Could I also eliminate based on the word “since” in the sentence ? It demands that I use the present tense and I narrow down to D and E and chose D because it mentions the noun that is being compared.

Can someone please let me know if my approach is correct.

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If you're asking whether you can eliminate (A), (B), and (C) based on a tense issue, the answer is not really.

Those options all use the participle "costing," which is functioning here as an adjective. VERB-ing words, when used as adjectives, don't have a tense. I can write, "The man running with scissors stabbed himself in the face," or I can write, "The man running with scissors will stab himself in the face. "Running" describes the man. It doesn't tell me when he injures himself. (Much more on "-ing" words in this article.)

Also, "ten million acres of forest have been lost there since 1960," is an independent clause, so it's true that "since" dictates the verb tense for this clause, but it wouldn't necessarily do so for another one.

I hope that helps!
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