Universidad de Puerto Rico
Recinto de Mayagüez
Colegio de Ciencias Agrícolas
Servicio de Extensión Agrícola
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT:
THE PUERTO RICO EXPERIENCE
RULE Institute, January 2007
By
Prof. Carmen González-Toro
Environmental Education Specialist

Sustainable Development:
The Puerto Rico's experience
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Background information
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Puerto Rico as a territory
Economy
Sustainable development definition
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The ecological footprint
Puerto Rico’s experience and results
Discussion

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USA citizenship (since 1917)
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US Constitution and US federal law
USA currency
English and Spanish languages
US Social Security benefits
Minimum wage
USA border patrol rules and regulations
(INS)

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One resident commissioner with voice, but no vote in Congress
No vote in Presidential elections
USA defense
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Army, Navy, Reserve, National and Coast
Guard
USA Postal Service
No federal tax for individuals

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Puerto Ricans have been fighting in the
U.S. armed forces since World War I, when the island became a U.S. territory and its residents became citizens.
Altogether, more than 150,000 Puerto
Ricans served in World War II, Korea and
Vietnam.

Map of
Puerto Rico
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IN
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AGUADILLA
AGUADA
CABO
ROJO
MOCA
AÑASCO
MAYAGUEZ
HO
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UER
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ISABELA
Q
U
E
B
R
A
D
IL
LA
S
SAN SEBASTIAN
LAS MARIAS
LAJAS
CAMUY
MARICAO
LARES
GRANDE
YAUCO
GUANICA
H
A
TIL
LO
ARECIBO
UTUADO
ADJUNTAS
PEÑUELAS
B
A
R
C
E
LO
N
E
TA
JAYUYA
MANATI
FLORIDA
CIALES
VEGA
BAJA
VEGA
ALTA
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COROZAL
TOA BAJA CA
TA
ÑO
TOA ALTA
NARANJITO
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Y
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Y
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B
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AGUAS
SA
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J
UA
N
RIO
PIEDRAS
C
TRUJILLO
A
R
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LIN
A
ALTO
GURABO
LOIZA
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N
A
V
O
A
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N
S
LUQUILLO
RIO GRANDE
FAJARDO
BUENAS
CEIBA
COMERIO
JUNCOS NAGUABO
OROCOVIS
BARRANQUITAS
CIDRA
CAGUAS
LAS
PIEDRAS
SAN
LORENZO
VILLALBA
AIBONITO
HUMACAO
COAMO CAYEY
PONCE
YABUCOA
GUAYANILLA
JUANA DIAZ
SANTA
ISABEL
SALINAS
GUAYAMA
PATILLAS
A
R
R
O
YO
MAUNABO
CULEBRAS
VIEQUES

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Island – 100 miles long, 35 miles wide
3.9 million people
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1,124 persons per sq mile
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9,000 persons per sq mile in San Juan metro
71% Urban – 29% Rural
78 municipalities or townships
Unemployment rate: 12.5%
58% live under US poverty guidelines

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Agriculture…………… 1%
Industry……………….45%
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Pharmaceuticals
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Construction
Services……………..54%
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Tourism
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Retail stores

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1% gross national income
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(3% labor force)
Major agricultural productos
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Milk
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Poultry
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Starchy crops
(bananas, root crops)
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Coffee
50% fertile soils
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27% land has 36-60% slope
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30% land has over 60% slope

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The economy of 22 municipalities depend on the coffee production
2004-05 coffee production was 175,000 hundred weight (quintales)
We do not produce enough coffee to supply the local demand

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Historically, Puerto Rico,
(manufacturing makes up roughly
42% of the economy), has underemphasized the territory's
$3 billion tourism industry because its leaders concentrated on bringing in U.S. companies by offering federal tax breaks.

Tourists choosing Caribbean neighbors over Puerto Rico
USA TODAY 9/2006
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Puerto Rico's weak performance comes as other Caribbean nations with lower operating costs are successfully courting travelers — including a growing number of upscale vacationers — and investing significant resources to enhance their tourism infrastructure and hotel room counts, according to the study.

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Most manufacturing companies are gone
Factories are closing or outsourcing
Pharmaceuticals are reducing operations
Construction prevails as the main industry

Definition
Economic development that is achieved without undermining the incomes, resources, or environment for future generations.

Requires action to promote the:
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Economy
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Community involvement
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Natural Resources
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Social values
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Security

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Used to depict the amount of land and water area a human population would hypothetically need to provide the resources required to support itself and to absorb its wastes, given prevailing technology .
The term was first coined in 1992 by
Canadian ecologist and professor at the
University of British Columbia , William
Rees .

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Footprinting is widely used around the globe as an indicator of environmental sustainability. It can be used to measure and manage the use of resources throughout the economy.
It is commonly used to explore the sustainability of individual lifestyles, goods and services, organizations, industry sectors, regions and nations .

Why measure our use of nature?
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If we cannot measure, we cannot manage. To make sustainability a reality, we must know where we are now , and how far we need to go . These are essential tools for government, business management and grassroots for organizing the use of natural resources.
The ecological footprint concept is used to assess the sustainability of nations.

We need measuring rods to track progress for:
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Sustainability and people's use of nature
Measures of carrying capacity and human impact on the Earth

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Carl Axel Soderberg, EPA Director for PR indicated that PR FP = 2 X Cuba
Cuba (745mi x 124mi) = 7 X PR
It means that we need an island
26 times bigger to be sustainable

My footprint quiz results
CATEGORY:
ACRES FOOD 3.5; MOBILITY 1; SHELTER 6.4;
GOODS/SERVICES 6.7 TOTAL FOOTPRINT18
IN COMPARISON, THE AVERAGE ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT IN
YOUR COUNTRY IS 24 ACRES PER PERSON.
WORLDWIDE, THERE EXISTS 4.5 BIOLOGICALLY PRODUCTIVE
ACRES PER PERSON.
IF EVERYONE LIVED LIKE YOU,
WE WOULD NEED 3.9 PLANETS
.

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Puerto Rico has been a United States territory for more than a century.
Considered self-governing, with no voting representation in the U.S. Congress.
This Commonwealth status has given
Puerto Rico many advantages over other low-income economies.

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During the 1950s and 1960s, Puerto Rico consistently outperformed similarly populated countries such as
South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore.
All that has changed - the prosperity of the post-World War II decades has ended.
The island economy has become recognized for its destitution and joblessness.

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Since the 1970s, Puerto Rico's economy has steadily deteriorated,
(poverty levels twice those of Mississippi).
Unemployment (officially reported 12 – 14 %) is more likely to be 40 - 50 % because of the island's low labor participation rate.
Only 46 % of the population has a formal job, and nearly half (1/2) of the island's salaried employees work directly or indirectly for the government .

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The Commonwealth's government expenditures are now over $9.6 billion, leaving the tiny nation with a steadily-rising deficit of $3 billion.
Puerto Rico's paternalistic bureaucratic and political policies have turned the island into a no-growth, debt-ridden economy.

Puerto Rico's drastic economic decline can be blamed on many factors:
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 the unintended consequences of an expanding government role in the provision of welfare services. a sharp rise in the amount of federal transfer payments to citizens (increased from $69 million in
1968 to over $8 billion in 2002 for disability, unemployment, and welfare payments) now account for one-fifth of the island's personal income.
This massive social spending, which began in the
1970s and continues today, has resulted in severe domestic disinvestment in the economy.

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Domestic capital investment has declined from 32 % of Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) in 1970 to 16 % in 2000.
This means that the Puerto Rican government, rather than supporting the creation of jobs and market incentives, relies primarily on tax-induced revenue and foreign investment for any growth in the island's GDP.

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Changing the island's economic activity from production to distribution, the Puerto Rican bureaucracy has crowded out community solutions and business incentives .
These policies have created: labor distortions, private disinvestment, and have left a large segment of the population without the skills or ambition necessary to achieve economic mobility.

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Puerto Rico's rising welfare expenditures have created unsustainable economic trends , and have brought devastating consequences to the island's entire population.

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Puerto Rico to continue its present urban sprawl in 60 years, half of the Island will be urban and in 75 years, all the Island will be urbanized.
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(Based on a study by the
Metropolitan University, San
Juan)

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This dramatic transformation has resulted in:
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Climate changes
Pollution
Health related problems
Diminished tourism
Lost of social and cultural legacy
Economic decline

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Community – Environmental concerns
• Water quality problems
• Reservoirs reduced storage capacity
• High unemployment rate
• Poor infrastructure (maintenance)
• High demand for land use
• Lack of environmental understanding
• Need for collaborative work
• Loss of family values
• Waste management problems

Soil erosion
Water pollution
Endanger coral reef

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Conclusion
As Puerto Rico has shown, when public solutions ( government ) replace market forces, the loss of privately-produced goods and services can lead to economic stagnation and decline

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What relevance does this situation have to the state of
Pennsylvania or your home district?
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What can be done to make it sustainable?

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Community land use is fundamental to sustainability
 plan the physical layout,
Change from poorly-managed sprawl to land use planning to maintain efficient infrastructure
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Restoration and rehab of urban centers/ vertical construction
Less vehicle dependency
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Create public space/land preservation
Educate citizens and elected officials

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The Ecological Footprint of Nations by Mathis
Wackernagel
Smart Communities Network http://sustainable.doe.gov/landuse/luintro.shtml
The Smarter Land Use Project http://landuse.org/guidebook.html
To calculate your footprint http://www.mec.ca/Apps/ecoCalc/ecoCalcHousing.jsp
USDA-NRCS Area-wide Conservation Planning Course,
National Employee Development Center.
Smart Growth, Lorri Jones, Lifescapes Texas A&M,
Vol.4, No. 2, Summer 2004, P. 6-8.

www.geog.nau.edu/courses/alew/ggr346/ ft/overseas/?epr