Following the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck Haiti on 12 January 2010, UNEP – as the focal point for the cross-cutting issue of Environment in the Cluster system – mobilized experts to conduct rapid environmental assessments and ensure that environmental considerations are mainstreamed into the overall humanitarian relief and recovery programme.

The importance of restoring and protecting natural resources to provide for the immediate and continuing needs of the Haitian population following the earthquake cannot be overstated. Following decades of severe environmental degradation, the natural functions of ecosystems, such as forests and wetlands, to mitigate and protect against the effects of disasters have been greatly weakened, increasing local vulnerability and thus magnifying the impact of the earthquake.

In addition, the earthquake created a range of significant environmental risks that need to be addressed to ensure the effective provision of relief services for the population, ranging from solid and medical waste related issues to environmental management in camps.

Based on detailed Rapid Environmental Assessments (REAs), UNEP experts continue to provide targeted technical advice to the Clusters on response activities, with a view to ensuring the inclusion of environment and disaster risk reduction related concerns from the outset of relief and early recovery. The latest assessments and detailed reports can be found below.