Environment-current issues: deforestation, largely a result of the clearing of land for cattle ranching; soil erosion
Environment-international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation
@Costa Rica:People
Population: 3,604,642 (July 1998 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 34% (male 620,496; female 591,299) 15-64 years: 61% (male 1,120,118; female 1,093,099) 65 years and over: 5% (male 82,893; female 96,737) (July 1998 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.95% (1998 est.)
Birth rate: 22.89 births/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Death rate: 4.15 deaths/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Net migration rate: 0.72 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female (1998 est.)