caribbeanIslands
The Caribbean islands are located southeast of the Gulf of Mexico and North America, east of Central America, and to the north of South America. The region regroups more than 7,000 islands, islets, reefs, and cays divided between the West Indies (which generally form island arcs that delineate the eastern and northern edges of the Caribbean Sea), the Antilles (divided into the larger Greater Antilles which bound the sea on the north and the Lesser Antilles on the south and east), and the Bahamas which are in the Atlantic Ocean north of Cuba.
The population of the Caribbean is estimated to have been around 750,000 immediately before European contact, after which, war and disease led to a decline in the Native American population. From 1500 to 1800 the population rose as slaves arrived from West Africa and immigrants from European colonizing countries. The population is estimated to have reached 2.2 million by 1800. Immigrants from India, China, and other countries arrived in the 19th century. The total regional population was estimated at 37.5 million by 2000.
Thanks to this diverse ancestry, the population in the Caribbean is culturally diverse and rich. Geopolitically, the West Indies is organized into 27 territories including sovereign states, overseas departments, and dependencies. There are five main European-language-speaking countries groups: English, Spanish, French, Portuguese and Dutch.
Biodiversity
The Caribbean islands have very diverse fauna and flora. Unfortunately, due to increased pressures on these ecosystems, the biodiversity of the region is threatened.There are about 13,000 species of vascular plants with a high rate of endemism (about 6,500 species are single island endemic). Cuba is one of the most bio-diverse islands in terms of plants, as it hosts about 6,500 species of vascular plants.
The region is also home to approximately 600 bird species, 160 of which are endemic to the region. Parrots are often associated with the region. However, like other bird species, they are threatened by the loss of forests as they rely on undisturbed forests for survival. 13 species of birds in the region have already gone extinct. There are about 90 species of mammals in these islands, with 40 endemic species. Marine mammals are highly endangered by increased human development and environmental degradation. The West Indian Manatee, for instance, is threatened by commercial fishing and boat strikes, and may join the ranks of 19 extinct species of mammals if no drastic management decisions are taken.
The islands are also home to a unique population of reptiles in a wide range of sizes. The 500 species (470 of which are endemic) are, however, not sheltered from disturbances: many reptile species are highly threatened. For example, the Aruba island rattlesnake is the most threatened rattlesnake in the world, so is the Cuban crocodile. What is more, all 9 species of rock iguana are also threatened. The Caribbean islands are the center of amphibian endemism with 170 native species. Unfortunately, much like the other groups, amphibian populations are threatened.
The richest marine areas are the coral reef ecosystems. In recent decades, Caribbean coral reefs have been the prime victims of the international coral reef crisis which has decimated these rainforests of the sea. It is estimated that there has been up to 80% loss of coral cover since three decades ago. In addition, increase overfishing, high levels of pollution, and impacts of climate change (including water acidification, sea level rise, and increase of sea temperatures) make coral reefs more vulnerable and decrease their resilience. Since Caribbean islands depend so much on these ecosystems, a threat to them is a threat to the populations of the Caribbean.
Impacts of Climate Change
Caribbean islands are largely dependent on tourism, with the exception of Cuba and Haiti. In the Caribbean, tourism accounts for 15% or more of the gross domestic product in the Caribbean, and over 2.4 million jobs. Sea levels in the Caribbean region are expected to rise 30 to 50 centimeters (11.8 to 19.7 inches) in the next 50 years, significantly higher than average world levels. According to a report issued by the Dominican government, if sea-level will rises by 6 meters under business-as-usual by 2050, the tourism industry would be eliminated and send the country and region into complete economic chaos. In 1990, almost two decades ago, Jamaican authorities had estimated that it would take US$462 million to protect coastal tourism on the island. On the Caribbean island of Grenada, beach erosion from tropical storms and weakened coral reefs has destroyed popular tourist attractions such the nesting spots for leatherback turtles. Much of the 200 miles of Belize's coral reef has been "bleached" in the last decade and is likely to die as a victim of global warming. The island of St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands has recently experienced the island's worst-known bout of coral bleaching due to record-high water temperatures. Tourist agencies have historically led tours through the coral reefs. This is now changing as more and more big dive operators on islands are downplaying the coral, replacing the colorful corals with shipwreck or eel spotting tours.
In addition to tourism, climate change also affects the agricultural and fishing sector of Caribbean economies. In a region where fisheries, agricultural industry (as well as tourism) takes place along the coasts, climate change disrupts the already vulnerable export based economies of vulnerable island states. The region now produces premier crops of bananas, sugar cane and rice, all of which will be affected by water logging and salinity as the seas invade the water tables. Based on research carried out by the Caribbean Planning for Adaptation to Global Climate Change Program, the massive fish kills of 1999 in Guyana, Grenada, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago, were due to changes in the salinity and ocean acidification of the Caribbean sea brought on by above average rainfall attributed to climate change.
Looking beyond economic impacts, the health and well being of Caribbean populations will also be affected by erratic and unpredictable weather. Approximately 60 percent of people in the Caribbean occupy coastal plains, and will be affected by health problems associated with solid waste disposal and contamination of ground water. For example, over 50% of the population of the Dominican Republic lives near coasts where a 6-m sea-level rise would plunge them into the sea. The Caribbean is already familiar with the destructive impact of hurricanes on buildings and infrastructure. Infrastructure damage rises sharply because of the combined effects of more powerful storms from warmer ocean waters and the power of rising wind speeds on built structures. Severe weather events such as Hurricane Mitch that swept across the Caribbean and Central America in early December 1998 threaten the security of a country. An estimated 19,000 people died as a result of Hurricane Mitch in addition to the displacement of three million people. The Caribbean islands will continue to be exposed to hurricanes and the associated storm surges and wave actions, earthquakes and the tsunamis they generate, volcanic eruptions, land and rock slides, flooding and drought.
As weather cycles in the region become less predictable, extreme drought becomes a possibility. The nature of the drought is unpredictable, so that regions that get a lot of summer precipitation may get more, and the regions that get very little precipitation will get less. According to atmospheric scientists that reported in the April 18th issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, recent computer models show a decrease in tropical rainfall to occur by 2054. The decrease in summer rainfall is estimated at 20 percent or more by the end of the century. Despite these future forecasts, drought is already a problem in some of the Caribbean islands, such as the U.S. Virgin Islands where the dry spell is frequent and severe. Even minor depletions in rainfall have affected agriculture and required water rationing. Caribbean islands like St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands already experience drought that global warming is likely to exacerbate. Countries that have already experienced the drying trend include: Cuba, Jamaica and Haiti, Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, Belize, Guatemala and Honduras.
Overall, problems stemming from climate change will exacerbate already existing issues such as poverty, population pressures and trade pressures that face vulnerable island states. Some Caribbean communities and economies are at risk because of inappropriate planning, poorly managed resource exploitation and the lack of strategic energy policies that are commonly found in low-income countries. In order to deal with the impact on coastal communities, risk assessments must be performed in order to provide the necessary baseline data. In coping with the impacts of climate change, low-income countries that are also small island countries are left without any comparative advantage.