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Haiti Reforestation Puts the “RE” in Green Prosperity

August 3rd, 2010 Posted in Green Living & News

The Latin prefix “re” means again, back and backward, and thus may be appropriately at the beginning of words describing Haiti’s new prosperous future.

This “re” theory can be attributed to an expert solution of rebuilding the country by going back and figuring out what the root of the downfall was in first place.

And coincidentally enough, the answer is very green.

• Why Haiti Reforestation is Vital
• Planting the Right Trees

Why Haiti Reforestation is Vital

There are a few current problems harming Gonaïves, Haiti.

Besides receiving thousands of refugees from the earthquake devastated Port-au-Prince, Gonaïves is encompassed by treeless mountains leaving the city:

• Helpless to merciless hurricanes rolling in soon this summer
• Vulnerable to demolishing mudslides

But with every problem there is a solution; the trick is figuring out what caused the initial complication.

“Almost all of the country’s problems—natural disasters, food shortages, poverty—can be traced back to rampant deforestation,” says Ethan Budiansky, the Caribbean-programs officer at Trees for the Future, a nonprofit group that is planting thousands of trees in the mountains around Gonaïves.

But who is responsible for Haiti’s deforestation, and why does the absence of trees wreak such degradation on the country?

Haitian deforestation can be attributed to:

• French colonizers’ coffee and sugar plantations
• The swaggering timber industry of the 19th and 20th centuries
• The food and fuel needs of Haitians themselves

98% of the country’s forests were chopped down and mountainsides were cleared for a few reasons including:

1. Population growth
Population grew from 3 million in 1940 to 9 million in 2000, causing rural Haitians to clear huge swaths of mountainside for subsistence crops.

2. Trees for Fuel and Cash
Families used wood to cook with, and also sold it as charcoal in Port-au-Prince.

In a short time, charcoal trade grew from 20% to 80% of the country’s energy supply.

Some problems caused by this deforestation happened because trees were cut down without proper sustainability knowledge, and left the rich soil unprotected and washed down into the rivers and streams at a rate of 36 million tons per year.

This caused sediment buildup that has:

• Polluted drinking water
• Choked the life out of once bountiful fisheries

However grim, all hope is not lost according to Budiansky, because by replanting trees in a sustainable way, he believes can fix the country.

Haiti Reforestation would:

• Absorb water to hold soil in place
• Minimize the impact of natural disasters
• Repair nutrient-poor agricultural lands
• Bring much-needed jobs to the region
• Solve the energy conundrum that led Haitians to cull their forests in the first place (if done correctly)

“Planting trees is not just some quaint side project,” U.N. Development Group chair Helen Clark said. “It’s the key to rebuilding the country.”

Affluence in Haiti will come when reforestation is done correctly.

Planting the Right Trees

Haiti reforestation may sound easy on paper, however the process must pursue a good agroforestry plan to work.

For Haiti reforestation to function and bring economic prosper, Budiansky and his colleagues believe:

• The right trees must be planted in the right places
• Haitians must be taught to harvest them properly

In effect, the trained workforce who manages these new, sustainable forests would bring thousands of new living-wage jobs to those living in the countryside, along with wealth to the nation.

Some trees that will bring prosper include the following:

1. Mango Tree
Planting fruit trees, such as mango, will provide Haiti with steady income.

Haitian mangoes are preferred in the United State because of their high quality, and thus can be harvested heavily to bring wealth.

2. Bamboo
Bamboo has multiple uses in construction, such as flooring, and can grow easily in Haiti’s tropical climate.

3. Jatropha Tree
This tree is fast-growing and can generate enough charcoal to meet the energy demands of rural populations.

The jatropha tree is a promising biofuel and can spawn an energy economy that doesn’t destroy forests.

4. Moringa Tree
Dubbed, “the miracle tree”, this tasty and protein-rich tree is hardy enough to flourish on the barren mountains of Gonaïves.

Basically any type of tree that puts nitrogen into the soil and can be pruned repeatedly for making charcoal can have potential to bring prosperity to the region.

Replanting trees will reverse Haiti’s economic disaster and ultimately rebuild the country.

What do you think about this green plan?