Pococí Canton

Pococí is the name of the second canton in the province of Limón in Costa Rica. The canton covers an area of 2,403.49 km² (1), making it the third largest of Costa Rica's 81 cantons. It has a population of 111,201 (2), making it eighth-ranked. Its capital in the city of Guápiles, which houses many of the canton's services and businesses.

The canton takes in the Caribbean coast from the Río Toro northward to the border with Nicaragua. It ranges inland in a southwestern direction with the Río Chirripó forming the western border. The canton ends in the Cordillera Central where the Río Sucio crosses the highway in Braulio Carrillo National Park.

The Caribbean coast of Pococí boasts extensive wetlands and several protected areas, including Tortuguero National Park and Barra del Colorado Wildlife Refuge. Much of the northern portion of the canton is inundated year-round or seasonally, and inaccessible by road. The wetlands stretch inland the length of the canton. The coastal areas provide important sea turtle nesting habitat. These protected areas and wetlands are an important eco-tourism destination.

The canton of Pococí is subdivided into 6 distritos (districts).

# Guápiles
# Jiménez
# La Rita
# Roxana
# Cariari
# Colorado

History

The canton was established by law on September 19, 1911.

References

(1) Instituto Geográfico Nacional (IGN), 2001.

(2) Estimates of Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INEC), May 2003.