Nature in Haiti

Haiti’s natural landscapes range from the Massif de la Selle, whose Pic de la Selle reaches about 2,684 metres, to the Massif de la Hotte and Pic Macaya at about 2,347 metres. They include mountain forests, Pinus occidentalis stands, humid and subtropical dry forests, karst formations, rivers, lakes, mangroves, marshes, coral reefs, seagrass beds and coastal and island environments. Haiti has about 1,771 kilometres of coastline across nine departments. These ecosystems provide fish and shellfish habitat, help regulate water and groundwater, reduce erosion and protect coastal settlements from waves and storms. The Agence Nationale des Aires Protégées (ANAP) manages the protected-area framework known as the Système National des Aires Protégées (SNAP), together with the Ministère de l’Environnement and local communities, universities and nongovernmental organisations. The system uses internationally recognised categories including strict nature reserves, national parks, natural monuments, habitat-management areas and protected landscapes or seascapes. Haiti’s protected areas include Parc National La Visite, Parc National Naturel Macaya, Parc National Naturel de Grande Colline, Trois Baies et des Lagons aux Bœufs, Île-à-Vache, Grosse Caye and wetland areas around Aquin, as well as marine protected areas around Aquin and Saint-Louis-du-Sud. The legal framework includes the 2006 Environmental Framework Decree and the 1983 decrees associated with La Visite and Macaya. Boundaries, current status and local rules should be checked with ANAP or the responsible site authority because implementation varies. La Selle became Haiti’s first UNESCO biosphere reserve in 2012. It is transboundary with the Jaragua-Bahoruco-Enriquillo reserve in the Dominican Republic and includes the Massif de la Selle, Forêt-des-Pins and ecological corridors. La Hotte received UNESCO biosphere-reserve designation in 2016 and covers about 435,193 hectares, including approximately 265,279 hectares of terrestrial and 169,914 hectares of marine area. It includes 13 protected-area core zones, six peaks, Îles Cayemites and Île-à-Vache. A biosphere reserve supports conservation, sustainable use, research and education; it does not automatically prohibit access throughout the entire reserve. Haiti is a Caribbean biodiversity hotspot with many Hispaniolan and Haitian endemic species. Examples include Eleutherodactylus frogs, the Black-capped Petrel or Diablotin (Pterodroma hasitata), the Hispaniolan Emerald (Chlorostilbon swainsonii), the Hispaniolan Boa (Epicrates striatus), Pinus occidentalis and orchids of the Lepanthes and Lepanthopsis groups. Macaya and La Hotte have particularly high endemism, while La Visite contains many mollusc taxa. Habitat loss and fragmentation, fire, invasive species, hunting and wildlife trade threaten these species and the places on which they depend. Wetlands and coastal systems require separate attention. Haiti is not a party to the Ramsar Convention and has no Ramsar site, so there is no direct Ramsar-based protection system to consult. National protected-area and coastal planning nevertheless covers mangroves, marshes, lagoons, Étang Lachaux and Haut-Fourneau. The Programme National de Gestion Intégrée des Zones Côtières supports protection and restoration of mangroves, marshes and coral reefs. Mangroves and reefs support fisheries, reduce coastal erosion and help protect communities from storms. In Anse-à-Pitres, a 2019 restoration project rehabilitated 15 hectares of mangroves and involved former charcoal producers as mangrove protectors. People use Haiti’s natural resources through farming, agroforestry, coffee and cocoa production, fishing, craft activities, tourism, medicinal plants, agrobiodiversity and charcoal production. Small-scale and subsistence dependence is high. Agroforestry, reforestation, community nurseries, mangrove restoration and more sustainable fishing can provide alternatives where resource use damages forests, slopes, wetlands or coastal waters. Nature-based tourism includes hiking and wildlife observation in La Selle, Forêt-des-Pins, Macaya and La Hotte, as well as visits to coastal and marine areas. Local guides and community organisations can be functionally essential, but there is no reliably documented national system of uniform entrance fees, online booking, opening hours or standard visitor trails. Costs and access depend on the protected area, provider, transport, security situation, season, guide arrangements and any required permission. Natural hazards connected with Haiti’s environment include hurricanes and tropical storms, intense rainfall and flooding, drought, landslides, soil erosion, coastal erosion, sea-level rise, saltwater intrusion and ocean acidification. Deforestation and unmanaged slopes can intensify erosion and runoff. Watershed management, mangrove and reef protection, agroforestry and water-retention measures can reduce exposure and strengthen adaptation. Earthquakes and disaster response are adjacent subjects; they belong here only where the focus is a natural process or ecosystem-related risk. Environmental education is supported through schools, universities, municipalities and project organisations. A decree dated 15 January 2021 provides for Education Relative à l’Environnement in Haiti’s education system. The Ministère de l’Environnement, its Direction de l’Éducation Relative à l’Environnement, the Ministère de l’Éducation Nationale et de la Formation Professionnelle, the Université d’État d’Haïti, UNESCO and civil-society partners contribute through school programmes, reforestation activities, Éco-Génie and university courses. Haiti does not have one uniform nature-training pathway; access depends on the school, university or project. The environment is treated as a shared national heritage. The state is responsible for protection, restoration and sustainable use and must provide public environmental information. Projects that may affect the environment can require environmental and social assessment. Hunting, selling, keeping or transporting protected or threatened wildlife requires the applicable authorisation. Research and work involving genetic resources require ANAP approval or a site-specific agreement. Community participation is part of the protected-area approach, but individual unrestricted use of natural resources is not guaranteed everywhere. The main conflicts involve farming and land pressure, charcoal production and forest or mangrove loss, overfishing and juvenile-fish capture in relation to marine protected areas, hunting and bird trade, illegal sand or stone extraction on slopes, and coastal construction or waste affecting mangroves and reefs. Co-management, local protected-area committees, alternative livelihoods, restoration and surveillance can address these conflicts, although weak institutions, financing gaps, limited data and overlapping responsibilities often restrict implementation. Current rules, permissions, safety conditions and site boundaries should therefore be confirmed directly with the Ministère de l’Environnement, ANAP or the relevant local organisation.