Haiti

The socio-ecological conditions in present day Haiti are deeply conditioned by its past. During the colonial period, France developed Haiti into one of the most productive and profitable Caribbean islands. The emphasis on forestry and sugar exports led to the importation of slaves on a huge scale, massive environmental degradation, and eventually to a slave revolt. In 1804, Haiti declared independence, making it the only successful slave revolution in history. The legacy of underdevelopment, slavery, and the commodity economy has been persistent, however. Violence has continued to plague Haiti, which is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere with a per capita income of only $1,600. The abject poverty rate of 80 percent and the fertility rate of 5.8 children per female [Page 847]are in large part responsible for the major health and environmental threats to Haiti's population of 8,121,622. Furthermore, environmental and health information are difficult to disseminate because of low educational and literacy rates (52.9 percent).

Two-thirds of the population has no formal employment. The country has a low life expectancy (52.92 years), high infant mortality (73.45 deaths per 1,000 live births) and death rates (12.34 per 1,000 population), and a low population growth rate (2.26 percent). HIV/AIDS (5.6 percent) is a growing threat to the Haitian people. Two-thirds of the populations have no access to improved sanitation, and almost 30 percent lack access to safe drinking water; the lack of potable water creates a major health hazard in Haiti. Despite the extreme poverty, irregularities have led to the suspension of millions of dollars in international aid. The UNDP Human Development Reports rank Haiti 153rd of 232 countries on general quality-of-life issues.

Haiti covers one-third of the island of Hispaniola; the remaining two-thirds is occupied by the Dominican Republic. Bordered by the North Atlantic and the Caribbean Sea, Haiti has a coastline of 1,771 miles (2,851 kilometers). The climate is tropical except for the semiarid area where mountains block the trade winds. The terrain is generally rough and mountainous. Because Haiti is in the center of the hurricane belt, the country is vulnerable to severe storms from June to October. Periodic droughts and occasional flooding and earthquakes pose additional threats to the environment and lives. In 2004, southern Haiti experienced massive flood damage, and the northwest was hit by Tropical Storm Jeanne. Thousands of lives are lost whenever such disasters occur. Many deaths and much environmental degradation are caused by landslides that result from the absence of trees to serve as natural barriers to eroding soil.

Deforestation is rampant at 98 percent. Despite efforts to prevent further damage, locals continue to clear forests for agriculture use. The battle for survival also leads Haitians to cut down trees for fuel. Nearly a third of Haiti is arable, and two-thirds of the people are involved in subsistence agriculture. Only the 38 percent of Haitians who live in urban areas [Page 848]have access to electricity. Haiti's natural resources include bauxite, copper, calcium carbonate, gold, marble, and hydropower, but the country lacks the infrastructure to adequately exploit these resources.

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