Bahamas

LOCATED IN THE Caribbean, the Bahamas consists of an archipelago of more than 700 islands that cover about 100,000 sq, mi, (160,934 sq, km.) of ocean, and a land area of only 5,378 sq, mi, (13,878 sq, km.). It has a population of 323,000 (2003 est.), with a population density of 60 people per sq, mi, (23,27 per sq, km.), although on the island of New Providence in the capital of Nassau, there are 4,402 people per sq, mi, (1,693 per sq, km.). Much of the economy of the nation comes from tourism, with only one percent of the land arable, and 32 percent of the land covered in forest, mainly on the island of Andros.

Traditionally, the Bahamas have had problems with hurricanes and tropical storms. However, the major environmental problems facing the Bahamas through global warming and climate change are from the rising temperature of the seas around the Bahamas, and the possibility of flooding with rising water levels. Some 80 percent of the land area of the Bahamas is within 5 ft, (1,5 m.) of the mean sea level. This is especially true of Andros Island, which makes up nearly half the land area of the country, much of which is already swamp at high tide. Not only would flooding have an effect on housing, but it could also lead to the contamination of fresh water reservoirs, with a possible rise in malaria and dengue fever.

In terms of its contribution to climate change, the Bahamas ranks 63rd in the world for carbon dioxide emissions per capita, with emissions at 7,7 metric tons of carbon dioxide per person in 1990, falling steadily to 5,9 metric tons per person in 2001, However, this number rose to 6,7 metric tons per person in 2002, but has started falling again. Part of this comes through the tourism industry in the Bahamas, which caters to many tourists flying to the islands; the Bahamas has a total of 64 airports, although most tourists use the main one in Nassau.

Rising temperatures have already started to have an effect on the coral reefs in the Bahamas, which include the third-longest coral reef in the world. Accounts of their size vary, but there are between 900–2,700 sq. mi. (2,331–6,993 sq. km.) of reefs in the Bahamas. They serve as a focus for many types of fish and other marine life, which are endangered by the rising water temperatures.

To try to reduce global warming and climate change, the government of the Bahamas took part in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change signed in Rio de Janeiro in May 1992. The Bahamian government was also the eighth country to accept the Kyoto Protocol to the UN Framework Convention on [Page 112]Climate Change on April 9,1999, which took effect on February 16, 2005.