Cancer:
When we reflect upon a natural disaster such as Noel, we tend to focus upon the TV scenes. Here in Paraíso we had no electricity and could not follow the effects of the storm in the usual way. Instead, people of the town went over to the river and contemplated the rushing waters. Rio Nizaito usually has less than one thousandth of the flow you see. The children and youth watched in fascination as the powerful waters surged towards the ocean. Few people realized that we witnessed the destruction of Hispaniola's future...her topsoil. In effect, we contemplated a growing cancer: erosion.
Soil runoff:
This week a UN sponsored gathering of the world's climate scientists will put the finishing touches on a document which attempts to predict the impact of global warming. They will state that places subject to flooding will experience more flooding. This spells a long term forecast of agricultural decline on the island of Hispaniola.
What can be done:
Presently the Church devotes precious little human resources to the question of soil conservation. You can find the occasional priest or sister who speaks out concerning the danger of deforestation. Bishop Jose Grullion of San Juan de la Maguana has sent his seminarians into the mountains to reforest a large tract of land which the diocese owns. Miguel Angel of the local foundation has begun to monitor the soil loss with the participation of community organizations. But in spite of these efforts, the erosion cancer grows.
A creative response urgently needed:
A common element which limits all the strategies to reforest the mountains on Hispaniola is the culture of professional urban comfort. When people study beyond high school, they expect to develop a lifestyle in the towns and cities. This leaves the countryside with an acute shortage of highly trained people who live with the immigrants and local farming families. In our area, only Father John lived in the mountains, and now that he suffered an accident, his clinic lies abandoned.
Instead of roads...
In the aftermath of Noel, the local governments will spend vital resources trying to reopen roads and bridges. This helps the movement of people and resources, but has no positive impact upon the erosion cancer. Instead, it creates the environment where erosion of the topsoil can continue. If resources were instead dedicated to establish "monasteries" of modern life in the mountains, they could serve as magnets to attract professional people as well as anchors of long term education towards soil conservation practices.
From the "Dark Ages":
During the so-called Dark Ages of European history, the peoples experienced cultural erosion in the clashes with barbarian armies. However the monasteries served to keep the spirit of curiosity and learning alive. They developed water systems and schools of writing. They kept libraries functioning to benefit humanity. Could something similar be created in response to the long term threat of devastating erosion?
