La Gonave, Haiti
Stand on a hillside on the island of La Gonave and the Caribbean Ocean stretches before you in its crystal blue glory. It’s only when you look closer that you see that years of deforestation and overgrazing have left the land barren and depleted. Nature does her best and there is new growth everywhere – shrubs and small trees spring up all over the island – but these are a poor replacement for the majestic tropical trees that once stood here and the number of cows on the island make overgrazing a continuing problem.
La Gonave, located west by northwest of Port au Prince in the Gulf of Gonave, covers about 287 square miles and is 37 miles long and 9 miles wide. It’s hilly, with the highest point being about 2552 feet. The higher elevations get the most rainfall (up to 62 inches a year) and agriculture is more successful here than closer to the coast where the soils are sandy and salty, though everywhere, a lack of water during the dry season makes it difficult to garden and farm. Read More
