Hi everyone! In today’s second post of the week, I will be covering some academic material I discovered throughout the past few days.
I mentioned in my previous post that IQAir did not have any data on the air quality in Haiti. This finding was supported by Davis & Rappaport (2014). According to them, air quality data is remarkably limited in poor countries, and especially countries that have just resolved a conflict, or recovered from a disaster. In these countries, international relief efforts tend to focus on more pressing issues such as housing, water and sanitation, and infectious diseases. Water is a necessity for us to survive. Despite initiatives to manage water in a country like Haiti, why is water pollution still an issue for its people? This was not something that they covered. Instead, they focused solely on air pollution.
According to them, when a country is hit by an unfortunate event, such as war or a natural hazard, energy supply networks become stressed. For instance, “diesel generator use is significantly increased during periods of unstable energy supply, while the traffic congestion of high polluting old model vehicles is exacerbated by damaged road networks and crumbling infrastructure” (p. 22). Ironic, isn’t it? But this is the reality on the ground, and it is the reason why air pollution persists.
Even though Haiti is underdeveloped and does not have a lot of industries, there are still many non-industrial sources of air pollution. Haiti’s poor transportation infrastructure allows a congested mix of old vehicles that remain idle, and clog densely populated areas, thus releasing many air pollutants into the air, and worsening air quality. According to them, many people fall victim to both outdoor and indoor (as mentioned in the previous post) pollution because they tend to live near these sources of pollution. Because temporary camps and settlements get easily crowded after a natural disaster, people tend to together in less-safe areas that are less crowded. Despite this, there are barely any national or international organizations in these kinds of countries to monitor air quality, or regulate environmental and public health concerns.
The second paper by Trevors & Saier (2010) provides more room for discussion. They use Haiti as an example, but suggest various pathways people from developed nations can work towards. If we are to be worried about the welfare of mankind, and the elimination of pollution, we have to start from the source. We need to make sure unstable governments manage their ideological, cultural, or religious issues, before they make baseless claims to protect the environment and its people. We need to make sure international organizations have a common empathy to help nations in need. We also need citizens who are aware, and who are willing to fight for change. But is this really the kind of solution for people who are suffering from pollution in disaster-prone, and war-torn countries? The issues are complex. Can Haiti really achieve such a resolve? I hope to find a way to conclude my research on these many countries in the Global South on a hopeful note. Until then, I will focus on sharing the realities of those who are suffering from pollution.
Up next, Indonesia. See you in the next one! ✿
References
Davis, M. E. & Rappaport, A. (2014) Air Quality in Developing World Disaster and Conflict Zones – The Case of Post-Earthquake Haiti. Science of The Total Environment. 496, 22-25. Available from: https://www-sciencedirect-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/science/article/pii/S0048969714010055?via%3Dihub [Accessed: 18 February 2022].
Trevors, J. T. & Saier, M. H. (2010) The Crisis in Haiti, 2010: What’s to be Done. Water, Air, & Soil Pollution. 212, 1-2. Available from: https://link-springer-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/article/10.1007%2Fs11270-010-0338-8 [Accessed: 18 February 2022].