Topic: 2025-Conserving Wetlands
Country: Haiti
Delegate Name: Nathaniel Calabio
Committee: IUCN
Topic: Preserving Wetlands
Country: The Republic of Haiti
School: Forest Hills Central High School
The benefits wetlands bring to the ecosystem and the importance of the task of preserving them are undeniable. Unfortunately, many countries do not have sufficient resources or they lack the technologies to protect the environment while also providing for the economy (Grima and Singh 2020). Haiti is one of the multitudes of countries that heavily rely on agriculture for their GDP, which can do severe damage to wetlands (Cooper and Moore 2003). The International Union of Conservation of Nature (IUCN) should consider these complications when deciding on a resolution because the needs of lesser-developed countries carry just as much importance as those of more developed countries.
Wetlands provide fresh water and food and can help prevent natural disasters like floods. They are also disappearing at a rate 3 times that of forests (UNFCCC 2018). Wetlands comprise around 10% of Haiti’s land, and they play an important role in every environment they are a part of (Interactive Country Fiches). The Enriquillo wetlands in particular attract thousands of tourists for its biodiversity and abundance of American crocodiles (Schipper 2020).
Compared to other countries in the Caribbean, Haiti is successful in maintaining a lower ecological and material footprint. Unfortunately, Haiti does not fare as well as its neighbors when it comes to socioeconomic factors such as providing access to sanitation, electricity, and education (Grima and Singh 2020). By diverting more resources into improving the people’s socioeconomic status and catching up to its neighbors, Haiti risks damaging its capacity to preserve the environment, and by extension wetlands. The delegation of Haiti implores the IUCN to support countries in similar positions as Haiti.
Haiti is thoroughly reliant on agriculture and the ecosystem for its economy to prosper. The agricultural sector is 25% of Haiti’s GDP (IFC 2024). Overuse of farm products such as fertilizers or pesticides has been shown to damage local wetlands through water runoff. One of the ways to reduce the damages farms can potentially pose over wetland conservation efforts is by adopting approved practices created by experts. An example of one of these practices is using artificial wetlands as a buffer between farm runoff and natural wetlands (Cooper and Moore 2003). The committee should consider this information when deciding upon a resolution and the benefits of establishing a set of specific approved practices.
References:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/339746258_The_self-insufficiency_of_the_Caribbean_Ecosystem_Services_Potential_Index_ESPI_as_a_measure_for_sustainability
https://www.ars.usda.gov/ARSUserFiles/3938/Ch10%20(221-236).pdf
https://unfccc.int/news/wetlands-disappearing-three-times-faster-than-forests#:~:text=The%20world’s%20remaining%20wetlands%20are,deforestation%20and%20soil%20erosion%20upstream.
https://www.oneearth.org/ecoregions/enriquillo-wetlands/
https://www.ifc.org/en/stories/2024/haiti-private-sector-boosting-farmer-incomes#:~:text=Agriculture%20contributes%2025%20percent%20of%20Haiti’s%20GDP%20and%20employs%20half,is%20classified%20as%20food%20insecure.
https://dicf.unepgrid.ch/haiti/land#section-impacts
