Haiti – Dominican Republic - Disasters and Conflicts - UNEP

A charcoal kiln burning inside the forest on the Dominican side of the border seen from the vantage point ofa denuded hillside on the Haitian side of the border, a couple of km outside of the Dominican town of PedroSantana.© UNEPlocal charcoal demand is not significant in theborder zone. It is the demand in Port-au-Princewhich is driving the whole charcoal economy,calling for a national scale solution on energy.Finally, land tenure and tenant farming aremajor obstacles, farmers understandably areprepared to invest only in land they eitherown or can confidently control for longerperiods.Most solutions would need to be bi-national or atleast bi-nationally agreed, due to the very highinter-connectivity of populations and issues acrossthe border.10.2 Preface to the recommendationsThe value and impact of this assessment iscompletely dependent upon the follow upactions that it provokes. The analysis indicatesboth a difficult situation at present and worse tocome in the absence of successful interventionsfor the issues noted. There is a solid economicrationale for early interventions: acting now mayavoid damaging instability and also much moreexpensive interventions at a later date.It is acknowledged however that economic andother resources are limited in both countries. Theextent of feasible international assistance is alsorelatively limited compared to the scale of theissues noted. Hence selection of an appropriatestrategy for response and prioritization will be key.Finally, the responsibility for many issues is shared,however recommendations are more effectiveif they are clearly assigned to specific partiesin each government with the mandate for theirimplementation. The international community isHaiti – Dominican Republic: Environmental challenges in the border zone105