World Weather, Climate, and Society Projects |
Havana, Cuba Elissa Baim, Josh Berman, Mary Biggins The Impact of Weather and Climate on the Culture of Havana, Cuba Introduction and Overview
The Rising Sea Level There have also been serious concerns expressed about the impacts the rising sea level will have on agriculture in Cuba. Cuba relies on sugarcane and various other crops for the use of its citizens and for export. Currently, these crops are watered by dammed water from the various small rivers crossing the country, with 70% of the total dammed water being used to irrigate the crops. The rising sea level is of serious concern for the costal city of Havana. Research by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) found that “the biggest threat of permanent flooding of costal areas was faced by the southern part of the provinces of Havana and Pinar del Rio.” The gradual rise in the sea level is predicted to lead to permanent costal flooding that will require extensive retreat strategies. Retreat strategies would involve “progressive abandonment of most vulnerable costal areas and resettlement of population.” This would have a direct impact on the residents of Havana and of the entire population of Cuban residents living on costal areas (estimated to be 1.4 million – about a tenth of the population of the country). (This section prepared and written by Mary Biggins)
Tourism Unfortunately, since the dawn of the U.S. trade embargo in early 1960, there has been a huge decrease in the number of Americans visiting the tropical island each year. Estimates vary widely about how many American’s illegally enter Cuba each year, with some sources estimating as many as 1 million per year, and more conservative numbers estimating approximately 200,000 Americans annually.3 Believing that a strong trade embargo is the only way to get Cuba to return to a Democratic government, President Bush announced a crackdown on illegal tourism in October of 2003, noting that the embargo was “intended to hasten the arrival of a new, free, democratic Cuba.” Undoubtedly, Cubans are suffering at the hands of the US, as it is unable to fully utilize its warm tropical climate to entice Americans to legally visit. Essentially, the lack of tourism from the United States cripples the Cuban economy. With a stronger tourism industry, more money would be put into the infrastructure and development of the country, which would thus help the farmers and residents of the country too. The tropical climate of Cuba provides it with great opportunities: the opportunities to have a strong crop of sugar, the opportunity to raise cattle, and the opportunity to benefit from a strong tourist industry. The Cuban climate acts as a dictator for the country – dictating what sorts of crops will be successful there and creating the opportunity for tourism. Cuba’s current economic sufferings are related, in part, to its inability to benefit from one of its greatest resources: its warm climate that could attract many US tourists. (This section prepared and written by Mary Biggins)
Agriculture, the Economy, and Havana Prior to the communist revolution of 1959 and subsequent trade embargo which followed, the United States was Cuba’s largest agricultural trading partner. This trade alliance brought nearly $600 million in US exports including rice, wheat, vegetable oil, processed fruit and vegetables into Cuba while about $500 million of primarily sugar and tobacco was shipped into the United States. The trade embargo, established by the US in 1961, ended this relationship and in the 1970s the Soviet Union became Cuba’s main trading partner. This relationship would continue until the collapse of the Soviet Union 1990’s. The collapse of the Soviet Empire, coupled with an intense drought made the 1990’s an extremely tough decade for the Cuban agricultural. This drought has continued into the new millennium, leaving the agriculturally based economy in destitute. In an attempt to deal with the crisis, the Cuban government has imposed rations on certain goods such as rice, sugar, beans, and dairy products. (Farrell, 1) The drought comes in waves, the most recent of which being the worst to hit Cuba in over forty years. The Cuban people can only hope that another one of this severity does not strike for another forty. It is estimated that the lack of rainfall has cost the Cuban government and its people billions of dollars. The agricultural industry has suffered the most following the onset of this draught. This natural disaster has decimated thousands of crops, dried up reservoirs, and caused the prices of beans, plantains, and sweet potatoes to skyrocket. Many Cubans are concerned about this drought because they feel that the drop in the agricultural industry and economy will further impoverish their country. An 87 year-old Cuban man had this to say about the tough situation: “I am terrified of hurricanes, but the situation is so bad I pray every night for one to cross over the entire country so at least we have water.” ( Havana Journal) Another method that the government has taken to help alleviate the problem is developing cooperative urban gardens. Unused inner city land has been converted into gardens in most of Cuba's largest cities and towns. The gardens have increased the production of fresh vegetables, fruit, and small livestock. In Havana, there are 26,000 individuals involved in the urban garden program. It is estimated that the gardens are producing 50 percent of Havana’s supply of fresh vegetables. The future of the Cuban agricultural industry relies heavily on what markets Cuban farmers will have access to and what types of competition they will face from imports. Although great efforts have been made in recent years, Cuba will likely continue to be a food importer rather than exporter. It is in Cuba’s best interest to import products such as meat, rice, beans, oil, soy, and dairy because they can get them from other countries at much cheaper costs. If the US is going to be the country that exports these supplies to Cuba, they will have to negotiate a resource for which Cuba can earn money to buy the goods. Currently Cuba does not have the income to pay for the supplies monetarily. There are a couple ways that Cuba can make the money. An easy solution would be to remove the travel ban and allow US citizens into the country, that way the Cuban economy is supported by US tourism. (This section prepared and written by Josh Berman)
Hurricanes and Increase Occurrence of Severe Weather Thermohaline circulation is believed to have originated at the end of the last ice age. When the glacial caps at the poles began to melt, tremendous amounts of cold, freshwater were dumped into the ocean. The salty, yet warmer ocean water and the cold fresh glacial water mixed and circulation began. All oceans around the world circulate; this thermohaline circulation is due to water temperature and salinity. Colder and saltier water is denser, so it sinks beneath the warmer less salty water and creates circulation. Water at lower latitudes is warmer. This warm water originates in the tropics, but when this water moves north, it cools, sinks and travels back south, where once again it is warmed. Also, water in the tropics is saltier than water farther north. El Nino is a periodic climactic variation. El Nino is the cyclical warming of East Pacific Ocean water temperatures. This occurs when warm, equatorial Pacific waters near Peru move north and displace colder waters (Anthes). La Nina is the cyclical cooling of the East Pacific Ocean water temperatures. This warming and cooling associated with El Nino and La Nina are cyclical. The warming of El Nino occurs every 2-7 years. El Nino is believed to have begun 5,800 years ago (Lamb). El Nino and La Nina create differences in the surface water temperature. El Nino also leads to the overall warming of the troposphere, which exacerbates the heating of ocean surface water. This change in temperature affects the global thermohaline circulation, wind and precipitation patterns, and ultimately hurricane frequency and severity. El Nino tends to inhibit the formation and intensity of hurricanes in the Atlantic while conversely; La Nina tends to enhance hurricane formation and intensity in the Atlantic.
Different climactic variations all affect each other and all influence the frequency and severity of hurricanes. Ocean surface water temperatures can be changed in many ways: by thermohaline circulation, El Nino and La Nina, and global warming. Warming of the water leads to more evaporation and reduction of salinity in the surface waters. It can then be deduced that the overall water vapor amount in the atmosphere will increase due to raised water temperatures. Increase in water vapor in the atmosphere means that more latent heat is released when this vapor is condensed into clouds. More latent heat implies more severe weather events. So the warming of the ocean will lead to more severe hurricanes. Ultimately, it is the temperature of surface water that not only creates and sustains hurricanes, but affects the frequency and severity of hurricanes. Hazards associated with hurricanes include: torrential rain, storm surges, flooding, wind gusts and tornadoes. Hurricane winds range from 74-150 mph. Cuba, an island off the southern coast of Florida, is right in many hurricane’s tracks as they travel from the tropics north. Because Cuba is an island, hurricanes passing over do not begin to demise because there is still access to plenty of warm ocean water, fuel for the hurricane. Hurricanes have a severe affect on the weather and climate in Cuba. This year, Hurricane Charley hit Cuba in mid-August and hurricane Ivan hit Cuba in mid- September. Although predicted too, hurricane Ivan caused much less damage than Charley. (This section prepared and written by Elissa Baim) 1 Karen O’Brien, “Stormy Skies Ahead for Cuba,” Cicerone, 2/2000
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Located in the Northwest corner of the Caribbean, the country of Cuba extends 44,218 square miles and is the largest island in the West Indies. The diverse landscape of the country includes plateaus, valleys, rolling hills, and a network of small rivers. Cuba has a very rich biodiversity and a fauna that includes over 16,500 (including many endemic species). Cuba has a tropical climate with seasonal humidity and maritime and some semi-continental characteristics. The country of Cuba is facing serious environmental threats. In 1999, one of the conclusions of the National Workshop on Climate Change Impact and Adoptions stated, “Climate change in Cuba is considered to be an environmental problem whose importance should be neither exaggerated nor ignored.”
Rather than focusing on all of these issues, this paper focuses on Havana, Cuba and the climate change it has experienced and its impact on the area’s culture and society. Havana, a costal city and the country’s capital, is located on the Northwestern side of the island, facing the Gulf of Mexico and the Southwest coast of Florida. The various sections of this paper discuss the impact climate change has had on Havana’s agriculture, the tourist business and economy based on the weather, the rising sea level in Cuba because of melting ice caps, the increased frequency of severe weather and hurricanes, and a review of what the weather has been like during the Fall of 2004. The section discussing the weather during the Fall of 2004 contains data collected from 
The increase in greenhouse emissions is of serious concern to citizens of Havana Cuba. The increase in greenhouse gas emissions, especially of carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels, has been blamed for a rapid increase in the rate at which the polar ice caps are melting, which has thus led to costal flooding in Cuba. According to research at the Cuban Institute of Oceanology, the sea level surrounding Cuba rose 2.9 millimeters each year during the last three decades of the 20 th century. The scientists at the Cuban institute of Oceanology “predict that the gradual rise of sea level caused by climate change will lead to the permanent flooding of the lowest-lying costal areas around the world and in increase in the depth of the oceans. In Cuba, the effects will be felt in the transformation of the seaboard and the mouths of rivers, and erosion will be the biggest factor in the process leading to a receding shoreline.” 
With the rising sea level, the rivers and dam system will be penetrated by significant amounts of large salt water from the ocean. This salt water will be potent to some of Cuba’s crops, and will force a dramatic change in the crops grown on the island. Additionally, the infusion of salt water into Cuba’s rivers will reduce available drinking water, which could prove extremely dangerous, especially with the increased severity of droughts. 
Upon arrival on Cuba in 1492, Christopher Columbus described the island as “the most beautiful land human eyes have ever seen.” With endless beaches, breathtaking sunsets, hundreds of natural lakes and streams, and warm, tropical temperatures all year round, Cuba is a tourist’s paradise. Havana, the capital city, is heaven on earth for tourists, with the appeal of a culturally rich urban center and also the enjoyment of miles of costal beaches and resorts.
Though there is a significant amount of tourism from Canada and England, this tourism and the crops produced by Cuba are not enough to sustain it, as thousands of residents of the countryside live in poverty.
As a communist state, central planning and control dominate almost every aspect of the Cuban economy, including agriculture and the distribution of foods. Cuba’s major agriculture productions (which includes sugar, tobacco, citrus, coffee, beans, and a variety of other tropical fruits) reflect the tropical climate in which it exists. Out of these products, the production and processing of sugar cane is most vital to the economy in terms of land use, employment, and trade value.
The drought has caused millions of dollars in damage, and it is costing the government millions more in an attempt to alleviate the problem. Government aide has been spent digging 100 new wells, setting up stores, selling drinking water for low prices, building a water pipeline, and transporting food from unaffected regions. The pipeline, which cost $5 million, was finally opened on August 31 running 34 miles from Cauto River into Holguin City. It has provided some relief to the agricultural industry, but can only fulfill half of the city’s daily needs and it does not reach the countryside, where the economic problem is the worst.
In the cities, ration markets provide about 60 percent of the daily food consumption in Cuba. In 1994, the Cuban government established the Agricultural Farmers’ Markets, which allowed consumers to augment food supplies purchased at government ration outlets. The markets were also established to minimize “black market” food sales. The government establishes price ceilings which capped the costs of products and taxes consumers 7 percent on each sale. These markets represent the first step in a shift towards a market economy for food and agriculture (Farrell, 1). Despite the drought, and with the help of urban agriculture government, officials feel that people in Cuba are eating better and are healthier for the first time since the famine swept the island nation. The government likes to remind people that there are other Latin American countries where the situation is much worst. “ Cuba simply does not have the widespread hunger, destitution, and suffering that are commonplace in countries with much higher GDP per capita.” 
A Hurricane is a violent, long-lived cyclonic storm that originates in tropical latitudes, usually in late summer and early fall. A hurricane is a redistribution of heat: heat from the tropics, lower latitudes, is held in a hurricane and released at higher latitudes. The formation and sustaining of hurricanes is related to surface water temperature. A Hurricanes source is tropical, warm surface water. Water temperatures must be in excess of 80 degrees Fahrenheit, but warmer water creates more intense hurricanes. Surface water temperature is dependant on many factors: thermohaline circulation, El Nino, La Nina and global warming. These three factors are interrelated, all dependant on one another.
Warmer temperatures at the lower latitudes cause more ocean evaporation. When water is evaporated, the salt is left behind creating saltier water. Increased salinity raises the water’s density, and thus the rate at which it sinks. These differences in water temperature and salinity create circulation. Water surface temperature is directly related to the temperature of the region. Therefore, warmer waters are found where the temperature is warmer, the tropics. Without circulation, this conveyor belt moving warm water around the world stops and the waters will cool creating glacial caps and ultimately another ice age. The warm water in the tropics, sustained by thermohaline circulation, is the fuel for a hurricane. Higher water temperature and salinity create a stronger circulation. The stronger the thermohaline circulation, the warmer the waters of the Altlantic, and the more frequent and intense the hurricanes. 
Global warming is an increase in the average temperature of the Earth’s surface. The warming is attributed to the increase of greenhouse gases (GHG) in the atmosphere. Greenhouse gases allow for solar radiation to reach the earth, but the radiation given off by the earth is trapped by the GHGs creating a warmer environment. Global warming has created warmer temperatures on the earth, and warmer temperatures in the ocean water, which in turn increases the rate of flow in thermohaline circulation and consequently affects the warming or cooling of El Nino and La Nina. Also due to global warming, there are increases in the frequency and intensity of hurricanes. 
Tremendous amounts of rain fall because of the hurricane, usually from 10-15 inches. Storm surges can increase the water level up to 15 feet. The tremendous winds of the hurricane can create tornadoes that cause more destruction. Tracks of hurricanes are hard to predict and damage is severe. Hurricanes are categorized by wind speed, CAT I being 75-94 mph and CAT V with winds in excess of 155 mpg. 