Hurricane Maria Exposes Puerto Rico’s Stark Environmental and Health Inequalities
As Puerto Rico faces hurricane induced devastation, the “Just Environments” series publishes an essay by Alexa Dietrich, Adriana Maria Garriga-López, situating the current catastrophe within broader historical context. Viewing it as an unnatural disaster, the authors point to a confluence of postcolonial industrialization, lax environmental regulation, and the privatization of utilities, which have all contributed to the island’s deteriorating infrastructure. Moving forward, they advocate for sustainable economic development and reliable public services as means of strengthening already-existing resilient and adaptive capacities.
by Alexa S. Dietrich, Adriana Maria Garriga-López, and Claudia Sofia Garriga-Lopez
October 3, 2017