Dominican Republic natural resource policy inventory

Problems, policies, and potential policy alternatives are examined for four major theme areas: watershed management; forestry; wildlands and biodiversity; and sustainable agriculture. For watershed management, the key policy issues were inadequate watershed management, ineffective water use planning, poor water quality regulation, and contamination of the coastal zone and fisheries. In forestry, the issues included deforestation, limited reforestation, and inadequate forest management. For wildlands and diversity, the issues were inadequate protection of endangered species, limited park and reserve management, inattention to ecotourism potential, and diminishing biodiversity. In the area of sustainable agriculture, the issues were land use planning, declining soil fertility, conflicting land tenure arrangements, and effective pesticide management. Certain issues are common to all or several of the major themes. These include: the combined effects of high population density and low levels of education and income, conflicting policies, budgetary constraints, gaps between policy formulation and implementation, overlaps in institutional jurisdiction, the lack of institutional development, conflicting institutional objectives, tolerance for corruption, overcentralization, and inadequate basic information on natural resources. Recommendations for future research and analysis are presented. In Volume II, the political, economic, and social factors that influence the adoption and implementation of natural resource management policies in the Dominican Republic are analyzed, along with the interactions among institutions involved in the policymaking process. Key issues and problems within each of the theme areas are explored in detail. The major conclusions and policy recommendations of the study are presented in the final chapter. Includes 14-page bibliography. (Author abstract, modified)