Haiti’s environmental crisis continued to deepen in 2019, with deforestation rates accelerating as the economic crisis drove more families to rely on charcoal production for income and cooking fuel. Satellite analysis showed continued loss of forest cover across the country, with less than two percent of Haiti’s original forest remaining — one of the lowest rates of forest coverage in the Western Hemisphere.
The consequences of deforestation were cascading and severe. Without tree cover, Haiti’s hillsides were vulnerable to massive erosion during rain events, leading to landslides, flooding, and the silting of rivers and reservoirs. Agricultural productivity on denuded hillsides had fallen dramatically, contributing to food insecurity. The visual contrast between Haiti’s barren hillsides and the lush green forests visible across the border in the Dominican Republic had become one of the most stark illustrations of the difference in development trajectories between the two countries.
Environmental organizations pointed out that the crisis was not primarily the result of individual choices but of systemic failures: the absence of affordable alternative cooking fuels, inadequate support for reforestation programs, weak enforcement of environmental regulations, and a political situation that made long-term environmental planning nearly impossible.
Some local communities, working with NGOs and international organizations, had achieved pockets of successful reforestation, demonstrating that recovery was possible with the right combination of support and community engagement.