Haiti – Dominican Republic - Disasters and Conflicts - UNEP

that the rise in lake levels is in response to recentand temporary increases in rainfall.• Medium to long term changes in rainfall patterns– A second rainfall theory under review byscientists studying Lac Enriquillo is that regionalclimate change is driving a long term increasein rainfall or change in rainfall patterns in thisspecific region of the island. 261• Historical sediment inflows from land degradation– A large scale influx of sediment over thelast decades may have reduced the volumeof the reservoir and so increased the lake waterlevels.Based on the above interpretation, both countrieshave a major problem with Lac Azuei. At the veryleast, this issue warrants technical monitoring andfurther analysis to inform an appropriate response,including engineering solutions to reduce inflowand eventual drainage. A precautionary approachwould also assume that lake levels will continueto rise.Joca Dam as one of the projects in which thesefunds can be used. 264 Potential other dams onthe Dominican side include: Recodo Dam, MonteGrande Dam, El Tamarindo Dam, and Río SanateDam. 265 Other potential dams are the Don MiguelDam, Arroyo Capotillo Dam, Jobo Viajaca Dam,and Laguna Saladillo Dam. 266There are only a few water extraction points onthe transboundary rivers. On the Massacre River,for example, the Dominicans have four waterextraction locations, while the Haitians have none.The Haitians use some water upstream, but noirrigation schemes exist on the Haitian side. 267There is no bi-national mechanism in place thatwould deal with issues related to water sharing andfuture dam construction. Given the extremely highdependence of Haiti on the Artibonite River, this isa potentially a serious issue.6.6 Transboundary dams and waterextractionAt present the issues of transboundary dams arelimited to the Artibonite catchment in Haiti.The Peligre Dam in the Artibonite catchmentprovides domestic water and irrigation to over 3.5million people, 30-50% of Haiti’s current electricalcapacity (installed capacity of 47 Megawatts),and is the only large dam in Haiti. Downstream, theArtibonite valley is the country’s main productioncentre for rice and staples, with more than 34,500ha of irrigated land. Over the last few decades avery large volume of silt has been deposited in thePeligre Reservoir. That sedimentation is due to landdegradation in the upper catchment. The waterstorage capacity has as a result decreased by53% between 1972 and 2010 and its capacity toproduce energy has also been reduced. 262Discussions are ongoing about building a damon the Rio Joca, one of the main tributaries of theArtibonite River. Dominican authorities see it aspart of an integrated vision for the developmentof the border region. 263 Law No. 128-01, whichauthorizes the issuance of up to USD 500 million ingovernment bonds, mentions the building of theHaiti – Dominican Republic: Environmental challenges in the border zone79