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Show A10 Sunday, February 17. 2008 HERALD DAILY Haiti nears grim future without trees Jonathan THE Some groups say they've found success on a limited scale by planting fruit trees and protecting hardwoods and agthrough micro-loan- s ricultural assistance. Floresta M. Katz ASSOCIATED PRESS ' GRAND COLLINE, Haiti Far from the spreading slums of the Haitian capital, past barren dirt mountains and hillsides stripped to a chalky w hite core, two woodcutters bring down a towering oak tree in one of the few forested valleys left in the Caribbean country. Fanel Cantave. 36, says he has little choice but to make his living in a way that is causing environmental disaster in Haiti. And these days, he and his hi l 7i ; vv ... old son, Phillipe, must travel ever farther from their village to find trees to cut. "There is no other way to get money," the father said, pushing his saw through splintering wood that will earn him as much as $12.50, depending on how many planks it produces. Such raw economics explain the disappearance of Haiti's forests, a process that has led to erosion that has reduced scarce farm land and left the island vulnerable to deadly flooding. U.N. experts say just 2 to 4 percent of forest cover remains in Haiti down from 7 to 9 percent in 1981. And despite millions invested in reforestation, such efforts have mostly failed because of economic pressures and political turmoil. For example, the U.S. .r , - V- I f ARIANA Agency for International Development embarked on an ambitious $22.8 million project in the 1980s to plant some 30 million trees that could provide income for peasants. But the project focused on trees that can be made into charcoal for cooking, and nearly all were eventually cut down. Environmental Minister Claude Germain Jean-Mari- Press CUBILLOSAssociated e "We are trying to create order now." Stability returned with the 2006 election of President Rene Preval and U.N. military action Aristide in 2004 and prompted the U.N. to send in thousands of peacekeepers to restore order. "Even though there were agricultural laws, the laws were not respected," Germain said. powagainst erful gangs. But in a nation where 80 percent of the 8.7 million people live on less than $2 a day, trees mean income for those lucky enough to have access to them. 1 f S 'ards M?fn, s" aMC fA Jiie'f"thik ? cP ?ePac lr07SUmy dtUfMl af' EXTRA 40 OFF A:"fA f 1 & tlte! said reforestation projects and efforts to preserve trees in three protected zones wereset back by the violent rebellion that ousted President Jean-Bertra- Ladies' kX i H?A v -- USA, based in San Diego, has "" worker holds his shovel as he takes a break from building a canal in preparation to reforest the land as part of the "Floresta" reforestation program in Grand Colline, Haiti, on Tuesday. m f I , v A l 1 Mv J 75oOrF ' J A - : v - " i ! t :" ..'V PermanentlyReduced Selected Men's i h V VX tK25T ZtiiV&rZtS mMArfi,! A r$&& Uv? hilWlfm TOTiT I ?V f fl C i Entire Stockof Permanently- - Reduced Men's Sweaters & WUV. ' Excludes Young ' , jUj,- - ilhlti1 mi ,, , h lUli vIl f February 18. Dominican Republic. But the trees began falling quickly, first as the Spanish and French cleared forests for plantations and later as hardwoods were logged for U.S. and European markets. Peasants then burned and cut down what was left in desperate search of farmland. While the Dominican Republic still has some of the most impressive forests in the Caribbean, parts of Haiti now resemble a moonscape of denuded mountains billowing dust. Hillsides are blasted away to make bricks for the capita of Without trees to anchor the soil, erosion has reduced Haiti's agricultural land, making the island more vulnerable to floods each hurricane season. More than 100 Haitians died in last year's floods, including dozens killed when a river jumped its banks during a gentle but steady rain unrelated to any tropical system. U.S. junkers find new life in Mexico Maria Dickerson Cloth & i Leather Outerwear i" Hl 'WVt. , .:, 'Monday, If i AYxVmV' I I r f EXTRA 50 OFF , 7 f I Men's apparel Extra discount taken at register. 1 0fferendS i L I Rbes, nl ry f Sleepwear& Loungewear I Floresta. But many who are dedicated to restoring Haiti's forests have grown pessimistic. Despite small successes, prospects are grim for implementing such programs on a grand scale. "Everything has been studied and all the solutions are already known," said Mousson I - Sportswear, , been working in Haiti for the last decade and is now planting about 33,000 fruit and hardwood trees a year. The Organization for the Rehabilitation of the Environment, based in southern Haiti, has produced more than a million fruit trees since it began work in 1985. Compared to the USAID's failed plan, smaller programs have had more luck by focusing on fruit trees, which farmers are more likely to preserve to sell the fruit. And smaller organizations are able to work with individual farmers and tailor planting to the needs of specific areas. "People aren't excited about, 'Hey let's go plant trees.' They're excited about, 'How can I feed my family? How can I make ends meet?"' said Scott Sabin, executive director of Finnigan, the head of the Organization for the Rehabilitation of the Environment. "But when it comes to implementation, it becomes a place where everybody's fighting for the money. They're not fighting for results." Christopher Columbus found dense tropical forests in 1492 when he arrived on the island colonizers named Hispaniola, now shared by Haiti and the "Excludes Young Men's apparel. Extra d.scount taken at register. Offer ends Monday, LOS ANGELES TIMES CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico While some Americans are congratulating themselves on cars, switching to their old gas guzzlers just won't die. U.S. trade policy is giving them new life south of fuel-sippi- the border. ( .J Fa? -- Entire Stock of Ladies' Wool Coats, ' P', X i V J :j , I' 2 i X ;3 ciate I i I I .ju- of Men's Non- - 1 IIy i p iW' Continuing Winter Shoes & Boots .Jrjf I X, ff. Leather Coats & Outerwear t !f V bAVid Ur k 10 Hi I - LF . -- w-" ' " " NEW MARKDOWNS TAKEN STOREWIDE! , ;X:Jr I Presidents' Day J c'?5 I ' I I j I' - iu t -- Children's Winter That's precisely what's worrying environmentalists and new-ca- r dealers, who say falling trade barriers are fueling an invasion of smoky junkers. More than 3 million vehicles have rumbled legally south of the border in the past 2 12 years. Millions more are on the way, thanks to the North American Free Trade Agreement. The vintage metal is rattling Mexico's retail car market. Sales of new autos have stalled at around 1. 1 million a year as imports of used vehicles have overtaken them. Sales of new subcompacts - the most popular class of cars in Mexico because of their price - skidded 16.4 percent last year as buyers snapped up cheaper, roomier used vehicles from the Apparel United States. late-mod- el t j ...l : fIf Sr I I Selected Juniors' Denim I I I I J Prive a " V.,. , -- cashro f SELECTION VARIES All merchandise is selected, previous unless merchandise Basic, purchases. RECEIVE jgy We cannot 20 otherwise BY STORE. LIMITED TO STOCK noted. Sale prices are is not included. Sorry, no price accept phone or mail orders ON otl ol original HAND. prices. adjustments jiven on merchandise. on clearance t Factory worker David Ortiz was checking out SUVs recently on Calle Carlos Amaya in Ciudad Juarez. The public street doubles as an open-ai-r auto bazaar with hundreds of 11 - r U 1 fr3v V : ' II I t - Kelly M 1 I & 5 OFF . Katherine V j 50-7- Entire Stock of Ladies' t I I L OFF 75 OFF 75 x II, high-mileag-e, - r 1 EARN REWARD POINTS Irom issuance. Sao credit appfcatwn Wad Cam) for Ftewants Program terms. account ve- bumper-to-dente- "They've got good roads over there," he said of the Vr United States. For decades, Mexico restricted imports of used vehicles and slapped hefty taxes on new ones, which meant Mexicans paid more than American consumers for the same vehicles. That spawned a huge black market in jalopies, particularly in the border region.- - ? toward more Subject to crwk approval, Certificafes lor waning a tsardli late-mod- el hicles parked bumper. He said used cars from the United States are more desirable than those from Mexico because they tend to be bigger and to have spent less time on pitted, unpaved streets such as those in parts of Juarez. UiLard's . Thousands of used vehicles from as far away as Colorado and Missouri jam tiny car lots and auto salvage yards in this gritty border city. An estimated 25,000 families make a living here hustling U.S. castoffs. Among them is Jose Zavala, a used-ca- r dealer with a trucker's cap and an eye for bargains. At a recent auto auction in neighboring El Paso, Texas, he snagged a decrepit 1974 Ford Gran Torino that brought snickers from the crowd. But it's Zavala who might have the last laugh. He figures he can sell the wizened muscle car to some Starsky & Hutch wannabe in Juarez for at least four times the $100 that he paid for it. "If it's cheap and it runs," it will find a home in Mexico, Zavala said. Reward Csrtiiicaies every time you shop. amwwththotsiaidS Card arid axpire v 60 days |