Foret des Pins - Haiti Observer Blog

Haiti University Faculty of Law students are on a mission to save the Pine Forest of Haiti. A lush environment of stately trees and riotous wild flowers, it is in danger of becoming extinct through abandonment and misuse. The forest is a victim of deforestation, in which an ingrained habit, born of need, motivates rural residents to hew the wood to produce charcoal, so they may heat their homes and cook meals.

A non-government agency (NGA), USAID PAPH, has joined the students to produce a documentary film, which depicts them planting saplings as part of a rite to highlight their concerns about losing Pine Forest. During the program at the end of a three-day conference, attended by members of Parliament, they performed poetry readings and sang their country's national songs.

Read more →  

The long and wizened history of Foret des Pins, an expanse of forest consisting of coniferous tropical and sub-tropical plants, involves widespread deforestation for varying reasons over different points in time. Once, in the first years of the twentieth century, the Pine Forest was about 32,000 hectares, today, only 6,000 hectares remain.

Foret des Pins, which straddles the border of Haiti and neighboring Dominican Republic, has been ravaged through the years by natural disasters such as floods, landslides and earthquakes. It's also suffered under the hands of the government and the population. Widespread illegal logging led to a decree in 1937 declaring the forest as a 'special' site, and a law in 1962 against the clearing of sloping land. These steps did little to stop the cutting down of trees during the Duvalier years as well as the damage caused by farmers who clear the land to create space for their produce.

Read more →