Chile listed as fifth most environmentally conscious country in Latin America

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GENEVA.- According to the 2008 Environmental Performance Index released today by the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland tops the list of the most environmentally conscious countries.

The index, which was developed by a team of environmental experts from Yale and Colombia Universities, ranks 149 countries according to 25 indicators based on 5 criteria:  environmental health, air pollution, water resources, biodiversity and habitat, productive natural resources, and climate change.

Switzerland is followed by Sweden, Norway, Finland and Costa Rica. The African countries of Mali, Mauritania, Sierra Leone, Angola and Niger occupy the last five spots of the international ranking.

After Costa Rica, the Latin American country with the highest position in the ranking is Colombia, coming in at number 9 in the world – a position that places it far ahead of some European countries.

In Latin America, Costa Rica and Colombia are followed by Canada, Ecuador, Chile and Panama, while Bolivia and Haiti come in last for the region.