Environmental practices and the vulnerability of rural livelihoods to natural disasters : the differential impacts of Hurricane Janet and Hurricane Ivan upon mangrove-dependent livelihoods in Grenada

Abstract

In this thesis I respond to one of Ian Scoones' (2009) identified failures of livelihoods perspectives: a lack of rigorous attempts to deal with long-term change in environmental conditions. I seek to address the increasing prevalence of natural disasters, given, the impediments they pose to development pursuits, and do so through the lens of a hybrid theoretical framework that combines perspectives from the livelihoods framework and political ecology. In order to inform strategies to reduce the impacts of natural disasters, this thesis explores the role of environmental practices in influencing the vulnerability of rural livelihoods to such occurrences. Field research was conducted in Grenada in communities located between Telescope Point and Artiste Point on the east coast in the Parish of St. Andrew's. The events of Hurricane Janet (1955) and Hurricane Ivan (2004) are compared, with the differentiating factor between them being the intensity in which beach sand was extracted; with small-scale sand removal occurring in the Hurricane Janet era, and large-scale, capital-intensive sand mining taking place in the Hurricane Ivan era. It is found that mangroves recovered far more quickly following Hurricane Janet than Hurricane Ivan, and in turn, so too did the viability of mangrove-dependent livelihoods; thereby, revealing the influence of environmental practices on the vulnerability of rural livelihoods to natural disasters.