PARKS, RESETTLEMENT, AND POPULATION - A CASE-STUDY IN THE DOMINICAN-REPUBLIC

A survey of 139 men and 123 women in four communities bordering Los Haitises National Park in the Dominican Republic was undertaken in late 1992. The survey followed a presidential decree ordering the army to clear the forest of people and cattle, and to resettle a number of villages. Some of the findings were as follows. Use of the forest for firewood and cash crop cultivation was admitted by most of the population, but there was also an awareness of the need to conserve the forest and an expressed willingness to compromise on its use. However, awareness of park boundaries and an appreciation of the concept of a national park were less evident. Villagers welcome rapid population growth and women favor (and have) large families despite high rates of sterilization. Nearly everyone is opposed to resettlement and favors community participation in programs to alleviate pressures on the park. In addition to providing housing and services, a resettlement program will have to find adequate substitutes for current park activities that provide cash income. Few of a battery of social indicators such as gender, age, or socioeconomic status showed much relation to use of the park or to attitudes toward conservation, other than community and religion.