Colombia’s anti-pandemic measures seen as fueling climate problems

Economic solutions Colombia is implementing to offset the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic could dampen the long-term prospects for confronting the climate crisis, according to environmental writer Gustavo Wilches.

“The proposals to overcome the economic crisis, which come from sectors with high decision-making powers, tend to increase the risk factors that created the climate crisis, with almost no exceptions,” Wilches, who teaches at the social and human sciences faculty at Externado University, told BNamericas.

Wilches also said that Colombia faces an uphill battle against climate change due to structural issues, such as weak institutions, continuous degradation of water sources and increasing deforestation.

To this adds the increasing number of assassinations of social and environmental activists, which can only be stopped if the 2016 peace agreement is fully implemented, Wilches said.

Last week, heavy rains hit the north, while the San Andrés archipelago was battered by hurricane Iota, which wreaked havoc on Providencia island. 

The main challenge to handle such climate risks is to “recover the rule of law,” according to Wilches. He said actors like farmers, indigenous communities, and rural residents have been excluded from discussions on the environment. But their participation is crucial to build local resilience against natural disasters, Wilches said.

Similarly, these excluded segments are also the most vulnerable to COVID-19. While most cases in Colombia are concentrated in urban areas, the International Labor Organization (ILO) said in June that rural areas will take the biggest hits from the economic fallout.

An ILO survey found that incomes for 34% of workers in several agricultural segments have decreased, while 47% said they can’t afford to buy enough food.