For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions shall apply:
1. Anthropic action (Acción antrópica): Set of processes, favorable or not, on the natural environment caused by human action.
2. Sidewalk (Acera): Portion between the street or public road (generally urban) and the walls of houses, used for the transit of pedestrians (persons).
3. ACOPAC-SINAC: Central Pacific Conservation Area - National System of Conservation Areas, a body attached to the Ministry of Environment, Energy and Telecommunications (MINAET).
1. Environment (Ambiente): system constituted by the different natural elements (biotic and abiotic) that are integrated, interact and interrelate with human beings.
2. ARA: Environmental Risk Area (Área de Riesgo Ambiental, ARA) which is constituted by the Environmental Management Unit (Unidad de Gestión Ambiental, UGA) and the Environmental Comptrollership Unit (Unidad de Contraloría Ambiental, UCA). The ARA is dedicated to the development of the processes of administration of the natural resources present in the canton, community involvement for the improvement of the quality of life, and the control and oversight for compliance with national environmental legislation aimed at the adequate use, management and conservation in the pursuit of the sustainable development of natural capital (soil, water, air, flora and fauna).
3. Tree (Árbol): Perennial woody plant with a single main trunk (in the case of coppice, with several stems or bifurcations). It presents a relatively defined crown and a minimum height that varies between 5 and 7 meters, as well as a minimum diameter at breast height (dbh) of 10 cm (from an ecological point of view); said measurement is characteristic of regeneration established naturally or artificially.
4. Urban trees (Arbolado urbano): Woody and non-woody plants of species associated with the biotypes: tree, shrub, palm or tree fern, located on urban land.
5. Arborization (Arborización): Set of activities required for the correct planting and management of trees in the urban sector.
6. Shrub (Arbusto): Perennial woody plant whose height at maturity is generally between 0.5 and 5.0 meters, without presenting a defined crown.
7. Degraded area (Área degradada): Previously forested spaces that were severely affected by excessive extraction of timber forest products, poor management practices, frequent fires, overgrazing and other causes, which cause loss of ecological value; visible and verifiable effects on the soil such as: degrees of compaction, loss of absorption capacity, surface erosion, low apparent fertility, sites with high dominance of grasses. All or a combination of the indicated effects generate a decrease in biodiversity at the site. Unplanned real estate development is another source of environmental degradation by not considering the biophysical particularities of each site to be developed.
8. Protection Area (Área de Protección): Those defined by Article 33 of the Forestry Law (Ley Forestal) No. 7575 of 02/13/1996, 9. Urban area (Área urbana): Space or territorial area of urban concentration in which population centers or human concentration develop.
10. ASP-ZPCE: The Protected Wild Area Cerros de Escazú Protective Zone is a category of environmental management established in Art. 32 of the Organic Environmental Law (Ley Orgánica del Ambiente) No. 7554. Created by Executive Decree No. 6112-A of June 23, 1976 and subsequently expanded on June 20, 1983 by Executive Decree No. 14672-A, with an extension of 7,175.67 ha. Its administrator is ACOPAC-MINAET and its regulation is established in Executive Decree No. 25902-MIVAH-MP-MINAE. Of the ASP-ZPCE, 30.7% (2,203 ha) corresponds to the territorial space of the canton of Santa Ana; from the perspective of the cantonal territory (6,142 ha), the area of interest corresponds to 35.9% (Annex 1). The districts of the canton of Santa Ana with part of their territory within the Protective Zone are: Uruca with 46 ha, Piedades with 734 ha and Salitral with 1,423 ha (Annex 1A and 1B). In this way, the ZPCE is located in the southern section of the canton, characterized by being a mountainous relief unit.
11. Biogeography (Biogeografía): Refers to the study of the distribution of living beings over the Earth, based on the processes that have originated them, that modify them and that can make them disappear.
12. Roadway (Calzada): Part of the street between two sidewalks, through which vehicular flow or traffic circulates.
13. Street (Calle): Sidewalks plus roadways, space allocated to the public road and its annex installations; comprised between municipal lines of fronting properties or public spaces in urbanized areas.
14. CNE: National Commission for Risk Prevention and Emergency Response.
15. Pest and disease control (Control de plagas y enfermedades): Management activities whose purpose is to avoid the increase of populations of living beings that require, within their life cycle, the use of a plant or part of it as habitat for their development.
16. Green space (Espacio verde): zones intended for the beautification of vegetation cover: trees, shrubs, flowers and grasses. The choice of vegetation type will depend on the site to be beautified, whether on the marginal strip between the sidewalk and the public road, community parks, and degraded sites or spaces in the canton.
17. Species (Especie): animal or plant individual that morphologically, physiologically and biochemically differs from other individuals. With the capacity for interbreeding that gives rise to fertile offspring.
18. Species with reduced tree populations (Especies con poblaciones arbóreas reducidas): species that has probabilities of being classified "endangered" at a given moment, in all or part of its distribution areas, if the factors causing its numerical decline or the degradation of its habitats continue to be present; or that are rare because they are generally located in geographically limited areas or habitats, or very disseminated in more extensive distribution areas, and are in real or potential possibilities of being subject to a decline and possible danger of extinction or the extinction of the same.
19. Endangered species (Especie en peligro de extinción): that which, by reason of its scarcity or some other factor of its particular biology, is gravely threatened with disappearing from the zone of natural distribution, and whose survival is unlikely if the causal factors of its disappearance (among others deforestation, introduction of exotic species, loss of seed dispersers, pollution) continue to act upon it. Included in the official list issued by MINAET.
20. Endemic species (Especie endémica): species whose natural area of dispersion is restricted exclusively to the national territory or to a specific portion within it.
21. Exotic species (Especie exótica): species whose natural area of dispersion does not correspond to the national territory and is found in the country as a product of voluntary or involuntary human activities.
22. Native species (Especie nativa): species whose natural area of dispersion includes the national territory, although it may be found outside it.
23. Fruit (Fruto): Organ of the plant that arises from the ovary of the flower and contains the seeds.
24. Stem (Fuste): Woody element of the tree (trunk) that is constituted as its main structure of mechanical support.
25. Environmental Management (Gestión Ambiental): Process oriented to efficiently administer the natural resources existing in a determined territory, seeking the improvement of the quality of life of the population, with a sustainable development approach. Its main components are the establishment of policies and instruments of environmental planning, the application of current legal ordinances, and the evaluation and monitoring of programs in the matter. It is primarily a public or State function, which requires the active participation of civil society.
26. Municipality (Municipalidad): Municipality of Santa Ana.
27. Spring (Naciente): superficial outcropping of water of underground origin that occurs in favor of cracks or changes in lithology in places where the topographic surface cuts the water table.
28. Management (Manejo): Set of techno-scientific activities that promote the correct development, growth and production of an individual or its population and the site where it develops, guaranteeing its conservation and use.
29. Foliar mass (Masa foliar): Quantity of matter (kg) or volume (m3) of the leaves belonging to a tree.
30. Landscape (Paisaje): It is the integration of "landscape units" where each unit is a portion of territory with a same criterion, characterized by a set of elements that contribute to its differentiation. The landscape is the result of a dynamic process where natural factors such as topography, hydrology, flora and fauna and anthropic factors such as economic activities and historical heritage interact, all contributing to the modeling of a structured and organized image where the cultural tradition, ecological value, history and identity of the site, region or country are recognized and perceived.
31. Community parks (Parques comunales): Recreational areas or open spaces intended for general public use, with the limitations imposed by the norms that require their conservation.
32. Urban planning (Planificación urbana): is the continuous and integral process of analysis and formulation of plans and regulations on urban development, tending to procure the safety, health, comfort and well-being of the community.
33. Plantation (Plantación): Set of technical activities required for the adequate location of a set of planted trees in a determined territorial space.
34. Pruning (Poda): Management silvicultural activity whose purpose is to control and guide the development of the plant's branches or the removal of branches in order to avoid a threat to pedestrian, road and home safety. In order of importance, the justifications for executing a pruning are: safety, sanitation, aesthetics, production and quality.
35. Radius (Radio): Geometric measurement. Straight line from the center of the circle to the circumference.
36. Thinning (Raleo): Silvicultural practice that consists of the selective elimination of trees, with the objective of gradually increasing the space between the remaining trees, decreasing competition for light and promoting the thickening of the tree's stem or trunk.
37. Branch (Rama): Each of the parts of a plant that arise from the main trunk or stem and on which, generally, leaves, flowers and fruits sprout.
38. Environmental recovery (Recuperación ambiental): Corresponds to the improvement of biological diversity where every activity is oriented to improve the structural and functional characteristics of the diversity of a given area, for conservation, preservation and sustainable use purposes.
39. Natural resources (Recursos naturales): Every element of biotic or abiotic nature with potential for tangible or intangible use.
40. Reforestation (Reforestación): action of planting trees that promote the restoration of the environment. In the urban area they generate the beautification of public spaces and in the rural area they enrich natural ecosystems. Together, they provide environmental services in favor of local flora, fauna and soil, in addition to generating well-being for the surrounding human communities.
41. Environmental services (Servicios ambientales): are those provided by trees and forested areas, which directly affect the protection and improvement of the environment and the quality of life of citizens. The following are identified as such:
. Mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions (fixation, reduction, sequestration, storage and absorption); . Protection of water for urban, rural or hydroelectric use; Protection of biodiversity for its conservation and sustainable, scientific and pharmaceutical use, research and genetic improvement; . Protection of ecosystems, life forms and scenic beauty for tourism, recreation, mental health purposes.
42. Urban silviculture (Silvicultura urbana): Science and art that deals with the cultivation of tree species in the urban area. It includes various activities necessary for the planting, maintenance, replacement, treatment and felling of trees. In practice the activities are called: felling (corta), pruning (poda), transplant (trasplante), chemical or biological treatment of fertilization and phytosanitary control (pests and diseases of trees).
43. Root system (Sistema radicular): Set of roots of a plant that allow its nutrition.
44. Felling (Tala): Activity in which, by cutting with a chainsaw, axe, bow saw or any other tool, the stem of the tree or shrub is felled or cut down from its base (from 0.0 to 1.30 m h). Said action implies the death of the individual.
45. Transplant (Trasplante): Management activity whose purpose is to move a plant from one site to another.
46. UMEP: Public Spaces Maintenance Unit of the Municipality of Santa Ana.
47. Urban development project (Proyecto de desarrollo urbanístico): It is the subdivision (fraccionamiento) and habilitation of land for urban purposes, through the opening of streets and provision of services.
48. Public road (Vía pública): Sidewalk, highway, route, road, street, alleyway, passage, lane, path, road zone, passage of any nature allocated to the public domain or to areas so declared by the national and local authority.
49. Protection zone (Zona de protección): It is the zone that considers the margins and canyons of rivers, the Protected Wild Areas decreed by the Ministry of Environment, Energy and Telecommunications (MINAET), and others identified in the zoning map of the Regulatory Plan of the Canton of Santa Ana.
50. Rural zone (Zona rural): Open geographic zone, where agricultural, forestry and natural resource management activities are developed, identified in the zoning map of the Regulatory Plan of the Canton of Santa Ana.
51. Urban zone (Zona urbana): That where urban services for the establishment of infrastructure for cities, towns or villages have been developed, identified in the zoning map of the Regulatory Plan of the Canton of Santa Ana.