Capitalism and Climate Change in Honduras
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- Published on Monday, 07 December 2020 01:32
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Capitalism and Climate Change in Honduras
Yanis Iqbal
Honduras lies in tatters. Ecological catastrophes in the form of twin hurricanes have rapidly destroyed its pandemic-ravaged economy. At a press conference in Tegucigalpa, Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernandez said that his country already had 7% of its GDP wiped out by the pandemic, and that the combined impact of COVID-19 and two deadly storms will create a “bomb that will leave the country and the region in a very difficult situation.”
Hurricane Eta
The first environmental calamity came in the form of the category 4 Hurricane Eta. It arrived on 4 November, 2020, and killed 60 people, seriously affected 3 million people... (a third of the country), damaged more than 400 houses, and destroyed close to 173 roads. Agriculture authorities have stated that over 216,000 hectares of crops have been lost due to Eta, impacting small and mid-scale farmers. At least 8,994 families have lost their crops. Overall, it is expected that Eta will turn out to be a “multi-billion-dollar disaster” for Honduras. Damage estimates for Eta’s impact on the country are as high as $5-billion – over 20% of the nation’s GDP.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Eta, the number of COVID-19 infections has rapidly increased (as of Dec. 7th: 111,023 cases and 2,946 deaths). Tom Cotter, Director of Emergency Response and Preparedness at Project HOPE, says, “Hundreds of families affected by the hurricane are crammed into temporary shelters without masks to protect themselves, unable to keep physical distance, and without access to water to wash their hands… Collective shelters could become a breeding ground for a rapid spread of the virus, increasing vulnerability among a population already affected by natural disasters and the devastating effects of climate change.” Apart from COVID-19, there is a high possibility of the occurrence of diseases like dengue, zika, malaria, cholera, chikungunya, acute diarrhea, fungal infections, and influenza due to stagnant water and flooded areas.
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