Flooding in Sequeira Urbanization due to unpermitted detention pondsInundaciones en Urbanización Sequeira por lagunas de retardo sin permisos

Case File: 15-016546-0007-CO Ruling No. 2016-004621 CONSTITUTIONAL CHAMBER OF THE SUPREME COURT OF JUSTICE. San José, at sixteen hours and twenty minutes on April fifth, two thousand and sixteen.

Amparo action processed under case file number 15-016546-0007-CO, filed by AIDA NIDIA ROJAS LOPEZ, identity card 0501820063, ALONSO JESUS OSES VEGA, identity card 0402350614, AMALIA DEL SOCORRO ARGUEDAS CAMPOS, identity card 0401660091, ANA CECILIA GUILLEN CHAVARRIA, identity card 0302670501, ANA GABRIELA RAMIREZ ARGUEDAS, identity card 0402260170, ANA ISABEL ALFARO ARAYA, identity card 0401090077, ANA JANCY MOREIRA CASTRO, identity card 0204780212, ANA MARIA BUSTOS RODRIGUEZ, identity card 0600930929, CARLOS ALBERTO CORTES DIAZ, identity card 0401670701, CARLOS LUIS CORTES UGALDE, identity card 0401170698, CARLOS MANUEL VILLALOBOS SANCHEZ, identity card 0502510038, DENNIS MIGUEL RODRIGUEZ CANTILLO, identity card 0109560918, DOUGLAS LEON PEREZ, identity card 0503200707, EDGAR ANTONIO SANCHEZ BARBOZA, identity card 0302940323, ELENA DE LOS ANGELES ARCE JIMENEZ, identity card 0603840257, ELIZABETH ROSARIO DE MAYELA BIASETTI VARGAS, identity card 0900180474, ESTRELLA DE LOS ANGELES DIAZ ESQUIVEL, identity card 0401110490, FREDDY ROLANDO HERRERA CAMPOS, identity card 0401290678, GABRIELA MARIA HERNANDEZ ALFARO, identity card 0401860338, GLEN ALEXANDER BERMUDEZ BUSTOS, identity card 0602930454, GUADALUPE RECINOS BARAHONA, identity card 0800740511, GUILLERMO ALONSO ALVARADO VARGAS, identity card 0108840308, GUISELLA PARRA CORTES, identity card 0402260185, HIPOLITO VILLALOBOS MIRANDA, identity card 0202490981, JACQUELINE VEGA ARGUEDAS, identity card 0206350401, JENNIFER DE LOS ANGELES SANCHEZ QUESADA, identity card 0117490280, JENNY VIRGINIA HERRERA ARGUEDAS, identity card 0401750055, JESSICA PATRICIA NAJERA CHACON, identity card 0113010378, JOHNNY SALAZAR OROZCO, identity card 0204130457, JOSE ANTHONY RECINOS BARAHONA, identity card 0113610331, JOSE EVENOR MENDOZA SALINAS, residency card 155822542527, JUAN CARLOS BOLAÑOS NUÑEZ, identity card 0401420104, KIMBERLY SANCHEZ QUESADA, identity card 0117060746, LUIS CARLOS SALAS GONZALEZ, identity card 0402340442, LUIS FERNANDO ARQUIMEDES SOLIS CAMPOS, identity card 0401320554, LUIS MANUEL VILCHEZ VARGAS, identity card 0401430085, MANUEL ENRIQUE DE JESUS VARGAS ALCAZAR, identity card 0401470606, MARCO TULIO DE LA TRINIDAD CESPEDES GUERRERO, identity card 0401210679, MARIA DEL CARMEN ARGUELLO MOLINA, identity card 0400960737, MARIA SHIRLEY DEL CARMEN VARGAS ALFARO, identity card 0401390998, MARISOL MARIA ARAYA SEGURA, identity card 0204760943, MARVA DE LOS ANGELES VILLALOBOS ALVARADO, identity card 0601890437, MARVIN ANTONIO SALAS CALDERON, identity card 0401350390, MICHAEL ANTONIO VILCHEZ HERRERA, identity card 0401760942, MIGDALIA PUERTO AMPIE, MIGUEL ANGEL DEL CARMEN BOLAÑOS NUÑEZ, identity card 0401090641, NURIA MARIA DEL CARMEN CORTES UGALDE, identity card 0401270783, OLMAN ELIECER RAMIREZ CAMPOS, identity card 0108820862, OSCAR VILLALOBOS CANALES, identity card 0603950706, RAFAEL ANGEL DE JESUS MEJIA GARCIA, identity card 0900550338, RAFAEL ELIAS ZUÑIGA VARGAS, identity card 0401670931, RITA GONZALEZ DELGADO, identity card 0203020989, ROBERTH ANDRES ARGUELLO HERRERA, identity card 0402170904, RONALD ANTONIO ARGUELLO HERRERA, identity card 0402360279, SCARLETT LIDIETH CALDERON CHAVES, identity card 0604080259, SONIA DEL SOCORRO HERRERA HERRERA, identity card 0401380816, VERA VIOLETA RODRIGUEZ CAMPOS, identity card 0203300414, YAMILETH DEL CARMEN JIMENEZ BADILLA, identity card 0501980824, YESENIA MARIA ARGUEDAS ARGUEDAS, identity card 0108330029, YOLANDA MARIA DE LOS ANGELES VEGA MENDEZ, identity card 0106840425, YORLENY MESEN VALVERDE, identity card 0109690659, YUDITH DE LOS ANGELES IBARRA , residency card 155819142610, against the SANTA BARBARA DE HEREDIA GOVERNING HEALTH AREA (MINISTRY OF HEALTH), the MUNICIPALITY OF SANTA BARBARA DE HEREDIA, the NATIONAL EMERGENCY COMMISSION, the NATIONAL GROUNDWATER, IRRIGATION AND DRAINAGE SERVICE OF THE MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY, and the company EL TOMATICO S.A.

Whereas:

In a brief received by this Chamber at 4:21 p.m. on November 4, 2016, the petitioners file an amparo action and state that their properties are being affected by flooding, because the company El Tomatico S.A. built some detention ponds without the proper permits. The municipality indicated that the detention pond should be eliminated. For a year now, they have been waiting for the Santa Bárbara Governing Health Area to resolve a complaint filed by a neighbor; which was conditional upon a report that the National Emergency Commission (CNE) was to issue, without any actions or health orders having been taken to date for the protection and safety of the community.

By resolution at 8:36 a.m. on November 6, 2016, this Court grants leave to proceed with this amparo, requesting a report from the Director of the Santa Bárbara de Heredia Governing Health Area (Ministry of Health), the Mayor of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, and the President of the National Risk Prevention and Emergency Response Commission (CNE), which was to be submitted within the 3 business days following notification of said resolution.

The resolution granting leave was notified to the President of the CNE on November 10, 2015, at 2:55 p.m.

The resolution granting leave was notified to the Mayor of Santa Bárbara de Heredia on November 11, 2015, at 10:55 a.m. through the Heredia Judicial Communications Office.

By resolution at 11:02 a.m. on December 14, 2015, the parties to this proceeding are expanded, transferring the matter to the National Groundwater, Irrigation and Drainage Service of the Ministry of Environment and Energy, so that, within a period of 3 days, it may conduct an inspection and submit a report to this Court. Furthermore, the Legal Representative of the company El Tomatico S.A. is included as a party and is requested to submit a report on the facts alleged by the petitioner, which was to be submitted within the 3 business days following notification of the resolution.

The resolution granting leave was notified to the National Water, Irrigation and Drainage Service of the Ministry of Environment and Energy on January 7, 2016, at 08:55 a.m.

The resolution granting leave was notified to the Legal Representative of the company El Tomatico S.A. on January 6, 2016, at 08:18 a.m. through the Heredia Judicial Communications Office.

By brief submitted on November 13, 2015, at 10:25 a.m., MARCO TULIO ZUMBADO ULATE reports under oath, in his capacity as Director of the Santa Bárbara de Heredia Governing Health Area, regarding the facts alleged by the petitioner, reporting that on October 20, 2014, Mr. Rafael Elías Zúñiga Vargas filed a complaint with the Santa Bárbara Governing Health Area regarding the management of stormwater on the farm of Mr. Milton Castillo (Owner of Tomatico), due to the proliferation of Dengue and other mosquitoes. Additionally, he notes that excavations were carried out less than fifty centimeters from his property on the north side of his wall and he filed the complaint with the Municipality of Santa Bárbara. On November 21, 2014, the Environmental Manager of the Santa Bárbara Governing Health Area conducted an inspection of the site; official report CN-ARS-SB-1661-2014 dated December 10, 2015, indicated that a pit was observed on the property of Mr. Milton Castillo, adjacent to and located 50 cm from the complainant's property, measuring approximately 25 m2, stagnant water was observed at the bottom, and no presence of mosquitoes was observed. The need and usefulness of the ponds were verified, and it was ruled out that there were breeding grounds for mosquitoes. It requests that the filed action be dismissed.

In a brief submitted at the Secretariat of this Chamber at 11:01 a.m. on November 16, 2015, JULISSA ULATE ARIAS reports under oath, in her capacity as Acting Executive Director of the National Risk Prevention and Emergency Response Commission, indicating that it is the purview of municipal governments to verify that constructions erected in their canton remain within the guidelines authorized by them. Based on the actions carried out by my represented entity, the Risk Research and Analysis Unit has issued various reports for the San Juan de Santa Bárbara de Heredia area, resulting from floods. Reports that were duly notified to the municipal authorities, the Municipal Emergency Committee, and Mr. William Retana Alpizar, a resident of the area. The first of these was issued in June 2013 under number IAR-INF-460-2013, resulting from a site visit and review of the hazard map to provide a preliminary risk diagnosis. Under official letter number IAR-INF-0337-2014 dated June 9, 2014, a risk assessment was conducted for flooding of homes in San Juan Arriba de Santa Bárbara, Heredia. Finally, the Risk Analysis Research Unit issued a new risk assessment report under official letter number IAR-INF-0392-2014 stating that a site visit was conducted at the location coordinates 223.280N-5 19.306, San Juan de Santa Bárbara, observing a channel attributed with the problem of flooding of homes (a concessioned irrigation channel). It was determined that this channel extends beyond the limits of the agricultural property used for tomato cultivation, collecting water from properties through which it passes, causing flooding of houses during heavy rainfall. The report concludes: VI. Conclusions A. The area is surrounded by several foreseeable natural hazards, according to the potential hazards map of the CNE for this sector. B. The inspected area has several factors that cause flooding and sewer overflow problems. The collection channels for surface water in the coffee plantation become clogged with materials, garbage, or sediments, causing said water to overflow, flowing towards the front of the property and onto the irrigation channel, which continues illegally, generating the flooding problems. The presence of homes alongside and over the channel increases their impact. C. The low hydraulic capacity of the pipes and ditches, small diameter sewers, and a poor control and collection system for stormwater and wastewater causes the flooding problem at the visited sites. D. Poor management of cultivation and plowing techniques favors soil erosion, contributing to the clogging of pipes and sewers. VII. Recommendations A. It is recommended that no further construction permits be granted by the Municipality of Santa Bárbara in said area with flooding problems. B. The owner of the agricultural farm must monitor that the runoff water collection channels are kept clean, free of garbage, and without clogging problems. C. The municipality of Santa Bárbara and residents of the area must keep the drainage ditch that collects stormwater and wastewater clean at the evaluated sites, as well as on properties uphill from said locations. D. The municipality of Santa Bárbara and affected neighbors should evaluate the possibility of replacing the sewers with ones of larger diameter that allow for the passage of higher flows. E. Residents affected by flooding are recommended not to build further near the channel causing the problems, and to remove the constructions located on it. F. The municipality of Santa Bárbara must evaluate the possibility of eliminating the channel that is causing the flooding problems, as well as preparing an exhaustive hydrological model for the entire basin or micro-basin, establishing the history of the area and maximum probable floods, to appropriately design the sewer systems and the optimal sites for the discharge of sewer systems in the area with flooding problems. G. Any anomaly regarding construction techniques or omission of the recommendations described herein falls under the full responsibility of the institutions granting the permits, the engineer or person responsible for the work, and the respective Municipality for not requesting the corresponding reports, inspections, and corrections.

In a brief received at 2:06 p.m. on November 16, 2015, MALVIN ALFARO SALAS reports under oath, in his capacity as Mayor of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, stating that the area in question, owned by El Tomatico S.A., was previously used for coffee cultivation, and a crop change was made, thus the shade provided by the trees was no longer needed. These were felled as an agricultural practice, but not as deforestation. There are retention ponds, built throughout the farm, created under the concept of good agricultural practices, intended to retard the flow of water, and these were made at the recommendation of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG), according to a letter addressed to this Municipality by Eng. Rolando Hidalgo, under number pps-014-10. Said activity is not within the Municipality's competence to grant or deny permits, due to the nature of the activity. The engineering department conducted an inspection of the site to verify the facts set forth in the complaint; it was indicated that the detention ponds created were a provision of the MAG because the farm is for agricultural use and the water runoff on the farm is very large, as a mitigation measure to reduce flooding problems in the areas. In said inspection, notification was made via ticket No. 0378-2014; it was also indicated that the detention pond located next to Mr. Zúñiga's lot had to be eliminated. It requests that the filed action be dismissed.

By brief submitted at the Secretariat of this Chamber on January 11, 2016, at 2:26 p.m., MILTON CASTILLO SANDÍ reports, in his capacity as Legal Representative of the company El Tomatico S.A., indicating that it is an agricultural-use farm, as recorded in the Municipality's Regulatory Plan. The coffee crop was replaced by vegetable crops; it is not true that this crop change caused the flooding. The development is topographically located on a lower plot, i.e., at a lower level than the El Tomatico S.A. property. Stormwater, as provided for by the Law governing the matter, cannot be retained on an upper property. Therefore, the responsibility for what happens there lies not with El Tomatico S.A. but with those who issued the construction permits and authorized the creation of the development. It is clear that the detention tanks were made following the recommendations of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock; they are simple retention tanks dug into the earth to reduce the speed of stormwater in extreme cases of torrential rain (water collection tanks), the intention being to prevent the violent fall by gravity of water coming from properties at a higher altitude and from the same farm. Studies carried out by CONAVI and the EMERGENCY COMMISSION determined that what the property contributes to the water flow related to this problem is barely point nine cubic meters, so it can never be the cause of the flooding and catastrophes mentioned by the neighbors. The municipality never requested the elimination of the retention tanks; however, we were asked to provide adequate maintenance so they would fulfill their purpose properly. Since 2014, the company has requested approval from the municipality to carry out the necessary works; to date, no approval or response has been received from said entity. If the retention tanks near the property boundaries were eliminated, water would flow unobstructed towards the street and then into the development, with the resulting consequences. It requests that the action be dismissed.

By brief submitted at the Secretariat of this Chamber on February 12, 2016, at 3:26 p.m., PATRICIA QUIRÓS QUIRÓS reports under oath, in her capacity as General Manager of the National Groundwater, Irrigation and Drainage Service (SENARA), and states that on Monday, January 11, 2016, SENARA proceeded to conduct the inspection at the site subject to this complaint. Indep. Report, according to official letter No. RCOC-003-16 (Directorate of Engineering and Project Development), dated January 12, 2016. It details, as relevant, that no traces or residues of flooding with debris and garbage were observed. No land destabilization was found in the community. It was confirmed that there are a series of rectangular excavations of different dimensions, used to receive and retain surface runoff water carried along during rain events. As of the inspection date, these excavations showed evidence of having received runoff water and of their silted condition. Their location is quite far from the boundary line. According to what was observed during the inspection, it is indicated that it is essential that corresponding technical improvements be made to the construction and maintenance of the detention ponds. The activity must have a certification of good agricultural practices. According to the report of the Directorate of Water Research and Management, official letter No. UGH-006-16 dated January 12, 2016, it is indicated that the problem raised by residents of the Sequeira Development lies in a surface runoff problem and a deficient sewer system, which during heavy rainfall events cause flooding problems. According to what was observed during the inspection, it is indicated that it is essential that corresponding technical improvements be made to the construction and maintenance of the detention ponds. The area where the El Tomatico S.A. property is located is a medium recharge area and of vulnerability for the Barva aquifer; therefore, the Matrix of Land-Use Criteria According to Aquifer Contamination Vulnerability for Resource Protection, prepared by SENARA and approved by the Board of Directors, has the following regulations: only agrochemicals of very low toxicity, persistence, and mobility may be used. There must be a soil management plan in accordance with Decree 23214-MAG-MIRENEM; effluents must be managed and treated. The activity must have a certification of good agricultural practices. It requests that the action be dismissed.

The legal requirements have been met in this proceeding.

Drafted by Magistrate Ulate Chacón; and,

Considering:

I.- PRELIMINARY MATTER. Some of the facts reported in this action were subject to review by this Constitutional Court, related to the flooding of the Sequeira Development in the canton of Santa Bárbara de Heredia. In that regard, it is observed that in Ruling No. 2013-010296 at 2:30 p.m. on July 31, 2013, the Mayor and the President of the Municipal Council, both of the Municipality of Santa Bárbara, were ordered, within a three-month period, to make improvements to the storm sewer system where the property of the protected party is located, including unclogging the installed pipe, piping the ditch, constructing a manhole, cleaning storm drains, and/or expanding the storm sewer system, all in coordination with the property owners—including the petitioner—and taking into account the recommendations provided by the Costa Rican Institute of Aqueducts and Sewers and the Ministry of Health. Likewise, in a much more recent matter, through Ruling No. 2015-017869 at 9:15 a.m. on November 13, 2015, the Mayor, the Engineering Department, and the President of the Municipal Council, all of the Municipality of Santa Bárbara, were ordered, within two months, to solve the problem reported by the petitioner on June 19, 2014, i.e., the problem of flooding in the Sequeira Development. In view of the foregoing, this Court proceeds to review the facts reported for two reasons: first, because they involve other petitioners and, second, because other authorities that were not parties in the previous amparo proceedings are parties here.

II.- PURPOSE OF THE ACTION. The petitioners claim they are residents of the Sequeira Development in Santa Bárbara de Heredia, which is composed of several vulnerable populations. They state that their rights to a healthy and ecologically balanced environment, to property, and to public health have been affected, because the company called El Tomatico S.A., since 2010, deforested an area of trees and pastures that retained water in order to plant agricultural crops, and since that date, flooding with mud, garbage, and land destabilization has occurred throughout the community, due to the construction of ponds on the farm without the required legal permits. They indicate that the described problem continues despite the fact that the respondent Municipality notified said company that the work does not have protection and endangers human life and property, and therefore it had to eliminate the detention pond and the pit, which are located near the boundaries. They claim that for a year, they have been waiting for the Ministry of Health to resolve the problem following a complaint filed by a resident of that area; it was left pending a report to be issued by the National Emergency Commission. They affirm that, to date, no actions, health orders, or other administrative acts have been issued to provide protection and safety for the community, and they therefore consider their fundamental rights violated.

III.- PROVEN FACTS. For the decision in this matter, the following facts are deemed duly proven, either because they have been substantiated or because the respondent omitted to refer to them as provided in the initial order:

The property of El Tomatico S.A. is for agricultural use, previously dedicated to coffee cultivation; it has runoff water retention ponds, recommended by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG), according to official letter pps-014-10, signed by the Sustainable Production Coordinator, and it is not within the competence of the respondent Municipality to grant or deny permits (report from the Mayor of Santa Bárbara).

On June 25, 2013, technical report No. IAR-INF-460-2013, regarding the assessment of flood risk in the Sequeira Development, San Juan de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, the Risk Research and Analysis Unit of the National Emergency Commission (CNE) issued reports, notified to the municipal authorities and the Municipal Emergency Committee, concluding a lack of adequate stormwater channeling and recommending not granting construction permits in river, stream, and ditch protection areas, areas of steep slope fill, and downstream from the site in question (report from the Acting Executive Director of the National Risk Prevention and Emergency Response Commission).

On October 20, 2014, Mr. Rafael Elías Zúñiga Vargas filed a complaint with the Santa Bárbara Governing Health Area, noting the management of stormwater on the El Tomatico S.A. farm and possible breeding grounds for the Dengue-transmitting mosquito (report from the Director of the Santa Bárbara Governing Health Area).

In inspection report No. CN-ARS-SB-1661-2014, dated December 10, 2014, conducted by the Environmental Manager of the Governing Health Area, it was noted that the pit on the property of El Tomatico S.A. is located 50 cm from the boundary, measuring 25 m2, with stagnant water at the bottom, without mosquitoes (report from Marco Tulio Zumbado Ulate, Director of the Santa Bárbara Governing Health Area, visible on folio 89 of the electronic case file).

In the file of the National Emergency Commission, there is no record of the presentation of official letter CN-ARS-SB-1670-2014 (see report from the Acting Executive Director of the National Risk Prevention and Emergency Response Commission).

The Risk Analysis Research Unit issued a new risk assessment report under official letter number IAR-INF-0392-2014 stating that a site visit was conducted at coordinates 223.280N-5 19.306, San Juan de Santa Bárbara, which among its conclusions indicates: The collection channels for surface water in the coffee plantation become clogged with materials, garbage, or sediments, causing said water to overflow, flowing towards the front of the property and onto the irrigation channel (see report from the Acting Executive Director of the National Risk Prevention and Emergency Response Commission).

In the inspection report, official letter No. RCOC-003-16, dated January 12, 2016, from the Directorate of Engineering and Project Development of SENARA, it stated that no traces or residues of flooding were observed, no land destabilization was found in the community, excavations for retaining surface runoff water were confirmed, they have an overflow outlet, when full they discharge the excess water, which is channeled through a series of ditches to natural outlets of the farm's topographic condition (report from the General Manager of SENARA).

The flooding problem in the Sequeira Development is due to a deficient sewer system (report from the General Manager of SENARA and report from the Acting Executive Director of the National Risk Prevention and Emergency Response Commission).

IV.- UNPROVEN FACTS. None of relevance to this ruling.

V.- PROTECTION OF THE RIGHT TO A HEALTHY AND ECOLOGICALLY BALANCED ENVIRONMENT. Article 50 of the Constitution establishes as a fundamental purpose and essential value of the Costa Rican State to ensure "the greatest well-being for all inhabitants of the country." Thus, a "healthy and ecologically balanced environment" forms part of the content of the greatest well-being for all inhabitants, the cause, purpose, and also condition and limit of the exercise of public powers and competencies, not only of the State but also of the Municipalities. Like the right to property, the object of the right to the environment is external to the integrity of the human person (unlike, for example, the right to life), but also unlike the object of the right to property, the person forms part of the environment, integrates it; hence, its protection implies the conservation of the essential context for human life. Conduct with negative effects on it implies a danger to human existence itself and a reduction or loss of the "greatest well-being" for all. Life depends on the environment; therefore, one must ensure that the conditions that guarantee life are maintained over time. In Judgment Number 601-2009, this Chamber held the following:

"The origins of environmental problems are complex and correspond to an articulation of natural and social processes within the framework of the socioeconomic development style adopted by the country.

For example, environmental problems arise when natural resource exploitation methods cause ecosystem degradation exceeding their regenerative capacity, leading to harm to broad sectors of the population and generating a high environmental and social cost that results in a deterioration of the quality of life; precisely because the primary objective of the use and protection of the environment is to obtain development and evolution favorable to human beings (...) it is important to understand that while man has the right to use the environment for his own development, he also has the duty to protect and preserve it for the use of present and future generations, which is not so novel, because it is nothing more than the translation to this matter of the principle of "harm" (lesión), already consolidated in common law, by virtue of which the legitimate exercise of a right has two essential limits: On the one hand, the equal rights of others and, on the other, the rational exercise and useful enjoyment of the right itself." Thus, it is the responsibility of public entities, including Municipalities, to ensure respect for a healthy and ecologically balanced environment in their respective territorial jurisdiction, as well as the well-being of all inhabitants of their respective canton, and within the framework of constitutional and legal powers to act in favor of ensuring respect for this right for all residents, and to act—again within the framework of their powers—to mitigate or correct actions that tend toward its violation.

VI.- MUNICIPAL COMPETENCE AND OBLIGATION OF INTER-INSTITUTIONAL COORDINATION. Article 169 of the Political Constitution provides that "The administration of local interests and services in each canton shall be in charge of the Municipal Government (...)." This norm has been developed by the ordinary legislator, accordingly, Article 3 of the Municipal Code, Ley 7794 of April 30, 1998, provides that: "The government and administration of cantonal interests and services shall be in charge of the municipal government." In this same sense, the Constitutional Chamber has expressed itself in its jurisprudence. For example, in judgment number 5445-99, at 2:30 p.m. on July 14, 1999, the following was provided:

"VI.- OF THE POWERS OF MUNICIPALITIES BY REASON OF SUBJECT MATTER (CONCEPT OF "THE LOCAL"). By express constitutional provision—Article 169—, there is an assignment of functions or powers in favor of local governments by reason of the matter of "the local," that is, "the administration of the services and interests" of the locality to which it is circumscribed, for which it is endowed with autonomy. Thus, its powers are generic, as there is no detailed enumeration of its own tasks, but rather a simple statement of the scope of its competence; but this does not make it undeterminable, to which this Tribunal referred in judgment number 6469-97, at sixteen hours twenty minutes on October eight, nineteen ninety-seven, in the following terms:

" (...) the local has such connotation that defining its scope by the legislator or the judge must lead to the maintenance of the integrity of local interests and services, so that not even the legislator could dictate regulations tending to dismember the Municipality (territorial element), if it does not do so observing the procedures previously established in the Political Constitution; nor could it promulgate those that place its inhabitants (population) in clear conditions of inferiority relative to the rest of the country; nor those that affect the very essence of the local (government), so that the Corporation becomes a simple empty container from which only the name subsists, but deactivating the entire regime as it was conceived by the National Constituent Assembly. In another vein, there will be tasks that by their nature are municipal—local—and cannot be subtracted from that sphere of competence to convert them into national services or interests, because doing so would imply dismantling the Municipality, or better yet, emptying it of constitutional content, and therefore, it is not possible to dictate in advance the insurmountable limits of the local, but rather to unravel what corresponds or not to the communal government, it must be extracted from the examination made in each specific case (...)". From the foregoing, the fact stands out that, by express will of our Fundamental Charter, a specific competence is assigned to local governments, an attribution that is also exclusive to them; that is, it is an original competence of the municipality and only through a nationalization or regionalization law can it be displaced, totally or partially."

Consequently, if a group of residents, in their territorial jurisdiction, suffer floods with risk to their lives and serious property, psychological, quality of life, and general welfare damages, this falls within the concept of "local interests and services" of constitutional numeral 169, problems whose causes must be precisely identified and, even more so, the solutions, in order to implement them as soon as possible; for which it is the responsibility of the Municipality to coordinate with national-level institutions with the competence to act on the problem. Indeed, the Chamber has already developed the municipal obligation to coordinate with other state institutions for the sake of attending to "interests" and fully providing "local services." In the cited judgment number 5445-99, the Chamber stated:

"(...) refer to the coordination obligation that must exist between local governments, decentralized institutions, and the Executive Branch, to carry out the functions entrusted to them, which must be analyzed based on the very nature of municipal autonomy. It is by virtue of the provisions of Article 170 of the Constitution that municipalities (local corporate entities) enjoy functional, administrative, and financial autonomy in the administration of local interests and services (Article 169 of the Political Constitution) (...) A conflict cannot, then, be created by antagonism or protagonism between the matter that makes up the general goal of 'local interests and services' and 'national' or 'state' public interests and services, intrinsically distinct from one another, but which in reality are called to coexist (....) Having defined the material competence of the municipality in a specific territorial jurisdiction, it is clear that there will be tasks that by their nature are exclusively municipal, alongside others that can be reputed national or state; for that reason it is essential to define the form of co-participation of attributions that is unavoidable, since the public capacity of municipalities is local, and that of the State and other entities, national; from which it follows that the municipal territory is simultaneously state and institutional, to the extent required by circumstances. That is, municipalities can share their competences with the Public Administration in general, a relationship that must unfold in the terms as defined in the law (Article 5 of the previous Municipal Code, Article 7 of the new Code), which establishes the obligation of 'coordination' between municipalities and public institutions that concur in the performance of their competences, to avoid duplications of efforts and contradictions, above all, because only voluntary coordination is compatible with municipal autonomy as it is its expression. In other terms, the municipality is called to enter into cooperative relations with other public entities, and vice versa, given the concurrent or coincident nature—in many cases—of interests around a concrete matter. In doctrine, coordination is defined based on the existence of several independent centers of action, each with its own tasks and decision-making powers, and potentially discrepant; despite this, there must be a community of ends by subject matter, but by concurrence, insofar as the receiving object of the final results of the activity and the acts of each one is common." So, coordination is the ordering of relations between these diverse independent activities, which takes charge of that concurrence in the same object or entity, to make it useful to a global public plan, without suppressing the reciprocal independence of the agent subjects. As there is no hierarchical relationship of decentralized institutions, nor of the State itself in relation to municipalities, the imposition of certain behaviors on them is not possible, with which the indispensable inter-institutional "agreement" (concierto) arises, in the strict sense, as the autonomous and independent centers of action agree on that preventive and global scheme, in which each one fulfills a role with a view to a mission entrusted to the others."

Note, moreover, that Municipalities are obliged, by imperative of ordinal 50 of the Political Constitution, to exert themselves in the protection of the environment (judgment number 2006-7994 at 8:57 a.m. on June 2, 2006).

VII.- SPECIFIC CASE. The petitioners appear before this Constitutional Jurisdiction and state that they are residents of the Urbanización Sequeira in Santa Bárbara de Heredia. They indicate that their right to a healthy and ecologically balanced environment, to property, and to public health has been affected, because the Company called El Tomatico S.A, since 2010, deforested an area of trees and pastures that retained water, to carry out plantings of agricultural crops, and it is since that date that floods with mud, garbage, and land destabilization have occurred throughout the community, due to the creation of ponds on the farm, without having the legal permits. They indicate that the described problem continues despite the fact that the respondent Municipality notified said company that the work lacks protection and exposes human life and real estate, so it had to eliminate the detention pond and the pit, which are located near the boundaries. They claim that for a year they have been waiting for the Ministry of Health to resolve the problem, following a complaint filed by a neighbor of said locality; it remained pending a report that was to be generated by the Comisión Nacional de Emergencias (CNE). They affirm that to date no actions, health orders, or other administrative act have been issued to provide protection and security to the community, for which they consider their fundamental rights violated. In this regard, the representatives of the respondent authorities, in reports rendered under oath, with warning of the consequences, including criminal ones, provided for in Article 44 of the Law governing this Jurisdiction, and the evidence provided to the record, it can be concluded, regarding the problems occurring in the Urbanización Sequeira of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, the following: 1. Indeed, all authorities agree that there is a flood problem in the reported location, which they mostly attribute to problems related to the lack of hydraulic capacity and lack of maintenance of the drainage and sewage system (see report of the Comisión Nacional de Emergencias). 2. The flood problem in the location is not solely the result of the agricultural activity of the co-respondent company and, on the contrary, several factors exist in the area that generate problems of waterlogging and sewage overflow. However, the detention ponds used by the company need technical improvements and maintenance (see reports of the Comisión Nacional de Emergencias, the Servicio Nacional de Aguas Subterráneas Riego y Avenamiento, and the Área de Salud de Santa Bárbara). 3. There is no land destabilization in the community. 4. Poor management of cultivation and plowing techniques favors soil erosion, contributing to the clogging of drains and sewers. 5. Several recommendations have been made to the Local Government to address the flood problem, in that sense it was recommended not to grant more construction permits in the area, to monitor the agricultural activity in the area, to clean the surface runoff water collection channels, and to develop a hydrological model of the basin or micro-basin in which the history of the area and maximum probable floods are established, with the aim of carrying out an adequate design of the sewage systems and the optimal sites for the discharge of the sewage systems in the area with flood problems. Now, specifically regarding municipal obligations in the matter of storm sewerage, this Constitutional Tribunal has indicated that Article 169 of the Political Constitution establishes that the administration of local interests and services in each canton shall be in charge of the Municipal Government. Local interests and services have been defined by the Chamber as indeterminate legal concepts where the law does not resolve their content with exactitude for their application to specific cases, so it is necessary to resort to criteria of value and experience, by whoever is responsible for applying it, to determine their content. The creation of adequate drainage means within a community in order not to cause damage to property, health, or environmental problems to its neighbors is, within the terms indicated by the Political Constitution, of interest to the canton and is part of the services that the Municipality is obligated to provide. In this same sense, the General Health Law in its Article 285 establishes that stormwater must be eliminated adequately and sanitarily in order to avoid contamination of the soil and natural water sources for human use and consumption, the formation of breeding sites for vectors and diseases, and air contamination through conditions that threaten its purity and quality. For this reason, Municipalities are obligated to assume a certain behavior for the satisfaction of their purposes, taking the required measures to provide the protected community with an efficient stormwater drainage system. Thus, upon specifically pointing out the problems of the Urbanización Sequeira in the canton of Santa Bárbara de Heredia and, upon pointing out the municipal duties regarding storm sewerage, this Tribunal, once again, rules that the respondent Local Government has infringed the fundamental rights of the residents of said locality and, for the third time, orders the definitive solution to the flood problem in that locality, with a warning that in case of non-compliance, the municipal representative could incur the crime typified in Article 71 of the Ley de la Jurisdicción Constitucional, which provides that imprisonment of three months to two years, or a fine of twenty to sixty days, shall be imposed. On the other hand, this Constitutional Tribunal considers that the company called “El Tomatito S.A.” is obligated to provide maintenance and carry out technical improvements to the stormwater drains on its property, which must be monitored by the officials of the respondent municipality. Finally, as it was not proven that the Ministry of Health followed up on the request sent to the Emergency Commission via official letter CN-ARS-SB-1670-2014, it is considered violative of the petitioners' rights.

VIII.CONCLUSION. Therefore, the granting of this amparo appeal is appropriate, only against the Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, the Ministry of Health, and the company called El Tomatito Sociedad Anónima; otherwise, the appeal is dismissed. Consequently, the granting of the appeal is imposed in the terms set forth in the operative part of this resolution.

IX.- NOTE BY MAGISTRATE SALAZAR ALVARADO. I have concurred with the position held by Magistrate Jinesta Lobo in this matter, so that, in environmental matters, it is also the undersigned's criterion that if the Public Administration has already intervened, I consider that its knowledge and resolution corresponds to the contentious-administrative jurisdiction. However, I do proceed to hear the merits of the case when other rights of the persons affected by the source of contamination are at stake, among them, health, quality of life, and the right to enjoy a healthy and pollution-free environment (Article 50 of the Political Constitution), as happens in this case, in which contamination problems are alleged due to floods with mud and garbage, as well as land destabilization, which affects the housing of the petitioners and other neighbors of the Urbanización Sequeira in Santa Bárbara de Heredia, with violation of the right to enjoy a healthy and ecologically balanced environment and a dignified level of quality of life.

X.- DOCUMENTATION PROVIDED TO THE FILE. The parties are warned that, having provided any paper document, as well as objects or evidence contained in any additional electronic, computer, magnetic, optical, telematic device or one produced by new technologies, these must be removed from the office within a maximum period of 30 business days counted from the notification of this judgment. Otherwise, all material not removed within this period will be destroyed, as provided in the "Reglamento sobre Expediente Electrónico ante el Poder Judicial," approved by the Corte Plena in session N° 27-11 of August 22, 2011, Article XXVI and published in Boletín Judicial number 19 of January 26, 2012, as well as in the agreement approved by the Consejo Superior del Poder Judicial, in session N° 43-12 held on May 3, 2012, Article LXXXI.

THEREFORE; The appeal is declared PARTIALLY GRANTED, only against the Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, the Ministry of Health, and against the company El Tomatico S.A. Consequently, MELVIN ALFARO SALAS, in his capacity as Mayor of the Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, or whoever holds that position, is ordered to, within the period of TWO MONTHS, counted from the notification of this resolution, carry out a hydrological model of the basin or micro-basin in which the history of the area and maximum probable floods are established, with the purpose of carrying out an adequate design of the sewage systems and the optimal sites for the discharge of the sewage systems in the area with flood problems. Likewise, and based on the foregoing information, within the period of SIX MONTHS, counted from the notification of this resolution, carry out the necessary works to definitively solve the problem of sewage and stormwater drainage affecting the Urbanización Sequeria. Finally, he is ordered to monitor the stormwater management activity of the co-respondent company "el tomatito S.A.” and issue the corresponding orders so that it complies with the recommendations of good agricultural technique, made by the competent authorities. MARCO TULIO ZUMBADO ULATE, in his condition as Director of the Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, is ordered to follow up on the request CN-ARS-SB-1670-2014. Also, MILTON CASTILO SANDÍ, in his condition as Legal Representative of the company El Tomatico S.A., is ordered to, within the period of TWO MONTHS, counted from the notification of this resolution, carry out the technical improvements and maintenance to the stormwater drainage system of the property of his represented entity that is near the Urbanización Sequeria of Santa Bárbara de Heredia. The foregoing, under warning that he could incur the crime typified in Article 71 of the Ley de la Jurisdicción Constitucional, which provides that imprisonment of three months to two years, or a fine of twenty to sixty days, shall be imposed on whoever receives an order that must be complied with or enforced, dictated in an amparo appeal, and does not comply with it or does not enforce it, provided the crime is not more severely punished. The Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, the State, and the company El Tomatico S.A. are condemned to pay the costs, damages, and losses caused by the facts that serve as the basis for this declaration, which shall be settled in the execution of the sentence of the contentious-administrative and civil jurisdictions, respectively. Notify personally MELVIN ALFARO SALAS, in his capacity as Mayor of the Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, MARCO TULIO ZUMBADO ULATE, in his condition as Director of the Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, and MILTON CASTILO SANDÍ, in his condition as Legal Representative of the company El Tomatico S.A., or whoever occupies those positions. Magistrate Salazar Alvarado makes a note.- Fernando Cruz C. Presidente a.i.

Fernando Castillo V. Paul Rueda L.

Luis Fdo. Salazar A. José Paulino Hernández G.

Rosa María Abdelnour G. Enrique Ulate C.

Res. Nº 2016-004621 CONSTITUTIONAL CHAMBER OF THE SUPREME COURT OF JUSTICE. San José, at sixteen hours and twenty minutes of April fifth, two thousand sixteen. Amparo action processed under case file number 15-016546-0007-CO, filed by AIDA NIDIA ROJAS LOPEZ, identity card 0501820063, [and 57 other named individuals], against the AREA RECTORA DE SALUD DE SANTA BARBARA DE HEREDIA (MINISTERIO DE SALUD), the MUNICIPALIDAD DE SANTA BARBARA DE HEREDIA, the COMISIÓN NACIONAL DE EMERGENCIAS, SERVICIO NACIONAL DE AGUAS SUBTERRANEAS, RIEGO Y AVENAMIENTO DEL MINISTERIO DE AMBIENTE Y ENERGIA, and the company EL TOMATICO S.A. Considering: By document received by this Chamber at 16:21 hrs., on November 4, 2016, the petitioners file an amparo action and state that their properties are being affected by flooding, because the company El Tomatico S.A. constructed some detention ponds (lagunas de retardo) without the proper permits. The municipality indicated that the detention pond should be removed. For the past year, they have been waiting for the Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara to resolve a complaint filed by a neighbor; this was contingent on a report to be issued by the Comisión Nacional de Emergencias (CNE), but to date no actions or health orders for the protection and safety of the community have been taken. By the resolution of 08:36 hrs.

On November 6, 2016, this Court granted leave to proceed with this amparo, requesting a report from the Director of the Santa Bárbara de Heredia Governing Health Area (Área Rectora de Salud) (Ministry of Health), the Municipal Mayor of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, and the President of the National Commission for Risk Prevention and Emergency Response (Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgos y Atención de Emergencias, CNE), which was to be submitted within the 3 business days following notification of said resolution.<br> The resolution granting leave was notified to the President of the CNE on November 10, 2015, at 2:55 p.m.<br> The resolution granting leave was notified to the Municipal Mayor of Santa Bárbara de Heredia on November 11, 2015, at 10:55 a.m. through the Judicial Communications Office of Heredia.<br> By resolution issued at 11:02 a.m. on December 14, 2015, the parties to this proceeding are expanded, with notice given to the National Groundwater, Risk, and Drainage Service (Servicio Nacional de Aguas Subterráneas, Riesgo y Avenamiento) of the Ministry of Environment and Energy, so that, within a period of 3 days, it conduct an inspection and submit a report to this Court. Likewise, the Legal Representative of the company El Tomatico S.A. is included as a party, and a report is requested on the facts alleged by the petitioner, which was to be submitted within the 3 business days following notification of the resolution.<br> The resolution granting leave was notified to the National Water, Irrigation, and Drainage Service (Servicio Nacional de Aguas, Riego y Avenamiento) of the Ministry of Environment and Energy on January 7, 2016, at 8:55 a.m.<br> The resolution granting leave was notified to the Legal Representative of the company El Tomatico S.A. on January 6, 2016, at 8:18 a.m. through the Judicial Communications Office of Heredia.<br> By brief filed on November 13, 2015, at 10:25 a.m., MARCO TULIO ZUMBADO ULATE, in his capacity as Director of the Santa Bárbara de Heredia Governing Health Area (Área Rectora de Salud), reports under oath, in relation to the facts alleged by the petitioner, that on October 20, 2014, Mr. Rafael Elías Zúñiga Vargas filed a complaint with the Santa Bárbara Governing Health Area (Área Rectora de Salud) regarding the management of stormwater on the farm of Mr. Milton Castillo (Owner of Tomatico), due to the proliferation of Dengue and other mosquitoes or gnats. Furthermore, he notes that excavations were carried out less than fifty centimeters from his property on the north side of his wall and he filed the complaint with the Municipality of Santa Bárbara. On November 21, 2014, the Environmental Manager of the Santa Bárbara Governing Health Area (Área Rectora de Salud) conducted an on-site inspection; the report, official communication CN-ARS-SB-1661-2014 dated December 10, 2015, indicated that a pit was observed on the property of Mr. Milton Castillo, adjacent to and located 50 cm from the complainant's property, measuring approximately 25 m2; standing water was observed at the bottom, and no presence of mosquitoes was observed. The need and utility of the ponds was verified, and it was ruled out that there were breeding sites for gnats or mosquitoes. He requests that the appeal filed be dismissed.<br> In a brief filed with the Secretariat of this Chamber at 11:01 a.m. on November 16, 2015, JULISSA ULATE ARIAS, in her capacity as Acting Executive Director of the National Commission for Risk Prevention and Emergency Response (CNE), submits a report under oath, in which she indicates that it is the purview of municipal governments to verify that constructions erected in their canton remain within the guidelines authorized by them. From the actions carried out by my represented entity, the Risk Research and Analysis Unit has rendered various reports in the area of San Juan de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, as a result of flooding caused. Reports that were duly notified to the municipal authorities, the Municipal Emergency Committee, and Mr. William Retana Alpizar, a resident of the area. The first of these was rendered in June 2013 under number IAR-INF-460-2013, as a result of a site visit and review of the hazard map to provide a preliminary risk diagnosis. Under official communication number IAR-INF-0337-2014 of June 9, 2014, a risk assessment was carried out for the flooding of homes in San Juan Arriba de Santa Bárbara, Heredia. Finally, the Risk Research and Analysis Unit rendered a new risk assessment report under official communication number IAR-INF-0392-2014, which indicates that a site visit was conducted at the location at coordinates 223.280N-5 19.306, San Juan de Santa Bárbara, observing a channel which is attributed with the problem of home flooding (a concessioned irrigation channel). It was determined that this channel extends beyond the boundaries of the agricultural property destined for tomato cultivation, collecting water from the properties it crosses, generating home flooding when heavy rainfall occurs. The report concludes: VI. Conclusions A. The area is surrounded by several predictable natural hazards, according to the CNE's potential hazard map for this sector. B. The inspected area has several factors that generate problems of flooding and sewer overflow. The channels for collecting surface water in the coffee plantation become clogged with materials, garbage, or sediments, which causes said waters to overflow, flowing towards the front of the property and over the irrigation channel; which continues illegally, generating the flood problems. The presence of homes alongside and over the channel favors their being affected. C. The low hydraulic capacity of the pipes and gutters, small diameter of sewers, and a poor system for controlling and collecting stormwater and wastewater, generates the flood problem at the visited sites. D. Poor management of cultivation and tilling techniques favors soil erosion, contributing to the clogging of ditches and sewers. VII. Recommendations A. It is recommended that the Municipality of Santa Bárbara not grant more construction permits in said area with flood problems. B. The owner of the agricultural farm must ensure that the runoff water collection channels are kept clean, free of garbage, and without clogging problems. C. The municipality of Santa Bárbara and local residents must keep the ditch line that collects stormwater and wastewater clean at the evaluated sites, as well as on properties upstream from said locations. D. The municipality of Santa Bárbara and affected residents should evaluate the possibility of replacing the sewers with ones of larger diameter that allow for the passage of greater flows. E. Affected residents from flooding are recommended not to carry out more constructions near the channel causing problems, and to remove the constructions located on it. F. The municipality of Santa Bárbara must evaluate the possibility of eliminating the channel that is generating flood problems, as well as the elaboration of an exhaustive Hydrological model of the entire basin or micro-basin, establishing the background of the area and maximum probable floods, with the purpose of carrying out an adequate design of the sewer systems and the optimal sites for the outfall discharge of the sewer systems in the area with flood problems. G. Any anomaly regarding construction techniques or omission of the recommendations described herein shall be under the total responsibility of the institutions granting the permits, the engineer or person responsible for the work, and the respective Municipality for not requesting the corresponding reports, inspections, and corrections.<br> &nbsp;In a writing received at 2:06 p.m. on November 16, 2015, MALVIN ALFARO SALAS, in his capacity as Municipal Mayor of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, submits a report under oath, noting that the area in question, property of El Tomatico S.A., this property was used for coffee cultivation, and a crop change was made, therefore the shade provided by the trees that were felled as an agricultural practice, but not as deforestation, is no longer needed. There are retention ponds, built throughout the farm, which are made under the concept of good agricultural practices, in order to slow the passage of water, and that these were done at the recommendation of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganadería, MAG), according to a letter addressed to this Municipality by Eng. Rolando Hidalgo, with number pps-014-10; said activity is not within the Municipality's competence to grant or deny permits, due to the nature of the activity. The engineering department conducted an on-site inspection to verify the facts set forth in the complaint; it was indicated that the retention ponds that were made were a provision of the MAG because the farm is for agricultural use and the runoff on the farm is very large, this as a mitigation measure to reduce flood problems in the areas. During said inspection, notification was made with ticket No. 0378-2014, and it was also indicated that the retention pond that was adjacent to Mr. Zúñiga's lot had to be eliminated. He requests that the appeal filed be dismissed.<br> &nbsp;By writing filed with the Secretariat of this Chamber on January 11, 2016, at 2:26 p.m., MILTON CASTILO SANDÍ, in his capacity as Legal Representative of the company El Tomatico S.A., reports, indicating that it is a farm with agricultural vocation, as stated in the Municipality's Regulatory Plan (Plan Regulador); coffee cultivation was replaced by vegetable cultivation; it is not true that this crop change caused the flooding. The urbanization is topographically located on a lower or lower-level lot than the property of Tomatico SA.; stormwater, as provided by the Law governing the matter, cannot be retained on a higher lot. Therefore, the responsibility for what happens there lies not with Tomatico S.A. but with those who granted the construction permits and authorized the creation of the urbanization. It is clear that the retention ponds were made following the recommendations of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG); they are simple retention ponds dug into the earth to reduce the speed of stormwater in extreme cases of torrential rain (water collection ponds), the intention thus being to avoid the violent gravity-driven fall of water coming from higher-altitude estates and from the farm itself. In studies conducted by CONAVI and the EMERGENCY COMMISSION (COMISION DE EMERGENCIA), it is determined that what the property contributes to the water flow referred to in this problem is barely point nine cubic meters, so it can never be the cause of the floods and catastrophes mentioned by the neighbors. The local municipality never requested the elimination of the retention ponds; indeed, we were asked to provide them with adequate maintenance so that they would fulfill their purpose properly. Since 2014, the company has requested approval from the local municipality to carry out the necessary works; to this day, no approval or any response has been received from said entity. If the retention ponds near the property boundaries were eliminated, the water would pass without any obstacle towards the street and then to the urbanization, with the corresponding consequences. He requests that the appeal be dismissed.<br> &nbsp;By brief filed with the Secretariat of this Chamber on February 12, 2016, at 3:26 p.m., PATRICIA QUIRÓS QUIRÓS, in her capacity as General Manager of the National Groundwater, Irrigation, and Drainage Service (Servicio Nacional de Aguas Subterráneas Riego y Avenamiento, SENARA), reports under oath, and notes that on Monday, January 11, 2016, SENARA proceeded to conduct the inspection at the site subject to this complaint. Report from Indep., according to official communication No. RCOC-003-16 (Directorate of Engineering and Project Development), dated January 12, 2016. It details, in relevant part, that no traces or residues of floods with dragged debris and garbage were observed. No land destabilization was found in the community. It was verified that there are a series of rectangular-shaped excavations of different dimensions, which are used to receive and retain surface runoff water that is dragged during rain events. These excavations at the date of the inspection showed evidence of having received runoff water and of their state of siltation. Their location is quite far from the boundary line. According to what was observed during the Inspection, it is indicated that it is essential that corresponding technical improvements be made in the construction and maintenance of the retention ponds. The activity must have a certification of good agricultural practices. According to a report from the Directorate of Research and Water Management, official communication No. UGH-006-16 of January 12, 2016, it is indicated that the problem raised by the residents of the Urbanización Sequeira lies in a surface runoff problem and a deficient sewer system, which during heavy rainfall events cause flood problems. According to what was observed during the inspection, it is indicated that it is essential that corresponding technical improvements be made to the construction and maintenance of the retention ponds. The area where the property of Tomatico S.A. is located is a medium recharge zone and a vulnerability zone for the Barva aquifer; therefore, the Matrix of Land Use Criteria According to Aquifer Contamination Vulnerability for Resource Protection, prepared by SENARA and approved by its Board of Directors, has the following regulations: agrochemicals of very low toxicity, persistence, and mobility may be used. It must have a soil management plan in accordance with decree 23214-MAG-MIRENEM; effluent management and treatment must be provided. The activity must have a certification of good agricultural practices. She requests that the appeal be dismissed.<br> &nbsp;The legal requirements have been fulfilled in this proceeding.<br> &nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Drafted by Magistrate Ulate Chacón; and,<br> Considering:<br> &nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;I.- PRELIMINARY ISSUE. Some of the facts denounced in this appeal were the subject of knowledge by this Constitutional Court, which are related to the flooding of the Urbanización Sequeira in the canton of Santa Bárbara de Heredia. In that sense, it is observed how in resolution No. 2013-010296 at 2:30 p.m. on July 31, 2013, the Mayor and the President of the Municipal Council, both of the Municipality of Santa Bárbara, were ordered that within a period of three months they must carry out improvements to the storm sewer system where the protected party's property is located, namely unclogging the installed pipeline, piping the ditch, constructing a manhole, cleaning stormwater boxes, and/or expanding the storm sewer system, all in coordination with the property owners—including the petitioner—and taking into account the recommendations given by the Costa Rican Institute of Aqueducts and Sewers (Instituto Costarricense de Acueductos y Alcantarillados) and the Ministry of Health. Likewise, in a much more recent matter, through resolution No. 2015-017869 at 9:15 a.m. on November 13, 2015, the Mayor, the Engineering Department, and the President of the Municipal Council, all of the Municipality of Santa Bárbara, were ordered that, within a period of two months, they must solve the problem denounced by the petitioner on June 19, 2014, namely the problem of flooding in the Urbanización Sequeira. In view of the foregoing, this Court proceeds to hear the denounced facts for two reasons: first, because other petitioners are involved, and second, because other authorities are parties who were not part of the prior amparo proceedings.<br> II.- PURPOSE OF THE APPEAL. The petitioners allege that they are residents of the Urbanización Sequeira in Santa Bárbara de Heredia, which is composed of several vulnerable populations. They state that their rights to a healthy and ecologically balanced environment (ambiente sano y ecológicamente equilibrado), to property, and to public health have been affected, inasmuch as the Company called El Tomatico S.A., since 2010, deforested an area of trees and pastures that retained water, to carry out planting of agricultural crops, and it is since that date that flooding with mud, garbage, and land destabilization has occurred throughout the community, due to the construction of ponds on the farm, without the required legal permits. They indicate that the described problem continues even though the respondent Municipality notified said company that the work lacks protection and exposes human life and real estate to danger, therefore it had to eliminate the retention pond and the pit, which are located near the boundaries. They allege that for a year they have been waiting for the Ministry of Health to resolve the problem, following a complaint filed by a resident of said locality; it remained pending a report that was to be generated by the National Commission for Risk Prevention and Emergency Response (CNE). They affirm that, to date, no actions, sanitary orders, or other administrative acts have been issued to provide protection and security to the community, and therefore they consider their fundamental rights violated. &nbsp;<br> III.- PROVEN FACTS. Of importance for the decision in this matter, the following facts are deemed duly proven, either because they have been so accredited or because the respondent may have omitted to refer to them as provided in the initial order:<br> The property of El Tomatico S.A. has an agricultural vocation; it was previously dedicated to coffee cultivation; it has retention ponds for runoff water, recommended by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG), according to official communication pps-014-10, signed by the Sustainable Production Coordinator, without it being the competence of the respondent Municipality to grant or deny permits (report of the Municipal Mayor of Santa Bárbara).<br> On June 25, 2013, technical report No. IAR-INF-460-2013, on the flood risk assessment in the Urbanización Sequeira, San Juan de Santa Bárbara de Heredia; the Risk Research and Analysis Unit of the National Commission for Risk Prevention and Emergency Response (CNE), has rendered reports, notified to the municipal authorities, the Municipal Emergency Committee, which concluded there was a lack of adequate stormwater channeling, recommending not granting construction permits in the protection areas of rivers, streams, and ditches, areas of fill on steep slopes, and downstream from the site in question (report of the Acting Executive Director of the National Commission for Risk Prevention and Emergency Response (CNE)).<br> On October 20, 2014, Mr. Rafael Elías Zúñiga Vargas filed a complaint with the Santa Bárbara Governing Health Area (Área Rectora de Salud), pointing out the management of stormwater on the El Tomatico S.A. farm and potential breeding sites for the mosquito that transmits Dengue (report of the Director of the Santa Bárbara Governing Health Area (Área Rectora de Salud)).<br> In inspection report No. CN-ARS-SB-1661-2014, of December 10, 2014, conducted by the Environmental Manager of the Governing Health Area (Área Rectora de Salud), it was noted that the pit on the property of El Tomatico S.A. is located 50 cm from the boundary, measuring 25 m2, with standing water at the bottom, without mosquitoes (report of Marco Tulio Zumbado Ulate, Director of the Santa Bárbara Governing Health Area (Área Rectora de Salud), visible at folio 89 of the electronic file).<br> In the file of the National Commission for Risk Prevention and Emergency Response (CNE), the filing of official communication CN-ARS-SB-1670-2014 is not recorded (see report of the Acting Executive Director of the National Commission for Risk Prevention and Emergency Response (CNE)).<br> The Risk Research and Analysis Unit rendered a new risk assessment report under official communication number IAR-INF-0392-2014, which indicates that a site visit was conducted at the location at coordinates 223.280N-5 19.306, San Juan de Santa Bárbara, in which, among its conclusions, it indicates: The channels for collecting surface water in the coffee plantation become clogged with materials, garbage, or sediments, which causes said waters to overflow, flowing towards the front of the property and over the irrigation channel (see report of the Acting Executive Director of the National Commission for Risk Prevention and Emergency Response (CNE)).<br> In the inspection report, official communication No. RCOC-003-16, dated January 12, 2016, from the SENARA Directorate of Engineering and Project Development, it noted that no traces or residues of floods were observed, no land destabilization was found in the community; excavations were verified to retain surface runoff water; they have an overflow outlet; when they fill up, they evacuate the water that no longer fits and it is channeled through a series of ditches towards natural outlets based on the topographical condition of the farm (report of the General Manager of SENARA).<br> The flood problem in the Urbanización Sequeira is due to a deficient sewer system (report of the General Manager of SENARA and report of the Acting Executive Director of the National Commission for Risk Prevention and Emergency Response (CNE)).<br> IV.- FACTS NOT PROVEN. None of relevance for this resolution.<br> V.- PROTECTION OF THE RIGHT TO A HEALTHY AND ECOLOGICALLY BALANCED ENVIRONMENT (AMBIENTE SANO Y ECOLÓGICAMENTE EQUILIBRADO). Article 50 of the Constitution establishes as a fundamental purpose and essential value of the Costa Rican State to pursue "the greatest well-being for all the inhabitants of the country." In such a way that, a "healthy and ecologically balanced environment (ambiente sano y ecológicamente equilibrado)" forms part of the content of the greatest well-being of all inhabitants, a cause, purpose, and also condition and limit to the exercise of public powers and competences, not only of the State, but also of the Municipalities. Like the right to property, the object upon which the right to the environment falls is external to the integrity of the human person (unlike, for example, the right to life), but also, unlike the object of the right to property, the person forms part of the environment, integrates it; hence its protection entails the conservation of the essential context for human life; conduct with negative effects on it represents a danger to human existence itself and a reduction or loss of the "greatest well-being" of all. Life depends on the environment; therefore, one must ensure that those conditions guaranteeing life are maintained over time. In judgment number 601-2009, this Chamber held the following:<br> "The origins of environmental problems are complex and correspond to an articulation of natural and social processes within the framework of the socioeconomic development style adopted by the country. For example, environmental problems occur when the modalities of exploiting natural resources give rise to a degradation of ecosystems greater than their capacity for regeneration, which leads to broad sectors of the population being harmed and a high environmental and social cost being generated, resulting in a deterioration of the quality of life; for precisely the primary objective of the use and protection of the environment is to obtain development and evolution favorable to the human being (...) it is important to understand that although man has the right to make use of the environment for his own development, he also has the duty to protect and preserve it for the use of present and future generations, which is not so novel, because it is nothing more than the translation, in this matter, of the principle of 'injury' (lesión), already consolidated in common law, by virtue of which the legitimate exercise of a right has two essential limits: On one hand, the equal rights of others, and on the other, the rational exercise and useful enjoyment of the right itself."<br> Thus, it is incumbent upon public entities, including Municipalities, to ensure respect for a healthy and ecologically balanced environment (ambiente sano y ecológicamente equilibrado) in their respective territorial jurisdiction, as well as the well-being of all the inhabitants of their respective canton, and within the framework of constitutional and legal competences to act in favor of ensuring respect for this right for all residents, and to act—again within the framework of their competences—to mitigate or correct actions that tend toward its violation.<br> VI.- MUNICIPAL COMPETENCE AND THE OBLIGATION OF INTER-INSTITUTIONAL COORDINATION. Article 169 of the Political Constitution provides that "The administration of local interests and services in each canton shall be in charge of the Municipal Government (...)." This norm has been developed by the ordinary legislator; in accordance therewith, Article 3 of the Municipal Code, Law number 7794 of April 30, 1998, provides that: "The government and administration of cantonal interests and services shall be in charge of the municipal government." In this same sense, the Constitutional Chamber has expressed itself in its jurisprudence. For example, in judgment number 5445-99, at 2:30 p.m. on July 14, 1999, the following was held:<br> "VI.- REGARDING THE POWERS OF THE MUNICIPALITIES BY REASON OF SUBJECT MATTER (CONCEPT OF 'THE LOCAL'). By express constitutional provision -Article 169-, there is an assignment of functions or powers in favor of local governments by reason of subject matter to 'the local,' that is, 'the administration of the services and interests' of the locality to which it is circumscribed, for which it is endowed with autonomy (...) Therefore, its powers are generic, insofar as there is no detailed list of its own duties, but rather a simple statement of the scope of its competence; but this does not mean it is indeterminable, to which this Court referred in judgment number 6469-97, at four twenty p.m. on October eight, nineteen ninety-seven, in the following terms:<br> <br> "(...) the local has such a connotation that defining its scope by the legislator or the judge must lead to maintaining the integrity of local interests and services, in such a way that not even the legislator could enact regulations tending to dismember the Municipality (territorial element), unless it does so observing the procedures previously established in the Political Constitution; nor can it promulgate regulations that place its inhabitants (population) in clear conditions of inferiority in relation to the rest of the country; nor those that affect the very essence of the local (government), in such a way that the Corporation becomes a simple empty container of which only the name subsists, but deactivating the entire regime as it was conceived by the National Constituent Assembly. Conversely, there will be tasks that by their nature are municipal—local—and cannot be removed from that sphere of competence to turn them into national services or interests, because doing so would imply dismantling the Municipality, or better yet, emptying it of constitutional content, and therefore, it is not possible beforehand to dictate the impassable limits of the local, but rather to figure out what corresponds or not to the communal government, it must be extracted from the examination made in each specific case (...)". From the foregoing, the fact stands out that, by express will of our Fundamental Charter, a specific competence is assigned to local governments, an attribution that is also exclusive to them; that is, it is an original competence of the municipality and only through a nationalization or regionalization law can it be displaced, totally or partially."<br> Consequently, if a group of residents, in their territorial jurisdiction, suffer flooding with risk to their lives and serious patrimonial, psychological damages, quality of life, and general well-being, this falls within the concept of "local interests and services" of constitutional numeral 169, problems whose causes must be identified with precision and, moreover, the solutions, in order to implement them as soon as possible; for which it is incumbent upon the Municipality to coordinate with national-level institutions with the competence to act on the problem.

Indeed, the Chamber has already developed the municipal obligation to coordinate with other state institutions in order to attend to “interests” and fully provide “local services”. In the cited ruling number 5445-99, the Chamber stated: “(...) they refer to the obligation of coordination that must exist between local governments, decentralized institutions, and the Executive Branch, to carry out the functions entrusted to them, which must be analyzed based on the very nature of municipal autonomy. It is by virtue of the provisions of Article 170 of the Constitution that the municipalities (local corporate entities) enjoy functional, administrative, and financial autonomy in the administration of local interests and services (Article 169 of the Political Constitution) (...) A conflict cannot, then, be created by antagonism or protagonism between the matter that comprises the general purpose of ‘local interests and services’ and ‘national’ or ‘state’ public interests and services, intrinsically distinct from one another, but which are in reality meant to coexist (....) Once the material competence of the municipality in a given territorial circumscription is defined, it is clear that there will be tasks which, by their nature, are exclusively municipal, alongside others that can be considered national or state; for this reason it is essential to define the form of co-participation of powers that is inevitable, since the public capacity of the municipalities is local, and that of the State and other entities is national; from which it follows that the municipal territory is simultaneously state and institutional, to the extent required by the circumstances. That is, municipalities can share their competencies with the Public Administration in general, a relationship that must develop in the terms as defined in the law (Article 5 of the previous Municipal Code, Article 7 of the new Code), which establishes the obligation of ‘coordination’ between the municipalities and the public institutions that concur in the performance of their competencies, to avoid duplication of efforts and contradictions, above all, because only voluntary coordination is compatible with municipal autonomy, as it is its expression. In other terms, the municipality is called upon to enter into relations of cooperation with other public entities, and vice versa, given the concurrent or coincident nature—in many cases—of interests regarding a specific matter. In legal doctrine, coordination is defined based on the existence of several independent centers of action, each with its own tasks and decision-making powers, and potentially discrepant; despite this, there must be a community of ends by subject matter, but by concurrence, insofar as the object receiving the final results of the activity and acts of each one is common.” Thus, coordination is the ordering of relations between these diverse independent activities, which takes charge of that concurrence in the same object or entity, to make it useful for a global public plan, without suppressing the reciprocal independence of the acting subjects. Since there is no hierarchical relationship of decentralized institutions, nor of the State itself in relation to municipalities, the imposition of certain conducts on them is not possible, from which arises the indispensable inter-institutional “concert,” in the strict sense, in which the autonomous and independent centers of action agree on that preventive and global scheme, in which each one fulfills a role with a view to a mission entrusted to the others.” It should be noted, moreover, that the Municipalities are obligated, by mandate of Article 50 of the Political Constitution, to dedicate themselves to the protection of the environment (ruling number 2006-7994 of 8:57 a.m. on June 2, 2006).

VII.- SPECIFIC CASE. The petitioners come before this Constitutional Jurisdiction and state that they are residents of the Urbanización Sequeira in Santa Bárbara de Heredia. They indicate that their right to a healthy and ecologically balanced environment, to property, and to public health has been affected, because the Company named El Tomatico S.A, since the year 2010, deforested an area of trees and pastures that retained water, in order to plant agricultural crops, and it is since that date that floods with mud, garbage, and land destabilization have occurred on properties throughout the community, due to the construction of ponds on the farm, without having the legal permits. They indicate that the problem described continues even though the respondent Municipality notified said company that the work lacks protection and exposes human life and real estate to danger, and therefore it had to eliminate the retention pond and the pit, which are located near the boundaries. They allege that for a year they have been waiting for the Ministry of Health to resolve the problem, as a result of a complaint filed by a resident of said locality; the matter was left pending a report that was to be generated by the Comisión Nacional de Emergencias. They affirm that to date, no actions, sanitary orders, or other administrative act have been issued to provide protection and safety to the community, for which reason they deem their fundamental rights violated. In this regard, the representatives of the respondent authorities, in reports rendered under oath, with warning of the consequences, including criminal ones, provided for in Article 44 of the Law governing this Jurisdiction, and with the evidence provided in the case file, the following can be concluded regarding the problems occurring in the Urbanización Sequeira of Santa Bárbara de Heredia: 1. Effectively, all the authorities agree that there is a flooding problem in the denounced location, which they mostly attribute to problems related to a lack of hydraulic capacity and lack of maintenance of the drainage and sewer system (see report from the Comisión Nacional de Emergencias). 2. The flooding problem in the location is not solely a product of the agricultural activity of the co-respondent company and, on the contrary, there are several factors in the area that generate problems of waterlogging and sewer overflow. However, the retention ponds used by the company need technical improvements and maintenance (see reports from the Comisión Nacional de Emergencias, the Servicio Nacional de Aguas Subterráneas Riego y Avenamiento, and the Health Area of Santa Bárbara). 3. There is no land destabilization in the community. 4. Poor handling of cultivation and plowing techniques favors soil erosion, contributing to the clogging of culverts and sewers. 5. Several recommendations have been made to the Local Government to address the flooding problem; in that sense, it was recommended not to grant more construction permits in the area, to monitor agricultural activity in the zone, to clean the runoff water collection channels, and to develop a hydrological model of the basin or micro-basin which establishes the background of the area and maximum probable floods, for the purpose of carrying out an adequate design of the sewer systems and the optimal sites for the outfall of the sewer systems in the area with flooding problems. Now, specifically regarding municipal obligations on storm drainage, this Constitutional Court has pointed out that Article 169 of the Political Constitution establishes that the administration of local interests and services in each canton will be the responsibility of the Municipal Government. Local interests and services have been defined by the Chamber as indeterminate legal concepts where the law does not resolve their exact content for application to specific cases, making it necessary to resort to value and experience criteria, by the person responsible for applying them, to determine their content. The creation of adequate drainage means within a community for the purpose of not causing damage to property, health, or environmental problems to its residents is, within the terms indicated by the Political Constitution, of interest to the canton and is part of the services that the Municipality is obligated to provide. In this same sense, the General Health Law in its Article 285 establishes that stormwater must be adequately and sanitarily eliminated in order to avoid contamination of the soil and natural water sources for human use and consumption, the formation of vector and disease breeding sites, and air contamination through conditions that threaten its purity and quality. For this reason, the Municipalities are obligated to assume a certain behavior for the satisfaction of their purposes, taking the required measures to provide the protected community with an efficient stormwater drainage system. Thus, having specifically pointed out the problems of the Urbanización Sequeira in the canton of Santa Bárbara de Heredia and having pointed out the municipal duties regarding storm drainage, this Court, again, rules that the respondent Local Government has infringed the fundamental rights of the residents of said locality and, for the third time, orders the definitive solution of the flooding problem of that locality, with a warning that in case of non-compliance, the municipal representative could incur the crime typified in Article 71 of the Law of Constitutional Jurisdiction, which provides for imprisonment of three months to two years, or a fine of twenty to sixty days. On the other hand, this Constitutional Court considers that the company named “El Tomatito S.A.” is obligated to maintain and carry out technical improvements to the stormwater drains on its property, which must be monitored by the officials of the respondent municipality. Finally, as it was not proven that the Ministry of Health had followed up on the request sent to the Comisión de Emergencias via official document CN-ARS-SB-1670-2014, this is deemed violatory of the petitioners' rights.

VIII.CONCLUSION. Based on the foregoing, the granting of this amparo appeal is appropriate, solely, against the Municipality of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, the Ministry of Health, and the company named El Tomatito Sociedad Anónima; in all other respects, the appeal is dismissed. Consequently, the granting of the appeal is imposed in the terms indicated in the operative part of this resolution.

IX.- NOTE FROM MAGISTRATE SALAZAR ALVARADO. I have concurred with the position held by Magistrate Jinesta Lobo on this matter, so that, in environmental affairs, it is also the criterion of the undersigned that if there has already been intervention by the Public Administration, I consider that its knowledge and resolution corresponds to the contentious-administrative jurisdiction. However, I do enter to consider the merits of the case when other rights of the persons affected by the source of contamination are at stake, among them, health, quality of life, and the right to enjoy a healthy and pollution-free environment (Article 50 of the Political Constitution), as is the case here, where problems of contamination from floods with mud and garbage are alleged, as well as land destabilization, which affects the homes of the petitioners and other residents of the Urbanización Sequeira of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, with violation of the right to enjoy a healthy and ecologically balanced environment and a decent standard of quality of life.

X.- DOCUMENTATION PROVIDED TO THE CASE FILE. The parties are warned that, if they have provided any paper document, as well as objects or evidence contained in any additional electronic, computer, magnetic, optical, telematic device or one produced by new technologies, these must be withdrawn from the office within a maximum period of 30 business days counted from the notification of this ruling. Otherwise, all material not withdrawn within this period will be destroyed, as provided in the “Reglamento sobre Expediente Electrónico ante el Poder Judicial”, approved by the Corte Plena in session N° 27-11 of August 22, 2011, Article XXVI and published in the Boletín Judicial number 19 of January 26, 2012, as well as in the agreement approved by the Consejo Superior del Poder Judicial, in session N° 43-12 held on May 3, 2012, Article LXXXI.

THEREFORE; The appeal is declared PARTIALLY GRANTED, solely, against the Municipality of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, the Ministry of Health, and against the company El Tomatico S.A. Consequently, MELVIN ALFARO SALAS, in his capacity as Mayor of the Municipality of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, or whoever holds that position, is ordered to, within a period of TWO MONTHS, counted from the notification of this resolution, develop a hydrological model of the basin or micro-basin which establishes the background of the area and maximum probable floods, for the purpose of carrying out an adequate design of the sewer systems and the optimal sites for the outfall of the sewer systems in the area with flooding problems. Likewise, and based on the previous information, within a period of SIX MONTHS, counted from the notification of this resolution, carry out the necessary works in order to definitively solve the storm sewer and rainwater drainage problem affecting the Urbanización Sequeria. Finally, he is ordered to monitor the stormwater management activity of the co-respondent company “el tomatito S.A.” and issue the corresponding orders so that it complies with the recommendations for good agricultural technique, made by the competent authorities. MARCO TULIO ZUMBADO ULATE, in his capacity as Director of the Health Governing Area of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, is ordered to follow up on request CN-ARS-SB-1670-2014. Also, MILTON CASTILO SANDÍ, in his capacity as Legal Representative of the company El Tomatico S.A., is ordered to, within a period of TWO MONTHS, counted from the notification of this resolution, carry out the technical improvements and maintenance to the stormwater drainage system of the property of his represented party, which is located near the Urbanización Sequeria of Santa Bárbara de Heredia. The foregoing, under warning that he could incur the crime typified in Article 71 of the Law of Constitutional Jurisdiction, which provides for imprisonment of three months to two years, or a fine of twenty to sixty days, for whoever receives an order that they must comply with or enforce, issued in an amparo appeal, and does not comply with it or does not enforce it, provided that the crime is not more severely punished. The Municipality of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, the State, and the company El Tomatico S.A. are condemned to pay the costs, damages, and losses caused by the acts that serve as the basis for this declaration, which shall be liquidated in the enforcement of the contentious-administrative judgment and in the enforcement of the civil judgment, respectively. Notify in a personal manner MELVIN ALFARO SALAS, in his capacity as Mayor of the Municipality of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, MARCO TULIO ZUMBADO ULATE, in his capacity as Director of the Health Governing Area of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, and MILTON CASTILO SANDÍ, in his capacity as Legal Representative of the company El Tomatico S.A., or whoever occupies those positions. Magistrate Salazar Alvarado sets down a note.- Fernando Cruz C. Presidente a.i.

Fernando Castillo V. Paul Rueda L.

Luis Fdo. Salazar A. José Paulino Hernández G.

Rosa María Abdelnour G. Enrique Ulate C.

“Article 50 of the Constitution establishes as a fundamental purpose and essential value of the Costa Rican State to procure ‘the greatest well-being for all inhabitants of the country.’ In such a way that, a ‘healthy and ecologically balanced environment’ forms part of the content of the greatest well-being of all inhabitants, a cause, purpose, and also a condition and limit to the exercise of public powers and competencies, not only of the State, but also of the Municipalities. Like the right to property, the object upon which the right to the environment falls is external to the integrity of the human person (unlike, for example, the right to life), but also unlike the object of the right to property, the person forms part of the environment, integrates it, hence its protection entails the conservation of the essential context for human life; conduct with negative effects on it poses a danger to human existence itself and a reduction or loss of the ‘greatest well-being’ of all.” “By express constitutional provision -Article 169-, there is an assignment of functions or attributions in favor of local governments by reason of subject matter to ‘the local,’ that is, ‘the administration of the services and interests’ of the locality to which it is circumscribed, for which it is endowed with autonomy (). Thus, its powers are generic, as there is no detailed enumeration of its own duties, but a simple statement of the scope of its competence; but not for that reason indeterminable.”

“(...) they refer to the obligation of coordination that must exist between local governments, decentralized institutions, and the Executive Branch, to carry out the functions that have been entrusted to them, which must be analyzed based on the very nature of municipal autonomy. It is by virtue of the provisions of Article 170 of the Constitution that municipalities (local corporate entities) enjoy functional, administrative, and financial autonomy in the administration of local interests and services (...)”

Res. No. 2016-004621 CONSTITUTIONAL CHAMBER OF THE SUPREME COURT OF JUSTICE. San José, at sixteen twenty hours on April 5, two thousand sixteen.

Unconstitutionality action filed by [Name] (…), holder of identity card number [Number], against the Municipal Council of Aguirre, regarding Article 13, subsection d), of the Regulatory Plan for Quepos, published in La Gaceta No. 45 of March 4, 2004. Parties involved: (…) the Municipality of Aguirre, represented by its Mayor with judicial powers [Name], holder of identity card number [Number]; the Office of the Attorney General of the Republic; and the Costa Rican Tourism Institute.

San José, at sixteen hours and twenty minutes on April fifth, two thousand sixteen.<br> &nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Amparo petition processed under case file number 15-016546-0007-CO, filed by AIDA NIDIA ROJAS LOPEZ, identity card 0501820063, ALONSO JESUS OSES VEGA, identity card 0402350614, AMALIA DEL SOCORRO ARGUEDAS CAMPOS, identity card 0401660091, ANA CECILIA GUILLEN CHAVARRIA, identity card 0302670501, ANA GABRIELA RAMIREZ ARGUEDAS, identity card 0402260170, ANA ISABEL ALFARO ARAYA, identity card 0401090077, ANA JANCY MOREIRA CASTRO, identity card 0204780212, ANA MARIA BUSTOS RODRIGUEZ, identity card 0600930929, CARLOS ALBERTO CORTES DIAZ, identity card 0401670701, CARLOS LUIS CORTES UGALDE, identity card 0401170698, CARLOS MANUEL VILLALOBOS SANCHEZ, identity card 0502510038, DENNIS MIGUEL RODRIGUEZ CANTILLO, identity card 0109560918, DOUGLAS LEON PEREZ, identity card 0503200707, EDGAR ANTONIO SANCHEZ BARBOZA, identity card 0302940323, ELENA DE LOS ANGELES ARCE JIMENEZ, identity card 0603840257, ELIZABETH ROSARIO DE MAYELA BIASETTI VARGAS, identity card 0900180474, ESTRELLA DE LOS ANGELES DIAZ ESQUIVEL, identity card 0401110490, FREDDY ROLANDO HERRERA CAMPOS, identity card 0401290678, GABRIELA MARIA HERNANDEZ ALFARO, identity card 0401860338, GLEN ALEXANDER BERMUDEZ BUSTOS, identity card 0602930454, GUADALUPE RECINOS BARAHONA, identity card 0800740511, GUILLERMO ALONSO ALVARADO VARGAS, identity card 0108840308, GUISELLA PARRA CORTES, identity card 0402260185, HIPOLITO VILLALOBOS MIRANDA, identity card 0202490981, JACQUELINE VEGA ARGUEDAS, identity card 0206350401, JENNIFER DE LOS ANGELES SANCHEZ QUESADA, identity card 0117490280, JENNY VIRGINIA HERRERA ARGUEDAS, identity card 0401750055, JESSICA PATRICIA NAJERA CHACON, identity card 0113010378, JOHNNY SALAZAR OROZCO, identity card 0204130457, JOSE ANTHONY RECINOS BARAHONA, identity card 0113610331, JOSE EVENOR MENDOZA SALINAS, residence card 155822542527, JUAN CARLOS BOLAÑOS NUÑEZ, identity card 0401420104, KIMBERLY SANCHEZ QUESADA, identity card 0117060746, LUIS CARLOS SALAS GONZALEZ, identity card 0402340442, LUIS FERNANDO ARQUIMEDES SOLIS CAMPOS, identity card 0401320554, LUIS MANUEL VILCHEZ VARGAS, identity card 0401430085, MANUEL ENRIQUE DE JESUS VARGAS ALCAZAR, identity card 0401470606, MARCO TULIO DE LA TRINIDAD CESPEDES GUERRERO, identity card 0401210679, MARIA DEL CARMEN ARGUELLO MOLINA, identity card 0400960737, MARIA SHIRLEY DEL CARMEN VARGAS ALFARO, identity card 0401390998, MARISOL MARIA ARAYA SEGURA, identity card 0204760943, MARVA DE LOS ANGELES VILLALOBOS ALVARADO, identity card 0601890437, MARVIN ANTONIO SALAS CALDERON, identity card 0401350390, MICHAEL ANTONIO VILCHEZ HERRERA, identity card 0401760942, MIGDALIA PUERTO AMPIE, MIGUEL ANGEL DEL CARMEN BOLAÑOS NUÑEZ, identity card 0401090641, NURIA MARIA DEL CARMEN CORTES&nbsp; UGALDE, identity card 0401270783, OLMAN ELIECER RAMIREZ CAMPOS, identity card 0108820862, OSCAR VILLALOBOS CANALES, identity card 0603950706, RAFAEL ANGEL DE JESUS MEJIA GARCIA, identity card 0900550338, RAFAEL ELIAS ZUÑIGA VARGAS, identity card 0401670931, RITA GONZALEZ DELGADO, identity card 0203020989, ROBERTH ANDRES ARGUELLO HERRERA, identity card 0402170904, RONALD ANTONIO ARGUELLO HERRERA, identity card 0402360279, SCARLETT LIDIETH CALDERON CHAVES, identity card 0604080259, SONIA DEL SOCORRO HERRERA HERRERA, identity card 0401380816, VERA VIOLETA RODRIGUEZ CAMPOS, identity card 0203300414, YAMILETH DEL CARMEN JIMENEZ BADILLA, identity card 0501980824, YESENIA MARIA ARGUEDAS ARGUEDAS, identity card 0108330029, YOLANDA MARIA DE LOS ANGELES VEGA MENDEZ, identity card 0106840425, YORLENY MESEN VALVERDE, identity card 0109690659, YUDITH DE LOS ANGELES IBARRA , residence card 155819142610,&nbsp; against the AREA RECTORA DE SALUD DE SANTA BARBARA DE HEREDIA (MINISTERIO DE SALUD),&nbsp; the MUNICIPALIDAD DE SANTA BARBARA DE HEREDIA, the COMISIÓN NACIONAL DE EMERGENCIAS, SERVICIO NACIONAL DE AGUAS SUBTERRANEAS, RIEGO Y AVENAMIENTO DEL MINISTERIO DE AMBIENTE Y ENERGIA and the company EL TOMATICO S.A. <br> Resultando:<br> &nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;By written submission received at this Chamber at 16:21 hrs., on November 4, 2016, the petitioners file an amparo petition and state that their properties are being affected by floods, because the company El Tomatico S.A. built some detention ponds (lagunas de retardo) without the proper permits. The municipality indicated that the detention pond had to be eliminated. For a year now, they have been waiting for the Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara to resolve a complaint filed by a neighbor; this was conditional upon a report to be issued by the Comisión Nacional de Emergencias (CNE), without actions or health orders for the protection and safety of the community having been taken to date. <br> By resolution at 08:36 hrs. on November 6, 2016, this Court admits this amparo, requesting a report from the Director of the Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara de Heredia (Ministerio de Salud), the Municipal Mayor of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, and the President of the Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgos y Atención de Emergencias (CNE), to be rendered within the 3 business days following notification of said resolution.<br> The admission resolution was notified to the President of the CNE on November 10, 2015, at 14:55 hrs. <br> The admission resolution was notified to the Municipal Mayor of Santa Bárbara de Heredia on November 11, 2015, at 10:55 hrs. through the Judicial Communications Office of Heredia. <br> By resolution at 11:02 on December 14, 2015, the parties to this proceeding are expanded, and the matter is referred to the Servicio Nacional de Aguas Subterráneas, Riesgo y Avenamiento del Ministerio de Ambiente y Energía, so that, within a period of 3 days, it may conduct an inspection and render a report to this Court. Likewise, the Legal Representative of the company El Tomatico S.A. is deemed a party, and a report is requested regarding the facts alleged by the petitioner, to be rendered within the 3 business days following notification of the resolution.<br> The admission resolution was notified to the Servicio Nacional de Aguas, Riego y Avenamiento del Ministerio de Ambiente y Energía on January 7, 2016, at 08:55 hrs. <br> The admission resolution was notified to the Legal Representative of the company El Tomatico S.A. on January 6, 2016, at 08:18 hrs. through the Judicial Communications Office of Heredia. <br> By brief filed on November 13, 2015, at 10:25 hrs., MARCO TULIO ZUMBADO ULATE reports under oath, in his capacity as Director of the Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, that regarding the facts alleged by the petitioner, he reports that on October 20, 2014, Mr. Rafael Elías Zúñiga Vargas filed a complaint with the Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara regarding the management of stormwater on the property of Mr. Milton Castillo (Owner of Tomatico), due to the proliferation of Dengue and other mosquitoes. In addition, he states that excavations were made less than fifty centimeters from his property in the northern sector of his wall and he filed a complaint with the Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara. On November 21, 2014, the Environmental Manager of the Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara conducted an inspection of the site; official report CN-ARS-SB-1661-2014 dated December 10, 2015, indicated that a pit was observed on the property of Mr. Milton Castillo, an adjacent neighbor, located 50 cm from the complainant's property, measuring approximately 25 m2, standing water was observed at the bottom, and no mosquitoes were observed. The necessity and utility of the ponds were verified, and it was ruled out that there were no mosquito breeding sites. He requests that the petition be dismissed.<br> In a brief filed with the secretariat of this Chamber at 11:01 hrs. on November 16, 2015, JULISSA ULATE ARIAS renders a report under oath in her capacity as acting Executive Director of the Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgo y Atención de Emergencias, in which she indicates that it is the purview of municipal governments to verify that constructions erected in their canton remain within the guidelines authorized by them. From the actions carried out by the entity I represent, the Risk Research and Analysis Unit has rendered several reports in the San Juan de Santa Bárbara de Heredia area, resulting from floods caused. Reports that were duly notified to the municipal authorities, the Comité Municipal de Emergencias, and Mr. William Retana Alpizar, a resident of the area. The first of these was rendered in June 2013 under number IAR-INF-460-2013, resulting from a site visit and review of the hazard map to provide a preliminary risk diagnosis. Under official number IAR-INF-0337-2014 of June 9, 2014, a risk assessment for waterlogging of homes in San Juan Arriba de Santa Bárbara, Heredia, was conducted. Finally, the Risk Research and Analysis Unit rendered a new risk assessment report under official number IAR-INF-0392-2014, which indicates that a visit was made to the site located at coordinates 223.280N-5 19.306, San Juan de Santa Bárbara, observing a channel that is attributed with the problem of home waterlogging (a licensed irrigation channel). It was determined that this channel extends beyond the limits of the agricultural property designated for tomato cultivation, collecting water from the properties it crosses, causing home waterlogging when heavy rainfall occurs. The report concludes: VI. Conclusions A. The area is surrounded by several predictable natural hazards, according to the potential hazard map of the CNE for this sector. B. The inspected area possesses several factors that generate problems of waterlogging and sewer overflow. The collection channels for surface water in the coffee plantation become clogged with materials, garbage, or sediment, which causes said water to overflow, running toward the front of the property and onto the irrigation channel; which continues illegally, generating the flood problems. The presence of homes on the sides and on top of the channel favors their being affected. C. The low hydraulic capacity of the pipes and gutters, the small diameter of the culverts, and a poor control and collection system for stormwater and sewage generate the flood problem in the visited sites. D. Poor management of cultivation and tillage techniques favor soil erosion, contributing to the clogging of drains and sewers. VII. Recommendations A. It is recommended that the Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara grant no more construction permits in said area with flood problems. B. The owner of the agricultural property must ensure that the runoff water collection channels are kept clean, free of garbage, and without clogging problems. C. The Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara and local residents must keep the gutter system that collects stormwater and sewage in the evaluated sites clean, as well as in properties uphill from said sites. D. The Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara and affected neighbors should evaluate the possibility of replacing the culverts with larger-diameter ones that allow for the passage of greater flows. E. Residents affected by waterlogging are recommended not to construct more buildings near the channel that causes problems, and to remove the constructions located on it. F. The Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara must evaluate the possibility of eliminating the channel that is generating waterlogging problems, as well as the development of an exhaustive Hydrological model of the entire basin or micro-basin, where the area's history and maximum probable flood events are established, for the purpose of designing adequate sewer systems and optimal sites for the discharge of sewer systems in the area with flood problems. G. Any anomaly regarding construction techniques or omission of the recommendations described herein falls under the full responsibility of the institutions that grant the permits, the engineer or person responsible for the work, and the respective Municipality for not requesting the corresponding reports, inspections, and corrections.<br> &nbsp;In a written submission received at 14:06 hrs. on November 16, 2015, MALVIN ALFARO SALAS renders a report under oath in his capacity as Municipal Mayor of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, stating that the area in question, owned by El Tomatico S.A., was previously used for coffee cultivation, and a crop change was made, therefore the shade provided by the trees that were cut down as an agricultural practice, not as deforestation, is no longer needed. There are retention ponds (lagunas de retención), built throughout the property, which were made under the concept of good agricultural practices, to slow the passage of water, and these were at the recommendation of the Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganadería (MAG), according to a letter sent to this Municipality by Eng. Rolando Hidalgo, with number pps-014-10; this activity is not within the Municipality's competence to grant or deny permits, due to the nature of the activity. The engineering department conducted a site inspection to verify the facts stated in the complaint, indicating that the detention ponds made were a provision of the MAG because the property is for agricultural use and the runoff on the property is very large, as a mitigation measure to reduce flood problems in the areas. In said inspection, a notification was made with citation No. 0378-2014, and he was also told that the detention pond adjacent to Mr. Zúñiga's lot had to be eliminated. He requests that the petition be dismissed.<br> &nbsp;By written submission presented to the secretariat of this Chamber on January 11, 2016, at 14:26 hrs., MILTON CASTILO SANDÍ reports in his capacity as Legal Representative of the company El Tomatico S.A., indicating that it is an agricultural-designated property, as recorded in the Municipality's Regulatory Plan; coffee cultivation was substituted for vegetables, and it is not true that this crop change caused the floods. The housing development is topographically situated on a lower property than that of Tomatico SA.; stormwater, as provided for in the governing Law, cannot be retained on a higher property. Therefore, the responsibility for what happens there lies not with Tomatico S.A. but with those who granted the construction permits and authorized the creation of the housing development. It is clear that the detention tanks (tanques de retardo) were built following the recommendations of the Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganadería; they are simple retention tanks dug into the earth to reduce the speed of stormwater in extreme cases of torrential rain (water collection tanks), the intention thus being to prevent the violent gravity-driven fall of water coming from higher-elevation properties and from the property itself. In studies conducted by the CONAVI and the COMISION DE EMERGENCIA, it is determined that what the property contributes to the water flow referred to in this issue is barely point nine cubic meters, so it can never be the cause of the floods and catastrophes mentioned by the neighbors. The local municipality never requested the elimination of the detention tanks; indeed, they asked us to provide adequate maintenance so they would fulfill their purpose properly. Since 2014, the company requested approval from the local municipality to carry out the necessary works; to this day, no approval or any response has been received from that entity. If the detention tanks near the boundaries were eliminated, the water would pass without any obstacle toward the street and then to the housing development, with the corresponding consequences. He requests that the petition be dismissed.<br> &nbsp;By brief presented to the secretariat of this Chamber on February 12, 2016, at 15:26 hrs., PATRICIA QUIRÓS QUIRÓS reports under oath in her capacity as General Manager of the Servicio Nacional de Aguas Subterráneas Riego y Avenamiento (SENARA), and states that on Monday, January 11, 2016, SENARA proceeded to conduct the inspection at the site subject to this complaint. Report from the Indep., according to official letter No. RCOC-003-16 (Directorate of Engineering and Project Development), dated January 12, 2016. It details, in relevant part, that no traces or residue of floods with sediment and garbage were observed. No land destabilization was found in the community. It was verified that there are a series of rectangular-shaped excavations of different dimensions, which are used to receive and retain surface runoff water that flows during rain events. These excavations, on the date of the inspection, showed evidence of having received runoff water and were silted-up. Their location is quite far from the boundary line. According to what was observed during the Inspection, it is indicated that corresponding technical improvements are essential in the construction and maintenance of the detention ponds. The activity must have a certification of good agricultural practices. According to a report from the Directorate of Research and Water Management, official letter No. UGH-006-16 of January 12, 2016, it is indicated that the problem raised by the residents of Urbanización Sequeira lies in an issue of surface runoff and a deficient sewer system, which during heavy rainfall events cause the flood problems. According to what was observed during the inspection, it is indicated that corresponding technical improvements are essential in the construction and maintenance of the detention ponds. The area where the Tomatico S.A. property is located is a medium recharge zone and is vulnerable for the Barva aquifer, therefore the Matrix of Land Use Criteria According to Aquifer Contamination Vulnerability for Resource Protection, prepared by SENARA and approved by the Board of Directors, has the following regulations: only agrochemicals of very low toxicity, persistence, and mobility may be used. It must have a soil management plan in accordance with decree 23214-MAG-MIRENEM; management and treatment of effluents must be provided. The activity must have a certification of good agricultural practices. She requests that the petition be dismissed.<br> &nbsp;The legal requirements have been fulfilled in this proceeding.<br> &nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Drafted by Magistrate Ulate Chacón; and,<br> Considerando:<br> &nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;I.- PRELIMINARY MATTER. Some of the facts alleged in this petition were the subject of review by this Constitutional Court, related to the floods in Urbanización Sequeira of the canton of Santa Bárbara de Heredia. In that sense, it is noted that in resolution No. 2013-010296 at 14:30 on July 31, 2013, the Mayor and the President of the Municipal Council, both of the Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara, were ordered to make improvements within three months to the storm sewer system where the petitioner's property is located, by unclogging the installed pipe, encasing the irrigation ditch (acequia), constructing a manhole, cleaning storm boxes, and/or expanding the storm sewer system, all in coordination with the owners —including the petitioner— and taking into account the recommendations given by the Instituto Costarricense de Acueductos y Alcantarillados and the Ministerio de Salud. Likewise, in a much more recent matter, through resolution No. 2015-017869 at 9:15 hrs. on November 13, 2015, the Mayor, the Engineering Department, and the President of the Municipal Council, all of the Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara, were ordered to solve, within two months, the problem claimed by the petitioner on June 19, 2014, i.e., the flood problem in Urbanización Sequeira. In view of the foregoing, this Court proceeds to hear the facts alleged for two reasons: first, because they involve other petitioners, and second, because other authorities are parties who were not part of the previous amparo proceedings.<br> II.- PURPOSE OF THE PETITION. The petitioners claim they are residents of Urbanización Sequeira in Santa Bárbara de Heredia, which consists of several vulnerable populations. They state that their rights to a healthy and ecologically balanced environment, to property, and to public health have been affected, as the Company named El Tomatico S.A., since 2010, deforested an area of trees and pastures that retained water to plant agricultural crops, and it is since that date that floods with mud, garbage, and land destabilization have occurred throughout the community, due to the creation of ponds on the property without the legal permits. They indicate that the described problem continues despite the respondent Municipality notifying said company that the work lacks protection and exposes human life and real estate, and that it should therefore eliminate the detention pond and the pit, which are located near the boundaries. They claim that for a year, they have been waiting for the Ministerio de Salud to resolve the problem, following a complaint filed by a resident of that locality; it was left awaiting a report that was to be generated by the Comisión Nacional de Emergencias. They affirm that, to date, no actions, health orders, or other administrative acts have been issued to provide protection and safety for the community, and therefore they consider their fundamental rights violated. &nbsp;<br> III.- PROVEN FACTS. Of importance for the decision in this matter, the following facts are deemed duly proven, either because they have been accredited or because the respondent omitted to refer to them as provided for in the initial order: <br> The property of El Tomatico S.A. is designated for agricultural use; it was previously used for coffee cultivation; it has runoff water retention ponds, recommended by the Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganadería (MAG), according to official letter pps-014-10, signed by the Sustainable Production Coordinator, without it being the competence of the respondent Municipality to grant or deny permits (Municipal Mayor of Santa Bárbara's report).<br> On June 25, 2013, technical report No. IAR-INF-460-2013, on the flood risk assessment in Urbanización Sequeira, San Juan de Santa Bárbara de Heredia; the Risk Research and Analysis Unit of the Comisión Nacional de Emergencias (CNE) has rendered reports, notified to the municipal authorities and the Comité Municipal de Emergencias, which concluded there was a lack of adequate stormwater channeling, recommending not to grant construction permits in river, stream, and irrigation ditch protection areas, steep slope fill areas, and downstream from the site in question (report of the acting Executive Director of the Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgos y Atención de Emergencias).<br> On October 20, 2014, Mr. Rafael Elías Zúñiga Vargas filed a complaint with the Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara, pointing out the management of stormwater on the El Tomatico S.A. property and possible breeding sites for the Dengue-transmitting mosquito (report of the Director of the Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara).<br> In inspection report No. CN-ARS-SB-1661-2014, of December 10, 2014, conducted by the Environmental Manager of the Área Rectora de Salud, it stated that the pit on the property of El Tomatico S.A. is located 50 cm from the boundary line, measures 25 m2, with standing water at the bottom, without mosquitoes (report of Marco Tulio Zumbado Ulate, Director of the Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara, visible on page 89 of the electronic file).<br> The file of the Comisión Nacional de Emergencias does not contain evidence of the submission of official letter CN-ARS-SB-1670-2014 (see report of the acting Executive Director of the Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgos y Atención de Emergencias). <br> The Risk Research and Analysis Unit rendered a new risk assessment report under official number IAR-INF-0392-2014, which indicates that a visit was made to the site located at coordinates 223.280N-5 19.306, San Juan de Santa Bárbara, in which among its conclusions it indicates: The collection channels for surface water in the coffee plantation become clogged with materials, garbage, or sediment, which causes said water to overflow, running toward the front of the property and onto the irrigation channel&nbsp; (see report of the acting Executive Director of the Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgos y Atención de Emergencias).<br> In the inspection report, official letter No. RCOC-003-16, dated January 12, 2016, from the Directorate of Engineering and Project Development of SENARA, it stated that no traces or residue of floods were observed, no land destabilization was found in the community, excavations to retain surface runoff water were verified, they have an overflow outlet, when full they evacuate the surplus water and it is channeled through a series of drains toward natural exits based on the topographic condition of the property (report of the General Manager of SENARA).<br> The flood problem in Urbanización Sequeira is due to a deficient sewer system (report of the General Manager of SENARA and report of the acting Executive Director of the Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgos y Atención de Emergencias).<br> IV.- UNPROVEN FACTS. None of relevance for this resolution. <br> V.- PROTECTION OF THE RIGHT TO A HEALTHY AND ECOLOGICALLY BALANCED ENVIRONMENT. Article 50 of the Constitution establishes that procuring "the greatest well-being of all inhabitants of the country" is a fundamental purpose and essential value of the Costa Rican State. In such a way, the "healthy and ecologically balanced environment" forms part of the content of the greatest well-being of all inhabitants, being the cause, purpose, and also condition and limit of the exercise of public powers and competences, not only of the State but also of the Municipalities. Like the right to property, the object upon which the right to the environment rests is external to the integrity of the human person (unlike, for example, the right to life), but also unlike the object of the right to property, the person forms part of the environment, integrates it; therefore, its protection implies the conservation of the essential context for human life; conduct with negative effects on it implies a danger to human existence itself and a reduction or loss of the "greatest well-being" of all. Life depends on the environment; therefore, it must ensure that those conditions guaranteeing life are maintained over time. In judgment number 601-2009, this Chamber held the following: <br> "The origins of environmental problems are complex and correspond to an articulation of natural and social processes within the framework of the socioeconomic development style adopted by the country." For example, environmental problems arise when the forms of natural resource exploitation lead to ecosystem degradation exceeding its regeneration capacity, resulting in harm to broad sectors of the population and generating a high environmental and social cost that leads to a deterioration in the quality of life; precisely because the primary objective of the use and protection of the environment is to achieve development and evolution favorable to human beings (...) it is important to understand that although man has the right to use the environment for his own development, he also has the duty to protect and preserve it for the use of present and future generations, which is not so novel, because it is nothing more than the translation, to this matter, of the principle of "lesión" (injury/damage), already consolidated in common law, by virtue of which the legitimate exercise of a right has two essential limits: On one hand, the equal rights of others and, on the other, the rational exercise and useful enjoyment of the right itself." Thus, it is the responsibility of public entities, including the Municipalities, to ensure respect for a healthy and ecologically balanced environment within their respective territorial circumscription, as well as the well-being of all inhabitants of their respective canton, and within the framework of constitutional and legal competencies, to act in favor of ensuring respect for this right for all residents, and to act—again within the framework of their competencies—to mitigate or correct actions that tend to violate it.

VI.- MUNICIPAL COMPETENCY AND OBLIGATION OF INTERINSTITUTIONAL COORDINATION. Article 169 of the Political Constitution provides that "The administration of local interests and services in each canton shall be the responsibility of the Municipal Government (...)". This norm has been developed by the ordinary legislator, in response to this, Article 3 of the Municipal Code, Law number 7794 of April 30, 1998, provides that: "The government and administration of cantonal interests and services shall be the responsibility of the municipal government". In this same sense, the Constitutional Chamber has expressed itself in its jurisprudence. For instance, in ruling number 5445-99, at 14:30 hours on July 14, 1999, the following was provided: "VI.- OF THE ATTRIBUTIONS OF MUNICIPALITIES BY REASON OF SUBJECT MATTER (CONCEPT OF "THE LOCAL"). By express constitutional provision -Article 169-, there is an assignment of functions or attributions in favor of local governments by reason of subject matter to "the local", that is, "the administration of the services and interests" of the locality to which it is circumscribed, for which purpose it is endowed with autonomy (") So its powers are generic, as there is no detailed enumeration of its own tasks, but rather a simple enunciation of the scope of its competence; but not for that reason indeterminable, to which this Court referred in ruling number 6469-97, at sixteen hours twenty minutes on October eight, nineteen ninety-seven, in the following terms:

"(...) the local has such connotation that defining its scope by the legislator or the judge must lead to maintaining the integrity of local interests and services, in such a way that not even the legislator could issue regulations that tend to dismember the Municipality (territorial element), if not done by observing the procedures previously established in the Political Constitution; nor can it enact one that places its inhabitants (population) in clear conditions of inferiority with relation to the rest of the country; nor one that affects the very essence of what is local (government), in such a way that the Corporation becomes a simple empty container of which only the name subsists, but deactivating the entire regime as it was conceived by the National Constituent Assembly. In another turn, there will be tasks that by their nature are municipal -local- and cannot be subtracted from that sphere of competence to convert them into national services or interests, because doing so would imply dismantling the Municipality, or better yet, emptying it of constitutional content, and therefore, it is not possible beforehand to dictate the insurmountable limits of what is local, but rather to unravel what corresponds or not to the communal government, it must be extracted from the examination made in each specific case (...)". From the foregoing, the fact stands out that, by express will of our Fundamental Charter, a specific competence is assigned to local governments, an attribution that is also exclusive to them; that is, it is an original competence of the municipality and only through a nationalization or regionalization law can it be displaced, totally or partially".

Consequently, if a group of residents, in their territorial circumscription, suffer floods with risk to their lives and serious patrimonial, psychological, quality of life and general well-being damages, this is framed within the concept of "local interests and services" of constitutional article 169, problems whose causes must be identified with precision and, even more so, the solutions, in order to implement them as quickly as possible; for which purpose it corresponds to the Municipality to coordinate with national-level institutions with competence to act on the problem. Indeed, the Chamber has already developed the municipal obligation to coordinate with other state institutions in order to attend to the "interests" and duly provide the "local services". In the cited ruling number 5445-99, the Chamber stated: "(...) they refer to the coordination obligation that must exist between local governments, decentralized institutions and the Executive Power, to carry out the functions that have been entrusted to them, which must be analyzed based on the very nature of municipal autonomy. It is by virtue of what is provided in constitutional Article 170, that municipalities (local corporate entities) enjoy functional, administrative and financial autonomy in the administration of local interests and services (Article 169 of the Political Constitution) (...) A conflict cannot, then, be created by antagonism or protagonism between the matter that integrates the general purpose of "local interests and services" and the "national" or "state" public interests and services, intrinsically distinct from one another, but which in reality are called to coexist (....) Once the material competence of the municipality in a determined territorial circumscription is defined, it is clear that there will be tasks that by their nature are exclusively municipal, alongside others that can be reputed national or state; for this reason it is essential to define the form of co-participation of attributions that is inevitable, since the public capacity of municipalities is local, and that of the State and other entities, national; where it results that the municipal territory is simultaneously state and institutional, to the extent circumstances require. That is, municipalities can share their competencies with the Public Administration in general, a relationship that must be carried out under the terms as defined in the law (Article 5 of the previous Municipal Code, Article 7 of the new Code), which establishes the obligation of "coordination" between municipalities and the public institutions that concur in the performance of their competencies, to avoid duplication of efforts and contradictions, above all, because only voluntary coordination is compatible with municipal autonomy being its expression. In other terms, the municipality is called to enter into cooperative relations with other public entities, and vice versa, given the concurrent or coincident nature -in many cases- of interests around a concrete matter. In doctrine, coordination is defined based on the existence of several independent centers of action, each with its own tasks and decision-making powers, and eventually discrepant; despite this, there must be a community of purposes by subject matter, but by concurrence, insofar as the object receiving the final results of the activity and of the acts of each one is common". So coordination is the ordering of the relationships between these various independent activities, which takes charge of that concurrence on a same object or entity, to make it useful for a global public plan, without suppressing the reciprocal independence of the agent subjects. As there is no hierarchy relationship of decentralized institutions, nor of the State itself in relation to municipalities, the imposition of certain behaviors on them is not possible, with which the indispensable "concert" (concierto) arises, in the strict sense, insofar as the autonomous and independent centers of action agree on that preventive and global scheme, in which each one fulfills a role in view of a mission entrusted to the others".

It should be noted, moreover, that Municipalities are obliged, by imperative of article 50 of the Political Constitution, to exert themselves in the protection of the environment (ruling number 2006-7994 at 8:57 hours on June 2, 2006).

VII.- SPECIFIC CASE. The petitioners come before this Constitutional Jurisdiction and state that they are residents of the Urbanización Sequeira of Santa Bárbara de Heredia. They indicate that their right to a healthy and ecologically balanced environment, to property and to public health has been affected, because the Company called El Tomatico S.A., since 2010, deforested an area of trees and pastures that retained water, to plant agricultural crops, and it is since that date that floods with mud, garbage and destabilization of lands throughout the community have occurred, due to the creation of lagoons on the farm, without having the legal permits. They indicate that the described problem continues even though the respondent Municipality notified said company that the work lacks protection and exposes human life and real estate, so it should eliminate the retention pond (laguna de retardo) and the pit, which are located near the boundaries. They allege that for a year they have been waiting for the Ministry of Health to resolve the problem, as a result of a complaint filed by a resident of said locality; it remained pending a report to be generated by the National Emergency Commission (CNE). They affirm that to date no actions have been issued, nor sanitary orders or other administrative act in order to provide protection and security to the community, for which they consider their fundamental rights violated. In this regard, the representatives of the respondent authorities, in reports rendered under oath, with warning of the consequences, including criminal ones, provided for in Article 44 of the Law that governs this Jurisdiction, and the evidence contributed to the case file, it can be concluded, regarding the problems occurring in Urbanización Sequeira of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, the following: 1. Indeed, all authorities agree that there is a flooding problem in the reported place, which they mostly attribute to problems related to the lack of hydraulic capacity and lack of maintenance of the drainage and sewer system (see report of the National Emergency Commission, CNE). 2. The flooding problem of the place is not solely the result of the agricultural activity of the co-respondent company and, on the contrary, in the area there are several factors that generate waterlogging and sewer overflow problems. However, the retention ponds (lagunas de retardo) used by the company need technical improvements and maintenance (see reports of the National Emergency Commission, CNE, the National Service of Groundwater, Irrigation and Drainage (SENARA) and the Health Area of Santa Bárbara). 3. There is no destabilization of land in the community. 4. Poor management of cultivation and plowing techniques favors soil erosion, contributing to the clogging of pipes and sewers. 5. Several recommendations have been made to the Local Government to address the flooding problem, in that sense it was recommended not to grant more construction permits in the area, to monitor the agricultural activity in the area, to clean the surface runoff water collection channels and to prepare a hydrological model of the watershed or micro-watershed in which the background of the area, and probable maximum floods, are established, with the purpose of conducting an adequate design of the sewer systems and the optimal sites for the discharge of sewer systems in the area with flooding problems. Now then, specifically regarding the municipal obligations regarding storm sewerage (alcantarillado pluvial), this Constitutional Court has pointed out that Article 169 of the Political Constitution establishes that the administration of local interests and services in each canton shall be the responsibility of the Municipal Government. Local interests and services have been defined by the Chamber as indeterminate legal concepts where the law does not resolve with exactitude their content for application to concrete cases, so it is necessary to resort to value and experience criteria, on the part of whoever is responsible for applying them, to determine their content. The creation of adequate drainage means within a community in order not to cause damages to property, health or environmental problems to its residents is, within the terms indicated by the Political Constitution, of interest to the canton and is part of the services that the Municipality is obliged to provide. In this same sense, the General Health Law in its Article 285 establishes that stormwater (aguas pluviales) must be adequately and sanitarily eliminated in order to avoid soil and natural water source contamination for human use and consumption, the formation of vector and disease breeding sites, and air pollution through conditions that threaten its purity and quality. For this reason, Municipalities are obliged to assume a determined behavior for the satisfaction of their purposes, taking the required measures to provide the protected community with an efficient stormwater drainage system. Thus, by specifically pointing out the problems of the Urbanización Sequeira of the canton of Santa Bárbara de Heredia and by pointing out the municipal duties regarding storm sewerage (alcantarillado pluvial), this Court, once again, sentences that the respondent Local Government has infringed the fundamental rights of the residents of said locality and, for the third time, orders the definitive solution to the flooding problem of that locality, with a warning that in case of non-compliance, the municipal representative could incur the crime typified in Article 71 of the Law of Constitutional Jurisdiction, which provides that a prison term of three months to two years, or a fine of twenty to sixty days, shall be imposed. On the other hand, this Constitutional Court considers that the company called "El Tomatito S.A." is obligated to maintain and perform technical improvements to the stormwater drainage on its property, which must be monitored by officials of the respondent municipality. Finally, as it was not proven that the Ministry of Health had followed up on the request sent to the Emergency Commission (CNE) via official communication CN-ARS-SB-1670-2014, it is deemed violative of the petitioners' rights.

VIII.CONCLUSION. For the foregoing, the granting of this amparo appeal (recurso de amparo) is appropriate, solely against the Municipality of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, the Ministry of Health and the company called El Tomatito Sociedad Anónima; in all other respects, the appeal is dismissed. Consequently, the granting of the appeal is imposed in the terms set forth in the operative part of this resolution.

IX.- NOTE BY MAGISTRATE SALAZAR ALVARADO. I have agreed with the position held by Magistrate Jinesta Lobo in this matter, so in environmental matters, it is also the criterion of the undersigned that if there has already been intervention by the Public Administration, I consider that its knowledge and resolution correspond to the contentious-administrative jurisdiction. However, I do enter to examine the merits of the matter when other rights of persons affected by the contamination source are at stake, among them, health, quality of life and the right to enjoy a healthy environment free from contamination (Article 50 of the Political Constitution), as occurs in this case, in which contamination problems due to floods with sludge and garbage, as well as land destabilization, are alleged, which affects the housing of the petitioners and other residents of the Urbanización Sequeira of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, with violation of the right to enjoy a healthy and ecologically balanced environment and a decent level of quality of life.

X.- DOCUMENTATION PROVIDED TO THE CASE FILE. The parties are warned that, if they have provided any document on paper, as well as objects or evidence contained on any additional electronic, computer, magnetic, optical, telematic device or device produced by new technologies, these must be removed from the office within a maximum period of 30 business days counted from the notification of this judgment. Otherwise, any material not removed within this period will be destroyed, in accordance with the provisions of the "Reglamento sobre Expediente Electrónico ante el Poder Judicial" (Regulations on the Electronic Case File before the Judicial Branch), approved by the Full Court in session No. 27-11 of August 22, 2011, Article XXVI and published in the Judicial Bulletin number 19 of January 26, 2012, as well as in the agreement approved by the Superior Council of the Judicial Branch, in session No. 43-12 held on May 3, 2012, Article LXXXI.

POR TANTO; The appeal is declared PARTIALLY WITH MERIT, solely against the Municipality of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, the Ministry of Health and against the company El Tomatico S.A. Consequently, MELVIN ALFARO SALAS, in his capacity as Mayor of the Municipality of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, or whoever holds that position, is ordered to, within a period of TWO MONTHS, counted from the notification of this resolution, prepare a hydrological model of the watershed or micro-watershed in which the background of the area, and probable maximum floods, are established, with the purpose of conducting an adequate design of the sewer systems and the optimal sites for the discharge of sewer systems in the area with flooding problems. Likewise, and based on the preceding information, within a period of SIX MONTHS, counted from the notification of this resolution, perform the necessary works in order to definitively solve the sewer and stormwater drainage problem affecting the Urbanización Sequeria. Finally, he is ordered to monitor the stormwater management activity of the co-respondent company "el tomatito S.A." and issue the corresponding orders so that it complies with the recommendations of good agricultural practice, made by the competent authorities. MARCO TULIO ZUMBADO ULATE, in his capacity as Director of the Governing Health Area of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, is ordered to follow up on request CN-ARS-SB-1670-2014. Also, MILTON CASTILO SANDÍ, in his capacity as Legal Representative of the company El Tomatico S.A., is ordered to, within a period of TWO MONTHS, counted from the notification of this resolution, make the technical and maintenance improvements to the stormwater drainage system of the property of his represented company that is close to the Urbanización Sequeria of Santa Bárbara de Heredia. The foregoing, under the warning that he could incur the crime typified in Article 71 of the Law of Constitutional Jurisdiction, which provides that a prison term of three months to two years, or a fine of twenty to sixty days, shall be imposed on anyone who receives an order that must be complied with or enforced, issued in an amparo appeal, and does not comply with it or does not have it complied with, provided the crime is not more severely punished. The Municipality of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, the State and the company El Tomatico S.A. are ordered to pay the costs, damages and losses caused by the facts serving as the basis for this declaration, which shall be liquidated in execution of judgment of the contentious-administrative court and in execution of judgment of the civil court, respectively. Notify personally MELVIN ALFARO SALAS, in his capacity as Mayor of the Municipality of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, MARCO TULIO ZUMBADO ULATE, in his capacity as Director of the Governing Health Area of Santa Bárbara de Heredia, and MILTON CASTILO SANDÍ, in his capacity as Legal Representative of the company El Tomatico S.A., or whoever holds those positions. Magistrate Salazar Alvarado places a note.- Fernando Cruz C. Acting President Fernando Castillo V. Paul Rueda L.

Luis Fdo. Salazar A. José Paulino Hernández G.

Rosa María Abdelnour G. Enrique Ulate C.

Res. Nº 2016-004621 SALA CONSTITUCIONAL DE LA CORTE SUPREMA DE JUSTICIA. San José, a las dieciséis horas y veinte minutos de cinco de abril de dos mil dieciséis. Recurso de amparo que se tramita en expediente número 15-016546-0007-CO, interpuesto por AIDA NIDIA ROJAS LOPEZ, cédula de identidad 0501820063, ALONSO JESUS OSES VEGA, cédula de identidad 0402350614, AMALIA DEL SOCORRO ARGUEDAS CAMPOS, cédula de identidad 0401660091, ANA CECILIA GUILLEN CHAVARRIA, cédula de identidad 0302670501, ANA GABRIELA RAMIREZ ARGUEDAS, cédula de identidad 0402260170, ANA ISABEL ALFARO ARAYA, cédula de identidad 0401090077, ANA JANCY MOREIRA CASTRO, cédula de identidad 0204780212, ANA MARIA BUSTOS RODRIGUEZ, cédula de identidad 0600930929, CARLOS ALBERTO CORTES DIAZ, cédula de identidad 0401670701, CARLOS LUIS CORTES UGALDE, cédula de identidad 0401170698, CARLOS MANUEL VILLALOBOS SANCHEZ, cédula de identidad 0502510038, DENNIS MIGUEL RODRIGUEZ CANTILLO, cédula de identidad 0109560918, DOUGLAS LEON PEREZ, cédula de identidad 0503200707, EDGAR ANTONIO SANCHEZ BARBOZA, cédula de identidad 0302940323, ELENA DE LOS ANGELES ARCE JIMENEZ, cédula de identidad 0603840257, ELIZABETH ROSARIO DE MAYELA BIASETTI VARGAS, cédula de identidad 0900180474, ESTRELLA DE LOS ANGELES DIAZ ESQUIVEL, cédula de identidad 0401110490, FREDDY ROLANDO HERRERA CAMPOS, cédula de identidad 0401290678, GABRIELA MARIA HERNANDEZ ALFARO, cédula de identidad 0401860338, GLEN ALEXANDER BERMUDEZ BUSTOS, cédula de identidad 0602930454, GUADALUPE RECINOS BARAHONA, cédula de identidad 0800740511, GUILLERMO ALONSO ALVARADO VARGAS, cédula de identidad 0108840308, GUISELLA PARRA CORTES, cédula de identidad 0402260185, HIPOLITO VILLALOBOS MIRANDA, cédula de identidad 0202490981, JACQUELINE VEGA ARGUEDAS, cédula de identidad 0206350401, JENNIFER DE LOS ANGELES SANCHEZ QUESADA, cédula de identidad 0117490280, JENNY VIRGINIA HERRERA ARGUEDAS, cédula de identidad 0401750055, JESSICA PATRICIA NAJERA CHACON, cédula de identidad 0113010378, JOHNNY SALAZAR OROZCO, cédula de identidad 0204130457, JOSE ANTHONY RECINOS BARAHONA, cédula de identidad 0113610331, JOSE EVENOR MENDOZA SALINAS, cédula de residencia 155822542527, JUAN CARLOS BOLAÑOS NUÑEZ, cédula de identidad 0401420104, KIMBERLY SANCHEZ QUESADA, cédula de identidad 0117060746, LUIS CARLOS SALAS GONZALEZ, cédula de identidad 0402340442, LUIS FERNANDO ARQUIMEDES SOLIS CAMPOS, cédula de identidad 0401320554, LUIS MANUEL VILCHEZ VARGAS, cédula de identidad 0401430085, MANUEL ENRIQUE DE JESUS VARGAS ALCAZAR, cédula de identidad 0401470606, MARCO TULIO DE LA TRINIDAD CESPEDES GUERRERO, cédula de identidad 0401210679, MARIA DEL CARMEN ARGUELLO MOLINA, cédula de identidad 0400960737, MARIA SHIRLEY DEL CARMEN VARGAS ALFARO, cédula de identidad 0401390998, MARISOL MARIA ARAYA SEGURA, cédula de identidad 0204760943, MARVA DE LOS ANGELES VILLALOBOS ALVARADO, cédula de identidad 0601890437, MARVIN ANTONIO SALAS CALDERON, cédula de identidad 0401350390, MICHAEL ANTONIO VILCHEZ HERRERA, cédula de identidad 0401760942, MIGDALIA PUERTO AMPIE, MIGUEL ANGEL DEL CARMEN BOLAÑOS NUÑEZ, cédula de identidad 0401090641, NURIA MARIA DEL CARMEN CORTES UGALDE, cédula de identidad 0401270783, OLMAN ELIECER RAMIREZ CAMPOS, cédula de identidad 0108820862, OSCAR VILLALOBOS CANALES, cédula de identidad 0603950706, RAFAEL ANGEL DE JESUS MEJIA GARCIA, cédula de identidad 0900550338, RAFAEL ELIAS ZUÑIGA VARGAS, cédula de identidad 0401670931, RITA GONZALEZ DELGADO, cédula de identidad 0203020989, ROBERTH ANDRES ARGUELLO HERRERA, cédula de identidad 0402170904, RONALD ANTONIO ARGUELLO HERRERA, cédula de identidad 0402360279, SCARLETT LIDIETH CALDERON CHAVES, cédula de identidad 0604080259, SONIA DEL SOCORRO HERRERA HERRERA, cédula de identidad 0401380816, VERA VIOLETA RODRIGUEZ CAMPOS, cédula de identidad 0203300414, YAMILETH DEL CARMEN JIMENEZ BADILLA, cédula de identidad 0501980824, YESENIA MARIA ARGUEDAS ARGUEDAS, cédula de identidad 0108330029, YOLANDA MARIA DE LOS ANGELES VEGA MENDEZ, cédula de identidad 0106840425, YORLENY MESEN VALVERDE, cédula de identidad 0109690659, YUDITH DE LOS ANGELES IBARRA , cédula de residencia 155819142610, contra el AREA RECTORA DE SALUD DE SANTA BARBARA DE HEREDIA (MINISTERIO DE SALUD), la MUNICIPALIDAD DE SANTA BARBARA DE HEREDIA, la COMISIÓN NACIONAL DE EMERGENCIAS, SERVICIO NACIONAL DE AGUAS SUBTERRANEAS, RIEGO Y AVENAMIENTO DEL MINISTERIO DE AMBIENTE Y ENERGIA y la empresa EL TOMATICO S.A. Resultando: Por escrito recibido en esta Sala a las 16:21 hrs., del 04 de noviembre de 2016, los recurrentes interponen recurso de amparo y exponen que, que sus propiedades están siendo afectadas por inundaciones, a causa de que la empresa El Tomatico S.A. construyó unas lagunas de retardo sin los debidos permisos. La municipalidad indicó que se debía eliminar la laguna de retardo. Desde hace un año, se está a la espera que el Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara, resuelva una denuncia planteada por un vecino; lo cual quedó condicionado a un informe que debía rendir la Comisión Nacional de Emergencias (CNE), sin que a la fecha se hayan tomado acciones, ni ordenes sanitarias para la protección y seguridad de la comunidad. Mediante la resolución de las 08:36 hrs. Del 06 de noviembre de 2016, este Tribunal da curso al presente amparo, solicitándose informe el Director del Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara de Heredia (Ministerio de Salud), el Alcalde Municipal de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, y al Presidente de la Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgos y Atención de Emergencias (CNE), que debía rendirse dentro de los 3 días hábiles siguientes a la notificación de dicha resolución. La resolución de curso fue notificada al Presidente de la CNE, el 10 de noviembre de 2015, a las 14:55 hrs. La resolución de curso fue notificada al Alcalde Municipal de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, el 11 de noviembre de 2015, a las 10:55 hrs. mediante la Oficina de Comunicaciones Judiciales de Heredia. Por resolución de las 11:02 del 14 de diciembre de 2015, se amplían las partes de este proceso, dándose traslado al Servicio Nacional de Aguas Subterráneas, Riesgo y Avenamiento del Ministerio de Ambiente y Energía, para que, en el plazo de 3 días realice una inspección y rinda un informe a este Tribunal. Asimismo, se tiene como parte al Representante Legal de la empresa El Tomatico S.A. se solicita informe sobre los hechos alegados por la recurrente, que debía rendirse dentro de los 3 días hábiles siguientes a la notificación de la resolución. La resolución de curso fue notificada al Servicio Nacional de Aguas, Riego y Avenamiento del Ministerio de Ambiente y Energía, el 07 de enero de 2016, a las 08:55 hrs. La resolución de curso fue notificada al Representante Legal de la empresa El Tomatico S.A, el 06 de enero de 2016, a las 08:18 hrs. mediante la Oficina de Comunicaciones Judiciales de Heredia. Mediante memorial presentado el 13 de noviembre de 2015, a las 10:25 hrs. informa bajo juramento MARCO TULIO ZUMBADO ULATE, en su condición de Director del Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, en relación a los hechos alegados por la recurrente informa que, el 20 de octubre del 2014, el señor Rafael Elías Zúñiga Vargas, interpuso denuncia en el Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara por el manejo de las aguas pluviales en la finca del señor Milton Castillo (Propietario de Tomatico), por la proliferación de Dengue y otros mosquitos o zancudos. Además, señala que se realizaron excavaciones a menos de cincuenta centímetros de su propiedad en el sector norte de su tapia e interpuso la denuncia en la Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara. El día 21 de noviembre del 2014, la Gestora Ambiental del Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara, realizó inspección en el lugar, informe oficio CN-ARS-SB-1661-2014 de fecha 10 de diciembre del 2015, se indicó que se observó una fosa en la propiedad del señor Milton Castillo, colindante ubicada a 50 cm de la propiedad del denunciante que mide aproximadamente 25 m2, en el fondo se observó agua estancada y no se observó la presencia de mosquitos. Se verificó la necesidad y utilidad de las lagunas y se descartó que no existían criaderos de zancudos o mosquitos. Solicita se desestime el recurso planteado. En memorial presentado en la secretaría de esta Sala a las 11:01 hrs. del 16 de noviembre de 2015, rinde informe bajo juramento JULISSA ULATE ARIAS, en su condición de Directora Ejecutiva a.i. de la Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgo y Atención de Emergencias, en el cual indica que, es resorte de los gobiernos municipales verificar que las construcciones que se levanten en su cantón se mantengan dentro de los lineamientos autorizados por ellas. De las actuaciones desplegadas por mi representa, la Unidad de Investigación y Análisis de Riesgo ha rendido sendos informes en el área de San Juan de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, producto de inundaciones causadas. Informes que fueron debidamente notificados a las autoridades municipales, al Comité Municipal de Emergencias y al señor William Retana Alpizar, vecino de la zona. El primero de ellos se rindió en junio de 2013 bajo el número IAR-INF-460-2013, producto de una visita al sitio y revisión en el mapa de amenazas para brindar un diagnóstico preliminar de riesgo. Bajo el número de oficio IAR-INF-0337-2014 del 9 de junio de 2014, se llevó a cabo una valoración de riesgo por anegamiento de viviendas en San Juan Arriba de Santa Bárbara, Heredia. Finalmente, la Unidad de Investigación de Análisis de Riesgo rindió un nuevo informe de valoración de riesgo con el número de oficio IAR-INF-0392-2014 en el que se indica que se realizó una visita al sitio ubicado en las coordenadas 223.280N-5 19.306, San Juan de Santa Bárbara, observando un canal al cual se le atribuye el problema de anegamiento de viviendas (canal de riego concesionado). Se determinó que ese canal se extiende fuera de los límites de la propiedad agrícola destinada a cultivo de tomate, recogiendo aguas de las propiedades por las cuales cruza generando anegamientos de casas cuando ocurren fuertes precipitaciones. Concluye el informe: VI. Conclusiones A. El área se encuentra rodeada por varias amenazas naturales predecibles, según el mapa de amenazas potenciales de la CNE, para este sector. B. La zona inspeccionada posee varios factores que generan problemas de anegamientos y desborde de alcantarillados. Los canales de recolección de las aguas superficiales en el cafetal se colmatan de materiales, basura o sedimentos, lo cual genera el rebalse de dichas aguas, discurriendo hacia el frente de la propiedad y sobre el canal de riego; el cual continua de manera ilegal generando los problemas de inundación. La presencia de viviendas a los lados y sobre el canal favorece la afectación de las mismas. C La baja capacidad hidráulica de las tuberías y cunetas diámetro pequeño de alcantarillas y un mal sistema de control y recolección de las aguas pluviales y servidas, genera el problema inundación en los sitios visitados. D. El mal manejo de las técnicas de cultivo y arado, favorecen la erosión del suelo contribuyendo a la colmatación de caños y alcantarillas. VII. Recomendaciones A. Se recomienda el no otorgamiento de más permisos de construcción por parte de la Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara en dicha zona con problemas de inundación. B. Vigilar, por parte del propietario de la finca agrícola, que los canales de recolección de aguas de escorrentía, se mantengan limpios, sin basura y sin problemas de colmatación. C. La municipalidad de Santa Bárbara y vecinos del lugar deben mantener limpio el cordón de caño que recolecta las aguas pluviales y servidas en los sitios evaluados, así como en propiedades hacia arriba de dichos lugares. D. Evaluar por parle de la municipalidad de Santa Bárbara y vecinos afectados la posibilidad de sustituir las alcantarillas, por unas de mayor diámetro que permitan el paso de caudales mayores. E. A los vecinos afectados por anegamientos, se les recomienda no realizar más construcciones cerca del canal que genera problemas, y retirar las construcciones que se ubican en él. F. La municipalidad de Santa Bárbara deberá evaluar la posibilidad de eliminar el canal que se encuentra generando problemas de anegamiento así como la elaboración de un modelo Hidrológico exhaustivo toda de la cuenca o micro cuenca, donde se establezcan los antecedentes de la zona, máximas avenidas probables, con la finalidad de realizar un adecuado diseño de los sistemas de alcantarillado y los sitios óptimos para realizar el desfogue de los sistemas de alcantarillado de la zona con problemas de inundación. G. Cualquier anomalía en cuanto a técnicas de construcción u omisión a las recomendaciones aquí descritas. Queda bajo total responsabilidad de las instituciones que otorgan los permisos, del ingeniero o responsable de la obra y de la Municipalidad respectiva de no solicitar los informes, inspecciones y correcciones correspondientes. En escrito recibido a las 14:06 hrs. de 16 de noviembre de 2015, rinde informe bajo juramento MALVIN ALFARO SALAS, en su condición de Alcalde Municipal de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, señala que, el área en cuestión propiedad de El Tomatico S.A. esta propiedad era utilizada para el cultivo de café, y se hizo cambio de cultivo, por lo que no se necesita la sombra que proveían los árboles que, fueron talados como práctica agrícola, pero no como deforestación. Existen lagunas de retención, construidas en toda la finca que son hechas bajo en concepto de buenas prácticas agrícolas, con el fin de retardar el paso de las aguas, y que las mismas fueron a recomendación del Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganadería (MAG), según carta dirigida a esta Municipalidad por el Ing. Rolando Hidalgo, con el número pps-014-10, dicha actividad no es competencia de la Municipalidad otorgar o denegar permisos, por la naturaleza de la actividad. El departamento de ingeniería realizo inspección en el sitio para verificar los hechos expuestos en la denuncia, se indicó que las lagunas de retardo que se hicieron fue una disposición del MAG pues la finca es de uso agrícola y la correría en la finca es muy grande, esto como una medida de mitigación para disminuir los problemas de inundaciones en las zonas. En dicha inspección se realizó notificación con boleta No. 0378-2014, se le indicó a su vez que la laguna de retardo que estaba contiguo al lote del señor Zúñiga debía ser eliminada. Solicita se desestime el recurso planteado. Por escrito presentado en la secretaría de esta Sala el 11 de enero de 2016, a las 14:26 hrs. informa el MILTON CASTILO SANDÍ, en su condición de Representante Legal de la empresa El Tomatico S.A. indica que, es una finca de vocación agrícola y así consta en el Plan Regulador de la Municipalidad, se sustituyó el cultivo de café por el de hortalizas, no es cierto que ese cambio de cultivo haya provocado las inundaciones. La urbanización topográficamente se halla en un predio inferior o de más bajo nivel que la propiedad del Tomatico SA., las aguas pluviales como lo prevé la Ley que rige la materia no pueden ser retenidas en un predio superior. Entonces la responsabilidad de lo que allí sucede no es del Tomatico S.A. sino de quienes dieron los permisos de construcción y autorizaron la creación de la urbanización. Es claro que los tanques de retardo se hicieron siguiendo las recomendaciones del Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganadería, son simples tanques de retención cavados en la misma tierra para disminuir la velocidad del agua pluvial en casos extremos de lluvia torrencial (tanques colectores de agua) la intención así es evitar la violenta caída por gravedad de las aguas que vienen de fundos superiores en altitud y las de la misma finca. En estudios realizados por el CONAVI y la COMISION DE EMERGENCIA, se determina que lo que aporta la propiedad al caudal de agua a que se refiere esta problemática es apenas de punto nueve metros cúbicos, de modo que jamás puede ser la causa de las inundaciones y catástrofes que mencionan los vecinos. La municipalidad del lugar nunca solicitó eliminar los tanques de retardo eso si se nos pidió darles el mantenimiento adecuado para que cumplieran su objetivo como era debido. Desde el año 2014 la empresa solicito a la municipalidad del lugar la aprobación para realizar las obras necesarias, al día de hoy no se ha recibido la aprobación ni respuesta alguna de dicha entidad. Si los tanques de retardo cercanos a las colindancias, se eliminaran, el agua pasaría sin obstáculo alguno hacia la calle y luego a la urbanización con las consecuencias del caso. Solicita se desestime el recurso. Por memorial presentado en la secretaría de esta Sala el 12 de febrero de 2016 a las 15:26 hrs. informa bajo juramento PATRICIA QUIRÓS QUIRÓS, en su condición de Gerente General del Servicio Nacional de Aguas Subterráneas Riego y Avenamiento (SENARA), y señala que, el lunes 11 de enero de 2016 SENARA procedió a realizar la inspección en el lugar objeto de esta denuncia. Informe del Indep., según oficio No RCOC-003-16 (Dirección de Ingeniería y Desarrollo de Proyectos), de 12 de enero de 2016. Se detalla en lo que interesa que, no se observó huellas ni residuos de inundaciones con arrastre de todos y Basuras. No se encontró desestabilización de terrenos en la comunidad. Se constató que existen una serie de excavaciones con forma rectangular de diferentes dimensiones, que se utilizan para recibir y retener el agua de escorrentía superficial que se arrastra durante los eventos de lluvia. Estas excavaciones a la fecha de la inspección evidenciaban haber recibido agua de la escorrentía y por su estado de asolvamiento. Su ubicación está bastante alejada de la línea de colindancia. De acuerdo a lo observado en la Inspección se indica que es indispensable que se den mejoras técnicas correspondientes en la construcción y mantenimiento de las lagunas de retardo. La actividad debe contar con una certificación de buenas prácticas agrícolas. Según informe de la Dirección de Investigación y Gestión Hídrica, oficio No. UGH-006-16 del 12 de enero de 2016, se indica que la problemática que plantean los vecinos de la Urbanización Sequeira radica en un problema de escorrentía superficial y un sistema de alcantarillado deficiente, el cual en eventos de precipitaciones fuertes provocan los problemas de inundación. De acuerdo a lo observado en la inspección se indica que es indispensable que se den mejoras técnicas correspondientes a la construcción y mantenimiento de las lagunas de retardo. La zona en la que se ubica la propiedad del Tomatico S.A., es de recarga media y de vulnerabilidad para el acuífero de Barva, por lo que la Matriz de Criterios de Uso de Suelos según la Vulnerabilidad a la Contaminación de Acuíferos para la Protección del Recurso, elaborada por el SENARA, y aprobada por la Junta Directiva, tienen las siguientes regulaciones: se pueden utilizar agroquímicos de muy baja toxicidad, persistencia y movilidad. Debe contar con un plan de manejo de suelos de acuerdo al decreto 23214-MAG-MIRENEM, se debe dar un manejo y tratamiento de los efluentes. La actividad debe contar in una certificación de buenas prácticas agrícolas. Solicita se desestime el recurso. En el proceso se han cumplido las prescripciones de ley. Redacta el Magistrado Ulate Chacón; y, Considerando: I.- CUESTIÓN PREVIA. Algunos de los hechos denunciados en el presente recurso fueron objeto de conocimiento por parte de este Tribunal Constitucional, los cuales están relacionados con las inundaciones de la Urbanización Sequeira del cantón de Santa Bárbara de Heredia. En ese sentido se aprecia como en resolución No. 2013-010296 de las 14:30 del 31 de julio de 2013, se ordenó al Alcalde y al Presidente del Concejo Municipal, ambos de la Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara que en el plazo de tres meses debían realizar las mejoras al sistema de alcantarillado pluvial por donde está la propiedad del amparado, sea desobstruyendo la tubería instalada, entubando la acequia, realizando un pozo de registro, limpiar cajas pluviales y/o ampliar el sistema de alcantarillado pluvial, todo en coordinación con los propietarios -en cuenta el recurrente- y tomando en cuenta las recomendaciones dadas por el Instituto Costarricense de Acueductos y Alcantarillados y el Ministerio de Salud: Así mismo, en un asunto mucho más reciente, mediante resolución No. 2015-017869 de las 9:15 hrs. del 13 de noviembre de 2015, se ordenó al Alcalde, al Departamento de Ingeniería y al Presidente del Concejo Municipal, todos de la Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara que, en el plazo de dos meses, debían solucionar el problema denunciado por el recurrente el 19 de junio del 2014, sea el problema de inundaciones en la Urbanización Sequeira. En vista de lo anterior, procede este Tribunal al conocimiento de los hechos denunciados por dos razones, en primer lugar, por tratarse de otros recurrentes y, en segundo lugar, por tener como partes a otras autoridades que no fueron parte en los procesos de amparo anteriores. II.- OBJETO DEL RECURSO. Los recurrentes alegan que son vecinos de la Urbanización Sequeira de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, la cual se conforma por varias poblaciones vulnerables. Manifiesta que se les han afectado sus derechos a un ambiente sano y ecológicamente equilibrado, a la propiedad y a la salud pública, por cuanto la Empresa denominada El Tomatico S.A, desde el año 2010, deforestó una zona de árboles y potreros que retenían el agua, para realizar sembradíos de cultivos agrícolas, y es desde esa fecha que se presentan inundaciones con lodo, basura y desestabilización en terrenos de toda la comunidad, debido a la realización de lagunas en la finca, sin contar con los permisos de ley. Indican que la problemática descrita continúa pese a que la Municipalidad recurrida notificó a dicha empresa que la obra no cuenta con la protección y expone la vida humana y los inmuebles, por lo que debía eliminar la laguna de retardo y la fosa, las cuales se ubican cerca de las colindancias. Alegan que desde hace un año se está a la espera de que el Ministerio de Salud resuelva el problema, a raíz de una denuncia presentada por un vecino de dicha localidad; la misma quedó a la espera de un informe que debía generarse por parte de la Comisión Nacional de Emergencias. Afirman que, a la fecha, no se han emitido acciones, ni órdenes sanitarias u otro acto administrativo a efecto de brindar la protección y seguridad de la comunidad, por lo que estima vulnerados sus derechos fundamentales. III.- HECHOS PROBADOS. De importancia para la decisión de este asunto, se estiman como debidamente demostrados los siguientes hechos, sea porque así han sido acreditados o bien porque el recurrido haya omitido referirse a ellos según lo prevenido en el auto inicial: La propiedad de El Tomatico S.A. es de vocación agrícola, anteriormente se dedicó al cultivo del café, posee lagunas de retención de aguas de escorrentías, recomendado por el Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganadería (MAG), según el oficio pps-014-10, suscrito por el Coordinador de Producción Sostenible, sin que sea competencia de la Municipalidad recurrida otorgar o denegar permisos (informe del Alcalde Municipal de Santa Bárbara). El 25 junio del 2013, el informe técnico N° IAR-INF-460-2013, sobre la valoración del riesgo de inundaciones en la Urbanización Sequeira, San Juan de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, la Unidad de Investigación y Análisis de Riesgo de la Comisión Nacional de Emergencias (CNE), ha rendido informes, notificados a las autoridades municipales, al Comité Municipal de Emergencias, que concluían una falta de canalización adecuada de aguas pluviales, recomendando no brindar permisos de construcción en las áreas de protección de ríos, quebradas y acequias, áreas de relleno de fuertes pendientes y aguas debajo del lugar en cuestión (informe de la Directora Ejecutiva a.i. de la Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgos y Atención de Emergencias). El 20 de octubre de 2014, el Sr. Rafael Elías Zúñiga Vargas, interpuso denuncia en el área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara, señalando el manejo de las aguas pluviales en la finca el Tomatico S.A. y posibles criaderos del mosquito trasmisor del Dengue (informe del Director del Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara). En informe de inspección N° CN-ARS-SB-1661-2014, del 10 de diciembre de 2014, realizado por la Gestora Ambiental del Área Rectora de Salud, señaló que la fosa en la propiedad de El Tomatico S.A. se ubica a 50 cm de la colindancia, con una medida de 25 m2, con agua estancada en el fondo, sin mosquitos (informe de marco Tulio Zumbado Ulate, Director del Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara, visible a folio 89, del expediente electrónico). En el expediente de la Comisión Nacional de Emergencias no consta la presentación del oficio CN-ARS-SB-1670-2014 (ver informe de la Directora Ejecutiva a.i. de la Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgos y Atención de Emergencias). La Unidad de Investigación de Análisis de Riesgo rindió un nuevo informe de valoración de riesgo con el número de oficio IAR-INF-0392-2014 en el que se indica que se realizó una visita al sitio ubicado en las coordenadas 223.280N-5 19.306, San Juan de Santa Bárbara, en el cual entre sus conclusiones se indica: Los canales de recolección de las aguas superficiales en el cafetal se colmatan de materiales, basura o sedimentos, lo cual genera el rebalse de dichas aguas, discurriendo hacia el frente de la propiedad y sobre el canal de riego (ver informe de la Directora Ejecutiva a.i. de la Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgos y Atención de Emergencias). En el informe de inspección oficio N° RCOC-003-16, de fecha 12 de enero de 2016 de la Dirección de ingeniería y desarrollo de proyectos del SENARA, señalo que, no se observó huellas ni residuos de inundaciones, no se encontró desestabilización de terrenos en la comunidad, se constató excavaciones para retener el agua de escorrentía superficial, tienen una salida de rebalse, cuando se llenan evacuan el agua que ya no cabe y se canalizan por una serie de caños hacia salidas naturales de la condición topográfica de la finca (informe de la Gerente General del SENARA). La problemática de inundaciones en la Urbanización Sequeira, se debe a un sistema de alcantarillado deficiente (informe de la Gerente General del SENARA e informe de la Directora Ejecutiva a.i. de la Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgos y Atención de Emergencias). IV.- HECHOS NO PROBADOS. Ninguno de relevancia para la presente resolución. V.- LA PROTECCIÓN DEL DERECHO A UN AMBIENTE SANO Y ECOLÓGICAMENTE EQUILIBRADO. El artículo 50, constitucional, establece como fin fundamental y valor esencial del Estado costarricense procurar "el mayor bienestar a todos los habitantes del país". De tal manera que, el "ambiente sano y ecológicamente equilibrado" forma parte del contenido del mayor bienestar de todos los habitantes, causa, fin y también condición y límite del ejercicio de las potestades y competencias públicas, no solo del Estado, sino también de las Municipalidades. Al igual que el derecho de propiedad, el objeto sobre el que recae el derecho al ambiente es externo a la integridad de la persona humana (a diferencia por ejemplo del derecho a la vida), pero también a diferencia con el objeto del derecho de propiedad, la persona forma parte del ambiente, lo integra, de allí que su protección, supone la conservación del contexto esencial para la vida humana, una conducta con efectos negativos sobre él, supone un peligro para la propia existencia humana y una reducción o pérdida del "mayor bienestar" de todos. La vida depende del ambiente, por tanto, debe velar para que esas condiciones que garantizan la vida se mantengan en el tiempo. En sentencia número 601-2009 esta Sala dispuso lo siguiente: "Los orígenes de los problemas ambientales son complejos y corresponden a una articulación de procesos naturales y sociales en el marco del estilo de desarrollo socioeconómico que adopte el país. Por ejemplo, se producen problemas ambientales cuando las modalidades de explotación de los recursos naturales dan lugar a una degradación de los ecosistemas superior a su capacidad de regeneración, lo que conduce a que amplios sectores de la población resulten perjudicados y se genere un alto costo ambiental y social que redunda en un deterioro de la calidad de vida; pues precisamente el objetivo primordial del uso y protección del ambiente es obtener un desarrollo y evolución favorable al ser humano (...) importante que ello es entender que si bien el hombre tiene el derecho de hacer uso del ambiente para su propio desarrollo, también tiene el deber de protegerlo y preservarlo para el uso de las generaciones presentes y futuras, lo cual no es tan novedoso, porque no es más que la traducción a esta materia, del principio de la "lesión", ya consolidado en el derecho común, en virtud del cual el legítimo ejercicio de un derecho tiene dos límites esenciales: Por un lado, los iguales derechos de los demás y, por el otro, el ejercicio racional y el disfrute útil del derecho mismo." Así las cosas, corresponde a los entes públicos, entre ellos a las Municipalidades, velar por el respeto a un ambiente sano y ecológicamente equilibrado en su respectiva circunscripción territorial, así como por el bienestar de todos los habitantes de su respectivo cantón, y dentro del marco de las competencias constitucionales y legales actuar a favor de asegurar el respeto de este derecho a todos los munícipes, y actuar -nuevamente dentro del marco de sus competencias- para mitigar o corregir las actuaciones que tienden a su violación. VI.- COMPETENCIA MUNICIPAL Y OBLIGACIÓN DE COORDINACIÓN INTERINSTITUCIONAL. El artículo 169, de la Constitución Política, dispone que "La administración de los intereses y servicios locales en cada cantón, estará a cargo del Gobierno Municipal (...)". Esta norma ha sido desarrollada por el legislador ordinario, en atención a ello, el artículo 3, del Código Municipal, Ley número 7794 de 30 de abril de 1998, dispone que: "El gobierno y la administración de los intereses y servicios cantonales estarán a cargo del gobierno municipal". En este mismo sentido, se ha expresado la Sala Constitucional en su jurisprudencia. Verbigracia, en sentencia número 5445-99, de las 14:30 horas del 14 de julio de 1999, se dispuso lo siguiente: "VI.- DE LAS ATRIBUCIONES DE LAS MUNICIPALIDADES EN RAZÓN DE LA MATERIA (CONCEPTO DE "LO LOCAL"). Por disposición constitucional expresa -artículo 169-, hay una asignación de funciones o atribuciones en favor de los gobiernos locales en razón de la materia a "lo local", sea, "la administración de los servicios e intereses" de la localidad a la que está circunscrita, para lo cual se la dota de autonomía (") De manera que sus potestades son genéricas, en tanto no hay una enumeración detallada de sus cometidos propios, sino una simple enunciación del ámbito de su competencia; pero no por ello no determinable, a lo que hizo referencia este Tribunal en sentencia número 6469-97, de las dieciséis horas veinte minutos del ocho de octubre de mil novecientos noventa y siete, en los siguientes términos:

" (...) lo local tiene tal connotación que definir sus alcances por el legislador o el juez, debe conducir al mantenimiento de la integridad de los intereses y servicios locales, de manera que ni siquiera podría el legislador dictar normativa que tienda a desmembrar el Municipio (elemento territorial), si no lo hace observando los procedimientos previamente establecidos en la Constitución Política; ni tampoco promulgar aquella que coloque a sus habitantes (población) en claras condiciones de inferioridad con relación al resto del país; ni la que afecte la esencia misma de lo local (gobierno), de manera que se convierta a la Corporación en un simple contenedor vacío del que subsista solo la nominación, pero desactivando todo el régimen tal y como fue concebido por la Asamblea Nacional Constituyente. En otro giro, habrá cometidos que por su naturaleza son municipales -locales- y no pueden ser substraídos de ese ámbito de competencia para convertirlos en servicios o intereses nacionales, porque hacerlo implicaría desarticular a la Municipalidad, o mejor aún, vaciarla de contenido constitucional, y por ello, no es posible de antemano dictar los límites infranqueables de lo local, sino que para desentrañar lo que corresponde o no al gobierno comunal, deberá extraerse del examen que se haga en cada caso concreto (...)". De lo anterior, resalta el hecho de que, por voluntad expresa de nuestra Carta Fundamental, se asigna una competencia específica a los gobiernos locales, atribución que además es exclusiva de éstos; es decir, se trata de una competencia originaria de la municipalidad y sólo mediante una ley de nacionalización o de regionalización es que puede ser desplazada, total o parcialmente". En consecuencia, si un grupo de munícipes, en su circunscripción territorial, sufren inundaciones con riesgo para sus vidas y graves daños patrimoniales, psicológicos, calidad de vida y bienestar general, esto se enmarca dentro del concepto de "intereses y servicios locales" del numeral 169, constitucional, problemas cuyas causas tienen que ser identificadas con precisión y, más aun, las soluciones, a fin de implementarlas a la mayor brevedad posible; para lo cual corresponde a la Municipalidad coordinar con las instituciones de nivel nacional con competencia para actuar sobre el problema. En efecto, la Sala ya ha desarrollado la obligación municipal de coordinar con otras instituciones estatales en aras de atender los "intereses" y prestar cumplidamente los "servicios locales". En la citada sentencia número 5445-99, la Sala manifestó: "(...) se refieren a la obligación de coordinación que debe existir entre los gobiernos locales, las instituciones descentralizadas y el Poder Ejecutivo, para llevar a cabo las funciones que le han sido encomendadas, lo que debe ser analizado a partir de la naturaleza misma de la autonomía municipal. Es en virtud de lo dispuesto en el artículo 170 constitucional, que las municipalidades (entes corporativos locales) gozan de autonomía funcional, administrativa y financiera en la administración de los intereses y servicios locales (artículo 169 de la Constitución Política) (...) No puede, entonces, crearse un conflicto por antagonismo o protagonismo entre la materia que integra el fin general de "los intereses y servicios locales" de los intereses y servicios públicos "nacionales" o "estatales", intrínsecamente distintos unos de otros, pero que en realidad están llamados a coexistir (....) Definida la competencia material de la municipalidad en una circunscripción territorial determinada, queda claro que habrá cometidos que por su naturaleza son exclusivamente municipales, a la par de otros que pueden ser reputados nacionales o estatales; por ello es esencial definir la forma de coparticipación de atribuciones que resulta inevitable, puesto que la capacidad pública de las municipalidades es local, y la del Estado y los demás entes, nacional; de donde resulta que el territorio municipal es simultáneamente estatal e institucional, en la medida en que lo exijan las circunstancias. Es decir, las municipalidades pueden compartir sus competencias con la Administración Pública en general, relación que debe desenvolverse en los términos como está definida en la ley (artículo 5 del Código Municipal anterior, artículo 7 del nuevo Código), que establece la obligación de "coordinación" entre la municipalidades y las instituciones públicas que concurran en el desempeño de sus competencias, para evitar duplicaciones de esfuerzos y contradicciones, sobre todo, porque sólo la coordinación voluntaria es compatible con la autonomía municipal por ser su expresión. En otros términos, la municipalidad está llamada a entrar en relaciones de cooperación con otros entes públicos, y viceversa, dado el carácter concurrente o coincidente -en muchos casos-, de intereses en torno a un asunto concreto. En la doctrina, la coordinación es definida a partir de la existencia de varios centros independientes de acción, cada uno con cometidos y poderes de decisión propios, y eventualmente discrepantes; pese a ello, debe existir una comunidad de fines por materia, pero por concurrencia, en cuanto sea común el objeto receptor de los resultados finales de la actividad y de los actos de cada uno". De manera que la coordinación es la ordenación de las relaciones entre estas diversas actividades independientes, que se hace cargo de esa concurrencia en un mismo objeto o entidad, para hacerla útil a un plan público global, sin suprimir la independencia recíproca de los sujetos agentes. Como no hay una relación de jerarquía de las instituciones descentralizadas, ni del Estado mismo en relación con las municipalidades, no es posible la imposición a éstas de determinadas conductas, con lo cual surge el imprescindible "concierto" interinstitucional, en sentido estricto, en cuanto los centros autónomos e independientes de acción se ponen de acuerdo sobre ese esquema preventivo y global, en el que cada uno cumple un papel con vista en una misión confiada a los otros". Adviértase, por lo demás, que las Municipalidades están obligadas, por imperativo del ordinal 50 de la Constitución Política, a prodigarse en la protección del ambiente (sentencia número 2006-7994 de las 8:57 horas de 2 de junio de 2006). VII.- CASO CONCRETO. Los recurrentes acuden ante esta Jurisdicción Constitucional y exponen que son vecinos de la Urbanización Sequeira de Santa Bárbara de Heredia. Indican, se les han afectado su derecho a un ambiente sano y ecológicamente equilibrado, a la propiedad y a la salud pública, por cuanto la Empresa denominada El Tomatico S.A, desde el año 2010, deforestó una zona de árboles y potreros que retenían el agua, para realizar sembradíos de cultivos agrícolas, y es desde esa fecha que se presentan inundaciones con lodo, basura y desestabilización en terrenos de toda la comunidad, debido a la realización de lagunas en la finca, sin contar con los permisos de ley. Indican que la problemática descrita continúa pese a que la Municipalidad recurrida notificó a dicha empresa que la obra no cuenta con la protección y expone la vida humana y los inmuebles, por lo que debía eliminar la laguna de retardo y la fosa, las cuales se ubican cerca de las colindancias. Alegan que desde hace un año se está a la espera de que el Ministerio de Salud resuelva el problema, a raíz de una denuncia presentada por un vecino de dicha localidad; la misma quedó a la espera de un informe que debía generarse por parte de la Comisión Nacional de Emergencias. Afirman, a la fecha no se han emitido acciones, ni órdenes sanitarias u otro acto administrativo a efecto de brindar la protección y seguridad de la comunidad, por lo que estima vulnerados sus derechos fundamentales. Al respecto, los representantes de las autoridades accionadas, en informes rendidos bajo juramento, con advertencia de las consecuencias, incluso penales, previstas en el artículo 44 de la Ley que rige esta Jurisdicción, y las pruebas aportadas a los autos, se pueden concluir, sobre los problemas que se presentan en la Urbanización Sequeira de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, lo siguiente: 1. Efectivamente, todas las autoridades coinciden que existe un problema de inundaciones en el lugar denunciado, lo anterior en su mayoría lo atribuyen a problemas relacionados con la falta de capacidad hidráulica y falta de mantenimiento del sistema de drenaje y alcantarillado (ver informe de la Comisión Nacional de Emergencias). 2. El problema de las inundaciones del lugar no es producto, únicamente, de la actividad agrícola de la empresa co-recurrida y, por el contrario, en la zona existen varios factores que generan problemas de anegamientos y desborde de alcantarillados. Sin embargo, las lagunas de retardo utilizadas por la empresa necesitan mejoras técnicas y mantenimiento (ver informes de la Comisión Nacional de Emergencias, del Servicio Nacional de Aguas Subterráneas Riego y Avenamiento y del Área de Salud de de Santa Bárbara). 3. No existe desestabilización de terrenos en la comunidad. 4. El mal manejo de las técnicas de cultivo y arado, favorecen la erosión del suelo contribuyendo a la colmatación de caños y alcantarillas. 5. Se han realizado varias recomendaciones al Gobierno Local para atender el problema de las inundaciones, en ese sentido se le recomendó no otorgar más permisos de construcción en la zona, vigilar la actividad agrícola de la zona, limpiar los canales de recolección de aguas de escorrentía y elaborar un modelo hidrológico de la cuenca o micro cuenca en el cual se establezcan los antecedentes de la zona, máximas avenidas probables, con la finalidad de realizar un adecuado diseño de los sistemas de alcantarillado y los sitios óptimos para realizar el desfogue de los sistemas de alcantarillado de la zona con problemas de inundación. Ahora bien, en concreto sobre las obligaciones municipales en materia de alcantarillado pluvial, este Tribunal Constitucional ha señalado que, el artículo 169 de la Constitución Política establece que la administración de los intereses y servicios locales en cada cantón, estará a cargo del Gobierno Municipal. Los intereses y servicios locales han sido definidos por la Sala como conceptos jurídicos indeterminados donde la ley no resuelve con exactitud su contenido para su aplicación a casos concretos, por lo que resulta necesario acudir a criterios de valor y de experiencia, por parte de quien le corresponde aplicarlo, para determinar su contenido. La creación de medios de drenaje adecuados dentro de una comunidad a efectos de no causar daños a la propiedad, a la salud ni problemas ambientales a sus vecinos es, dentro de los términos indicados por la Constitución Política, de interés del cantón y es parte de los servicios que la Municipalidad está en la obligación de brindar. En este mismo sentido la Ley General de Salud en su artículo 285 establece que las aguas pluviales deberán ser eliminadas adecuada y sanitariamente a fin de evitar la contaminación del suelo y de las fuentes naturales de agua para el uso y consumo humano, la formación de criaderos de vectores y enfermedades y la contaminación del aire mediante condiciones que atenten contra su pureza y calidad. Por tal motivo, las Municipalidades están obligadas a asumir un determinado comportamiento para la satisfacción de sus fines, tomando las medidas requeridas para proveer a la comunidad amparada, de un sistema eficiente de drenaje de las aguas pluviales. Así las cosas, al señalarse de forma concreta los problemas de la Urbanización Sequeira del cantón de Santa Bárbara de Heredia y, al señalarse los deberes municipales con respecto al alcantarillado pluvial, este Tribunal, nuevamente, sentencia que el Gobierno Local accionado ha infringido los derechos fundamentales de los munícipes de dicha localidad y, por tercera vez, ordena la solución definitiva del problema de inundaciones de esa localidad, con advertencia, de que en caso de incumplimiento, podría incurrir el representante municipal en el delito tipificado en el artículo 71 de la Ley de la Jurisdicción Constitucional, el cual dispone que se impondrá prisión de tres meses a dos años, o de veinte a sesenta días multa. De otra parte, este Tribunal Constitucional, estima que la empresa denominada “El Tomatito S.A.” está obligada a dar mantenimiento y realizar las mejoras técnicas de los drenajes de aguas pluviales en su propiedad, lo cual deberá ser vigilado por parte de los funcionaros de la municipalidad accionada. Por último, al no acreditarse que el Ministerio de Salud haya dado seguimiento a la solicitud enviada al Comisión de Emergencias mediante oficio CN-ARS-SB-1670-2014 se estima violatorio de los derechos de los recurrentes. VIII. CONCLUSIÓN. Por lo anterior, procede la estimatoria del presente recurso de amparo, únicamente, contra la Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, el Ministerio de Salud y la empresa denominada El Tomatito Sociedad Anónima, en lo demás se declara sin lugar el recurso. Consecuentemente, se impone la estimatoria del recurso en los términos señalados en la parte dispositiva de esta resolución. IX.- NOTA DEL MAGISTRADO SALAZAR ALVARADO. He coincidido con la posición sustentada por el Magistrado Jinesta Lobo en esta materia, por lo que, en asuntos ambientales, es también criterio del suscrito, de que si ya ha habido intervención de la Administración Pública, considero que su conocimiento y resolución corresponde a la jurisdicción contenciosa administrativa. No obstante, sí entro a conocer el fondo del asunto cuando están de por medio otros derechos de las personas afectadas por el foco de contaminación, entre ellos, la salud, la calidad de vida y el derecho a gozar de un ambiente sano y libre de contaminación (artículo 50, de la Constitución Política), tal y como sucede en este caso, en el que se acusa problemas de contaminación por inundaciones con yodo y basura, así como desestabilización del terreno, lo que afecta la vivienda de los recurrentes y demás vecinos de la Urbanización Sequeira de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, con violación del derecho a disfrutar de un ambiente sano y ecológicamente equilibrado y de un nivel digno de calidad de vida. X.- DOCUMENTACIÓN APORTADA AL EXPEDIENTE. Se previene a las partes que, de haber aportado algún documento en papel, así como objetos o pruebas contenidas en algún dispositivo adicional de carácter electrónico, informático, magnético, óptico, telemático o producido por nuevas tecnologías, éstos deberán ser retirados del despacho en un plazo máximo de 30 días hábiles contados a partir de la notificación de esta sentencia. De lo contrario, será destruido todo aquel material que no sea retirado dentro de este plazo, según lo dispuesto en el "Reglamento sobre Expediente Electrónico ante el Poder Judicial", aprobado por la Corte Plena en sesión N° 27-11 del 22 de agosto del 2011, artículo XXVI y publicado en el Boletín Judicial número 19 del 26 de enero del 2012, así como en el acuerdo aprobado por el Consejo Superior del Poder Judicial, en la sesión N° 43-12 celebrada el 3 de mayo del 2012, artículo LXXXI. POR TANTO; Se declara PARCIALMENTE CON LUGAR el recurso, únicamente, contra la Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, el Ministerio de Salud y contra la empresa El Tomatico S.A. En consecuencia, se ordena a MELVIN ALFARO SALAS, en su calidad de Alcalde de la Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, o a quien ocupe ese cargo que, en el plazo de DOS MESES, contado a partir de la notificación de esta resolución, realice un modelo hidrológico de la cuenca o micro cuenca en el cual se establezcan los antecedentes de la zona, máximas avenidas probables, con la finalidad de realizar un adecuado diseño de los sistemas de alcantarillado y los sitios óptimos para realizar el desfogue de los sistemas de alcantarillado de la zona con problemas de inundación. Así mismo, y con base en la información anterior, en el plazo de SEIS MESES, contado a partir de la notificación de esta resolución, realice las obras necesarias a fin de solucionar en definitiva el problema de alcantarillado y desagüe de aguas pluviales que afectan la Urbanización Sequeria. Por último, se le ordena que, vigile la actividad de manejo de aguas pluviales de la empresa co-recurrida "el tomatito S.A.” y girare las órdenes correspondientes a fin de que cumpla con las recomendaciones de buena técnica agraria, realizadas por las autoridades competentes. Se ordena a MARCO TULIO ZUMBADO ULATE, en su condición de Director del Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, dar seguimiento a la solicitud CN-ARS-SB-1670-2014. También, se ordena MILTON CASTILO SANDÍ, en su condición de Representante Legal de la empresa El Tomatico S.A. que, en el plazo de DOS MESES, contado a partir de la notificación de esta resolución, realice las mejoras técnicas y de mantenimiento al sistema de desagüe de aguas pluviales de la propiedad de su representada que se encuentra cercana a la Urbanización Sequeria de Santa Bárbara de Heredia. Lo anterior, bajo apercibimiento de que podría incurrir en el delito tipificado en el artículo 71 de la Ley de la Jurisdicción Constitucional, el cual dispone que se impondrá prisión de tres meses a dos años, o de veinte a sesenta días multa, a quien recibiere una orden que deba cumplir o hacer cumplir, dictada en un recurso de amparo y no la cumpliere o no la hiciere cumplir, siempre que el delito no esté más gravemente penado. Se condena a la Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, al Estado y a la empresa El Tomatico S.A. al pago de las costas, daños y perjuicios causados con los hechos que sirven de base a esta declaratoria, los que se liquidarán en ejecución de sentencia de lo contencioso administrativo y en ejecución de sentencia de lo civil respectivamente. Notifíquese en forma personal a MELVIN ALFARO SALAS, en su calidad de Alcalde de la Municipalidad de Santa Bárbara de Heredia, a MARCO TULIO ZUMBADO ULATE, en su condición de Director del Área Rectora de Salud de Santa Bárbara de Heredia y a MILTON CASTILO SANDÍ, en su condición de Representante Legal de la empresa El Tomatico S.A. o a quienes ocupen esos cargos. El Magistrado Salazar Alvarado pone nota.-

Fernando Cruz C. Presidente a.i.

Fernando Castillo V. Paul Rueda L.

Luis Fdo. Salazar A. José Paulino Hernández G.

Rosa María Abdelnour G. Enrique Ulate C.

T/03