Event Title

Recommendations on Mitigation and Adaptation in Agriculture and Food Security in Central America

Location

Room 205

Start Date

3-7-2012 2:40 PM

End Date

3-7-2012 4:20 PM

Description

Our paper will emphasis that the our ecological and carbon footprint in the region has had important setbacks in Central America. We need to understand that we have to give priority to risk analysis that will help identify our vulnerabilities and work with mitigation and adaptation. In the first part we will understand why the setbacks. The second will recommend on mitigation and adaptation in our public policies and legislation.

Taking as a reference year of 2008 it is true that Central America (CA) has had setbacks on environmental, economic, social, political issues, and there have been gaps in socioeconomic and political domain specifically in Costa Rica and Panama.

We have a number of risks that have not been solved and will cause problems:

Institutional: it has generated a kind of state "hostile to democracy" (State of the Region 2011). They have small institutional structures, key executives, no real balances.

Climate change: Accepting some regional differences problems already present will continue to worsen. Ex. the temperature increases, the intensity of all hydrometeorological problems are further aggravated by possible vulnerabilities without clarity on mitigation and adaptation. Aspects of environmental mismanagement is having and will have problems of infrastructure, production and balance of fragile ecosystems at risk for the people who live or are near them.

Political impasse: There is a difficulty in the system to combat social exclusion.

Taking as reference year 2000, the region showed a clear trend of unsustainable use of natural resources. Our ecological footprint began to be negative (ecological debt). The environment and development relationship by analyzing the priorities states have in all public policies, are not verifiable denoting contradictions in the political discourse and national and regional strategies with concrete and "substantial changes in the patterns of exploitation of nature" (State of the Region 2011).

Specifics:

The countries of the region have serious environmental vulnerability as they are in an area, compared with others, because of its location, is likely to suffer and worsen their situation if we do not reduce risk circumstances. Examples of Honduras and Nicaragua are of the utmost gravity. The availability of water (including for energy), loss of biodiversity and finally food security.

In twenty years, from 1980 to 2005, the region lost 248,400 acres of wetlands, an annual average of 9936 hectares. The cumulative loss in that period represents 34.8% of the total that existed in 1980. The number of endangered species increased by 82% between 2002 and 2010. The fish, followed by amphibians, are the most impacted. 35% of Central American territory is within shared river basins. Between 2005 and 2008 the agricultural area in the region fell by 7.4%. From 2005 to 2010 the forest area decreased by 1,246,000 Isthmus hectares. The rate of this loss, however, has fallen, among 1990y 2000 the rate was -1.6%, and in 2000-2010 was -1.2%. (State of the Region 2011). There are two weaknesses that make the vulnerabilities of the region in an unsolved problem as is evident from the objective reality of each country: a view in which mitigation prevails (for increased access to financial resources) and other policies in which the region tend to define tasks but not responsibilities.

We continue to have "uncontrolled energy use, inefficient and polluting, poorly planned and regulated, risk of new windows for natural integrity of the territory: an expansive urban growth, a limited control of water pollution sources and solid and liquid waste, the land affected by agricultural activities technologically backward, and the commitment to high environmental impact activities and great social unrest. " (State of the Region 2011).

It is urgent that we can work with the adaptation, necessarily integrated to risk management. We need a good management of protected areas and forests that can play a role in helping climate change. Land use is a priority including land tools and citizen participation. This has to be accompanied by environmental indicators that allow us to have information for decision-making.

We will make emphasis on mitigation and adaptation in agriculture and food security in Central America.

This document is currently not available here.

Share

COinS
 
Jul 3rd, 2:40 PM Jul 3rd, 4:20 PM

Recommendations on Mitigation and Adaptation in Agriculture and Food Security in Central America

Room 205

Our paper will emphasis that the our ecological and carbon footprint in the region has had important setbacks in Central America. We need to understand that we have to give priority to risk analysis that will help identify our vulnerabilities and work with mitigation and adaptation. In the first part we will understand why the setbacks. The second will recommend on mitigation and adaptation in our public policies and legislation.

Taking as a reference year of 2008 it is true that Central America (CA) has had setbacks on environmental, economic, social, political issues, and there have been gaps in socioeconomic and political domain specifically in Costa Rica and Panama.

We have a number of risks that have not been solved and will cause problems:

Institutional: it has generated a kind of state "hostile to democracy" (State of the Region 2011). They have small institutional structures, key executives, no real balances.

Climate change: Accepting some regional differences problems already present will continue to worsen. Ex. the temperature increases, the intensity of all hydrometeorological problems are further aggravated by possible vulnerabilities without clarity on mitigation and adaptation. Aspects of environmental mismanagement is having and will have problems of infrastructure, production and balance of fragile ecosystems at risk for the people who live or are near them.

Political impasse: There is a difficulty in the system to combat social exclusion.

Taking as reference year 2000, the region showed a clear trend of unsustainable use of natural resources. Our ecological footprint began to be negative (ecological debt). The environment and development relationship by analyzing the priorities states have in all public policies, are not verifiable denoting contradictions in the political discourse and national and regional strategies with concrete and "substantial changes in the patterns of exploitation of nature" (State of the Region 2011).

Specifics:

The countries of the region have serious environmental vulnerability as they are in an area, compared with others, because of its location, is likely to suffer and worsen their situation if we do not reduce risk circumstances. Examples of Honduras and Nicaragua are of the utmost gravity. The availability of water (including for energy), loss of biodiversity and finally food security.

In twenty years, from 1980 to 2005, the region lost 248,400 acres of wetlands, an annual average of 9936 hectares. The cumulative loss in that period represents 34.8% of the total that existed in 1980. The number of endangered species increased by 82% between 2002 and 2010. The fish, followed by amphibians, are the most impacted. 35% of Central American territory is within shared river basins. Between 2005 and 2008 the agricultural area in the region fell by 7.4%. From 2005 to 2010 the forest area decreased by 1,246,000 Isthmus hectares. The rate of this loss, however, has fallen, among 1990y 2000 the rate was -1.6%, and in 2000-2010 was -1.2%. (State of the Region 2011). There are two weaknesses that make the vulnerabilities of the region in an unsolved problem as is evident from the objective reality of each country: a view in which mitigation prevails (for increased access to financial resources) and other policies in which the region tend to define tasks but not responsibilities.

We continue to have "uncontrolled energy use, inefficient and polluting, poorly planned and regulated, risk of new windows for natural integrity of the territory: an expansive urban growth, a limited control of water pollution sources and solid and liquid waste, the land affected by agricultural activities technologically backward, and the commitment to high environmental impact activities and great social unrest. " (State of the Region 2011).

It is urgent that we can work with the adaptation, necessarily integrated to risk management. We need a good management of protected areas and forests that can play a role in helping climate change. Land use is a priority including land tools and citizen participation. This has to be accompanied by environmental indicators that allow us to have information for decision-making.

We will make emphasis on mitigation and adaptation in agriculture and food security in Central America.