Environment in Guyana

1.0 Introduction


The Guyanese environment has seen a change in the past few centuries, particularly on the coast. The coast originally a vast swamp land, has been transformed into solid ground by past colonizers especially the Dutch. The interior is largely unchanged except for forestry and mining activities in various locations, which to date has not taken any notably serious toll on the ecosystem or the visible environment.

1.1 Urban environment

The current state of the environment in Guyana, both in rural and urban areas is an issue taken up by concerned citizens and groups. The state of the capital city of Georgetown is seen by many to have deteriorated since independence when it was widely acclaimed as the Garden City. Problems with waste disposal, land use, traffic congestion, drainage are some of the issues plaguing Georgetown as well as other towns in the country.
Urban environment.

1.2 Rural and hinderland environment

The less developed and populated areas of Guyana's hinderland and rural areas don't share all of the problems of the cities and towns, except maybe the issue of waste management. Rural communities seem to be experiencing difficulty in managing this issue. As more people consume greater amounts of canned and packaged goods, the piles of garbage grow. Hence today, local authorities are challenged with a greater volume of waste than in the past ( when very little was thrown away, and most waste was biodegradeable). The lack of resources and expertise available to these authorities contribute to the complexity of the issue.

In the hinterland, the concentration of settlements is low and the villages mostly of Indigenous people are widely dispersed. In many remote locations consumption of non traditional products is relatively low and thus the amount of waste produced is less. However in bigger villages that serve as a meeting point for many hinterland dwellers and visitors, which take in more manufactured goods as well as host market places may have bigger problem than remote villages.

Apart from solid waste, in the hinterland many issues abound. The siltation and chemical pollution of rivers due to mining and logging activities are fairly common, especially siltation which is caused by active dredging activities along river banks. There is also a threat to biodiversity from these activities of mining and logging. As a direct development of mining and logging is the building of roads and  villages which also impact on wildlife as well as that of the lives of the Indigenous peoples.
 
 

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