Urgent action needed to address climate crisis’s impacts in Puerto Rico: Let’s start with reservoir maintanance

This column is the translation of an original piece published in El Nuevo Día. It is also available for free in Spanish here. Disponible en español aquí.

You don’t have to be a scientist to point out that in Puerto Rico we are experiencing more extensive droughts, high temperatures, as well as stronger hurricanes and storms. Although droughts and hurricanes are part of the natural cycle of our region, the climate crisis is associated with these phenomena being of greater magnitude. Unfortunately, these impacts will continue to increase.

That is stated in the Sixth Assessment Report (AR6), published this past Monday, March 20, by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). This report is the final product of a series of publications that took years of work and brought together more than 700 scientists. The report, endorsed by 195 countries, summarizes the recent findings of more than 100,000 studies on the present and future impacts of the climate crisis.

The world’s islands produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions than the global average, according to the report. Nevertheless, they are more likely to experience greater climate impacts. Those impacts are then are exacerbated by island characteristics, such as dependence on imports, limited territories, poverty and economic inequality of the people who inhabit them, among other conditions that increase our vulnerability.

In Puerto Rico we know that disasters are never natural. Given what is expected, changes in our public policy and way of doing things are urgently needed in order to mitigate and adapt to present and future impacts. So, what can be done? Although there are several things that can be done at the individual level, to achieve a radical change, governmental and collective action are necessary.

The maintenance of reservoirs is one of the clearest and most important examples given the extreme drought events we have in Puerto Rico. Since I was a child, I have always heard the same story: that there is no dredging, there are hundreds of overflows and that water is not conserved or river basins are not protected. A better administration and management of the reservoirs, maintenance of the drinking water system, as well as better land use, would help us to have water in times of prolonged drought. If you know that a trickle of water is going to come out of the mountain, and if you can put a pot, bue you put a small glass, bendito…

We already have the science and the data, but the action is missing. According to the report, the planet has until 2030 to achieve a radical change to prevent global temperatures from exceeding 1.5 degrees Celsius. An increase of that magnitude will impose greater pressure on water resources and increase what we are already experiencing. It is worth noting that the report details that between 2010-2020, mortality due to droughts, floods and storms was 15 times higher and that displacements due to extreme events increased. The government of Puerto Rico must stop being reactive, assume a proactive role and take urgent actions to mitigate the impacts of the climate crisis. Proper maintenance of the reservoirs is one of many actions that can be taken.

Translated with the free DeepL translator (https://www.deepl.com/translator)