Limited information is available on biogas digesters in rural agricultural communities of Costa Rica. This study was conducted to analyze the adoption of biogas digesters in San Luis, Puntarenas using semi-structured interviews to produce a weighted overlay analysis that reflected local knowledge of how to best plan for and implement pollution control measures in the future. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with twelve biodigester owners. Content analysis was performed on the interviews using thematic coding, which revealed the strong local concern for nonpoint source pollution caused by agricultural runoff. The results from the themes influenced a weighted overlay analysis, which was performed on the region to identify areas most vulnerable to nonpoint source pollution, revealing that 35% of the study area was highly vulnerable. The results from the semi-structured interviews revealed community support for the existing biodigesters despite widespread installation and maintenance issues. The method of including local opinions into the analysis produced results that can be feasibly adopted by the community and replicated in future geospatial analysis and act as a decision-support tool for those interested in promoting similar projects in this area.
