Tropical Storm Nicole - Planning Institute of Jamaica

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V. ENVIRONMENT A. General a) Overview Given the high reliance of Jamaica’s economy on their natural resources, environmental impacts caused by extreme weather events may have disastrous effects on social and economic well-being. The impact of these events is often exacerbated by anthropogenic factors which increase the vulnerability of life and property. Environmental impacts caused by extreme weather events may include damage to critical coastal ecosystems such as coral reefs, wetlands (mangroves) and seagrass beds which act as coastal buffers and are habitat, feeding and nursery areas for fish and other marine organisms. In addition, beaches and coastal infrastructure are also eroded and damaged due to storm surges and flood waters. Equally vulnerable to extreme storm events are forests and other terrestrial vegetation. b) Pre-Existing Environmental Conditions Pre-existing environmental conditions can influence the potential impact of natural hazards such as hurricanes on the environment. Such conditions before the passage of Tropical Storm Nicole included the following: - Extended period of drought from 2009 to April 2010 which resulted in reduced vegetation cover and soil instability. The dry conditions led to a number of forest (bush) fires in mainly parishes such as St. Thomas, Kingston & St. Andrew, St. Catherine, Clarendon, Manchester and St. Elizabeth. - The existence of formal and informal settlements in coastal and upland areas which are highly vulnerable to erosion, flooding and storm surge. This problem is often made worse by poor housing design in some of these areas; - Many coastal and inland ecosystems were already being degraded due to marine and land-based pollution, habitat degradation, over-fishing and the effects of previous storm 52
events (Hurricane Ivan, 2004; Hurricane Dean 2007; Tropical Strom Gustav 2008). The denudation of hillsides and removal of vegetative cover can accelerate erosion due to rapid runoffs which may lead to increased sedimentation and turbidity in coastal areas which threatens marine resources. - Saturated ground conditions resulting from prolonged rainfall late August to early September prior to the storm. - Accumulation of solid waste in water channels due to indiscriminate disposal increased the potential for flooding in some areas. B. Impact of Storm The entire island was enveloped by the intense showers of Tropical Storm Nicole. The continuous rains resulted in flooding, landslides and over flowing of rivers/gullies across the island resulting in the loss of lives and property and severe damage to the country’s infrastructure. In fact, preliminary data from the Water Resources Authority (WRA) indicated that some rivers experienced the highest flows on record. The torrential rainfall also resulted in pollution of the environment from runoff and spills from industrial facilities and sewage treatment plants, coastal erosion, sedimentation of coastal water bodies and accumulation of solid waste. There was also damage to vegetation in some areas, evidenced by uprooted trees. The analysis of environmental impacts is limited by inadequate data on the characteristics and conditions of the environment prior to the passage of the storm. Therefore, the assessment of environmental damage and losses were, therefore, mainly qualitative. An environmental survey was carried out by a number of agencies which included the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA), the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA), the Forestry Department and the WRA. a) Ecosystem and Habitat Damage Coastal and Marine Ecosystems: Increased turbidity and sedimentation was evident in run-off from rivers and gullies. Coastal ecosystems such as coral reefs and seagrass beds are sensitive to sedimentation as impaired coastal and marine water quality could in turn 53
Page 1 and 2:
JAMAICA MACRO SOCIO-ECONOMIC AND EN
Page 3 and 4:
TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION .
Page 5 and 6:
LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Radar Com
Page 7 and 8:
Executive Summary Description of th
Page 9 and 10:
Infrastructure As in the case with
Page 11 and 12:
Education Total damage to education
Page 13 and 14: I. INTRODUCTION The Meteorological
Page 15 and 16: On September 30, most parishes cont
Page 17 and 18: Table 1: Wind Analysis Parish Stati
Page 19 and 20: • Clarendon - Grimmith recorded 3
Page 21 and 22: The National Aeronautics and Space
Page 23 and 24: In the aftermath of the event, the
Page 25 and 26: Major landslide on the Maggotty mai
Page 27 and 28: The entrance to the Apple Valley Pa
Page 29 and 30: Figure 8: Areas Critically Affected
Page 31 and 32: Figure 9: Communities Affected by T
Page 33 and 34: elated to the weather event were tr
Page 35 and 36: At the time of the event, the predo
Page 37 and 38: Figure 10: Damage to Educational In
Page 39 and 40: C. Public Buildings a) Correctional
Page 41 and 42: Figure 12: Summary of Damage to the
Page 43 and 44: 3. Vector Control - Comprehensive p
Page 45 and 46: Figure 13: Total Damage to Agricult
Page 47 and 48: Table 15: Preliminary Costs of Dama
Page 49 and 50: Table 17: Preliminary Estimates of
Page 51 and 52: B. Tourism Sector General Overview
Page 53 and 54: Damage Preliminary cost of damage i
Page 55 and 56: IV. INFRASTRUCTURE The country’s
Page 57 and 58: islandwide. The number of customers
Page 59 and 60: The NWC was able to restore most of
Page 61 and 62: Table 23: Preliminary Cost To Re-Op
Page 63: As a result trips were shortened an
Page 67 and 68: Figure 18). Seagrass beds along wit
Page 69 and 70: Figure 19: Eroded section of Long B
Page 71 and 72: Waste Significant volumes of waste
Page 73 and 74: VI. MACROECONOMIC IMPACT OF TROPICA
Page 75 and 76: unemployment levels; and 2) reduced
Page 77 and 78: January April July October January
Page 79 and 80: domestic market, business and consu
Page 81 and 82: State of Emergency in sections of K
Page 83 and 84: mainly to a reduction in outflow of
Page 85 and 86: • a $4.0 million grant to assist
Page 87 and 88: VII. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Page 89 and 90: Proposed Projects Apart from projec
Page 91 and 92: APPENDIX 79
Page 93 and 94: RADAR SUMMARY DATE : September 26,
Page 107 and 108: APPENDIX 3 Depression in New Market
Page 109: Blocked drain 97
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Tropical Storm Nicole - Planning Institute of Jamaica

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