue: Proposed offshore drilling by Harken Energy

Rare leatherback sea turtle in Costa Rican waters

By Gary Strieker
CNN Environmental Correspondent

(CNN) -- National elections in Costa Rica take place Sunday and one of hottest issues is drilling of the country's Caribbean coast.

Texas-based Harken Energy Corp. has already carried out seismic testing and now wants to explore further by drilling in its offshore holdings.

A coalition of environmental, tourism and civic groups oppose the plan.

"We don't think the study presented by the oil company considered the full environmental and economic impact of the activity. And also, the oil contingency plans they've presented don't sufficiently consider the unique marine ecosystems that are present along the coast," said Sebastian Troeng, a scientist who has extensively studied Costa Rican turtle populations.

Costa Rica's Caribbean coast is a migratory pathway for at least three endangered species of sea turtles. Its beaches are the world's most important nesting grounds for one of the species, green turtles. Conservationists warn that turtles are especially sensitive to oil pollution.

Ecotourism is big business on protected Costa Rica beaches

Tourism, Costa Rica's main source of earnings from other countries, could feel the impact as well. The industry is based mainly on the attraction of national parks and wildlife refuges and a coastal oil spill could have a disastrous effect.

Opponents of drilling say that Harken has had close ties with United States President George W. Bush and that there's strong political pressure to approve drilling, even though Bush sold his holdings in the company years ago.

Harken executives declined to comment. The company's environmental impact study has been recommended by the government's technical advisors, but a final ruling on the study will still take some time, authorities say.

Meanwhile, each of the three leading presidential candidates has taken a stand opposed to oil drilling. Fast-gaining third-party candidate Otton Solis, for example, has pledged to guard Costa Rica's natural environment as a key priority if elected.

Solis runs against the Social Christian Unity Party's Abel Pacheco and the National Liberation Party's Rolando Araya. Polling this week by Unimer puts the three candidates in a neck-and-neck race.