| Growing Pains in South America
Stephanie Joyce Abstract
South America's recent history is a paradox of growth and decay ; while national prosperity rises, continuing urban-rural migration, political and economic restructuring, and chaotic urban growth have seriously destabilized the region's environment. No serious environmental regulation has accompanied booms in agriculture, transportation, or consumption of energy and food resources, which have nearly doubled in the past 20 years. The result has been severe environmental degradation.  Clinging to the edge . Slums such as this one outside Lima, Peru have sprung up throughout South America as a result of mass migration to urban areas.
Photo credit: Armando Waak/ PAHO Uncontrolled urban growth has lead to spiraling air pollution and breakouts of diseases such as mosquito-borne dengue fever. Poor environmental controls have turned South America's abundant water supply into a health liability ; all told, South America pollutes almost 11 times more fresh water per capita than Europe. Industrial hazards are growing, too. The widespread, unregulated use of pesticides–the result of the push to expand agriculture, both for urban markets and for Latin America's growing export market–has lead to serious threats to agricultural workers of pesticide poisoning. Miners face environmental risks such as silicosis and exposure to mercury vapor. In addition, the environmental damage resulting from mine construction leads to increased transmission of malaria. Adjacent ecosystems and human populations are also exposed to mercury released in rivers. South American governments have sought to improve basic services in urban communities. But service providers and their customers are still in a learning curve, and most operate at a deficit. Plus, private and municipal water and wastewater providers, often financially unstable, have little incentive to extend the infrastructure to peripheral slum communities, where investment returns are uncertain. Leaders have begun to assemble an overall action plan for sustainable development. Some are counting on community-based programs to help poor populations gain access to health and utility services. Advances in multiple scientific disciplines may improve prediction of disease and disaster outbreaks. And international financial and aid institutions are focusing on multisector efforts. Ultimately, addressing Latin American environmental health problems may require acknowledging the long-term, as well as short-term, effects of rapid development.
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