Deforestation

Perhaps the most unforgettable feature of Haiti is the environmental catastrophe of deforestation - just 2% of Haiti's tree cover remains. For centuries the forests have been cut down to provide charcoal, which even today is the primary cooking fuel for millions of Haitians. With few trees to hold the soil onto the mountainous terrain, the U.N. estimates that 36 million TONS of Haiti's topsoil washes into the Caribbean EVERY YEAR!