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Santo Domingo. - Soil degradation and water scarcity are two of the main threats to rural communities in the Caribbean region, stated the Caribbean Resilient Communities Project.
With increasingly erratic rainfall patterns and prolonged periods of drought exacerbated by Climate Change, agricultural productivity and access to potable water are compromised, affecting food security and the livelihoods of thousands of families.
Every year, World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought calls for renewed efforts to protect the land and ensure sustainable water resources.
In the last 10 years alone, it is estimated that the Dominican Republic has lost between 200,000 and 300,000 hectares of forest, representing between 9 and 14% of its total forest cover.
For example, the Yaque del Norte River basin, the largest in the entire country and responsible for supplying water to Santiago and the Cibao, is 60% deforested. Without vegetation cover, rainwater does not infiltrate, it drags the fertile topsoil and increases runoff, aggravating degradation.
On the other hand, a reduction in precipitation of up to 20% is projected, which will intensify the water crisis, severely affecting the availability of water for life. Water sources are suffering the impact of desertification, and now more than ever it is necessary to stop that degradation.
The CCR project
To reverse this situation, the Resilient Caribbean Communities (CCR) Project, led by Welthungerhilfe, has been implementing Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) since 2019 in three countries of the Caribbean Biological Corridor: Dominican Republic, Cuba, and Haiti. In collaboration with OroVerde and with funding from the German Federal Ministry for the Environment and Nature Conservation through the International Climate Initiative IKI (BMUV-IKI), the CCR project has reforested more than 2,400 hectares with native species, established community nurseries that produced more than 2 million seedlings, and rehabilitated degraded areas with ramps and living barriers against erosion. “In addition to green infrastructures, the CCR project invests in training and local governance, empowering thousands of farmers, local authorities, and representatives from other sectors, creating networks of community partnerships and inclusive and participatory governance structures. Within the framework of the project, 14 participatory EbA plans have been developed and validated, which seek to guide actions to protect the environment and biodiversity. In this way, it ensures that communities have the skills and organization necessary to maintain these practices in the long term and face future climate challenges,” explained Alexander Voets, project manager. Soil conservation is achieved by reinforcing vegetation cover, constructing living or dead barriers and terraces, or maintaining agroforestry and silvopastoral systems that strengthen water infiltration and retention while producing food and fulfilling the function of carbon sequestration, fundamental in the fight against climate change. To protect access to water, the project installed 4 community cisterns and a distribution kiosk for more than 800 families and improved rural aqueducts. In addition, it has restored and is protecting key hydrographic basins in all intervention regions, such as the Sierra de Neiba, the Yaque del Norte river basin and the Pedernales river basin in the Dominican Republic, the Alejandro de Humboldt National Park, the Cuchillas del Toa Biosphere Reserve, the Sierra de la Gran Piedra and the Baconao Biosphere Reserve in Cuba and in the Source Royer National Park in Haiti. In the Dominican Republic, the project is implemented in partnership with the Centro Naturaleza and Enda Dominicana; Bioeco and CESAT, in Cuba, and Concert Action and WHH Thiotte, in Haiti. This June 17th marks World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought.
