To the average American, Puerto Rico is known for its beautiful beaches — and many hurricanes. It sounds as though Puerto Rico never catches a break from the havoc hurricanes bring. Within the last decade, the most destructive of these were Hurricanes Maria (2017), Irma (2017), and Fiona (2020). Although these hurricanes occurred between 2 and 5 years ago, the devastation in the country is still substantial. When such a catastrophic natural disaster occurs, the government tries to finance the hundreds of billions of dollars needed to fix infrastructure problems and fund citizens’ healthcare.
With the lackluster conditions within Puerto Rico after the hurricanes, it seems as though the US government does not provide enough money to Puerto Rico. But, 28 billion dollars were made available to Puerto Rico by the FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency), but only 19% has been used. Many factors play into this, including the disputes between FEMA and grant providers regarding how/where they plan on implementing the projects, inflation of project costs, and lack of resources and awareness to maintain disaster relief programs. To combat this, FEMA is working hard with Puerto Rico to make sure the money is being used in a way that will help those in need.
However, the money that is being used is often spent on fixing minor infrastructure problems. It is rather expensive to make many sustainable buildings, so they prioritize repairing tourist locations and emergency repairs. Repairing tourist locations gives the semblance of a well-functioning region, but the conditions are far from that. Today, most people know Puerto Rico due to their beaches, ignorant about what is actually going on. The majority of repairs are minor fixes, such as the clean-up of debris; this makes sure that Puerto Rico can return back as quickly as possible. People need places to stay and work, and without these simple fixes, Puerto Ricans would not be able to live their daily lives. Nevertheless, this only sets up the country for infrastructure failure because it fails to adequately prepare them in the case of another hurricane or tropical storm. The government cannot fabricate schools, hospitals, and buildings that would withstand the country’s unpredictable weather conditions. It makes it much harder to receive proper healthcare, especially for those affected by hurricanes, without the proper infrastructure to help all these people. All the money spent on emergency repairs is also almost wasted since these buildings do not survive in harsh conditions, leaving many devoid of resources, even without a hurricane.
Despite the latest hurricane in Puerto Rico being years ago, many are still unsure whether they will have access to electricity on a day-to-day basis. Hurricane Maria caused the longest blackout, lasting 11 months. The US government spent billions of dollars trying to make emergency repairs on the power grids. But, with Hurricane Fiona just years later, these weak grids were once again damaged. 3,000 people died after Maria, and most of these individuals died due to the lack of electricity. Electricity is not only used to browse the Internet or light our houses but it is also used to make sure food remains safe for longer periods. It is used to refrigerate medicines and power ventilators that provide vital oxygen. Not only is the lack of electricity fatal, but electricity bills in Puerto Rico are also almost twice as expensive as what mainland US residents pay. This makes energy more inaccessible to families.
But, when communities work together to solve a common problem, change happens with more strength. Petroleum-based energy sources, used by a majority of Puerto Ricans, are much more inefficient in comparison to renewable energy. Renewable energy can even provide a profit to these families that have been affected by the aftermaths of the hurricanes. Yet, it is not well recognized due to the lack of awareness. That is why a few individuals in the University Gardens neighborhood installed solar panels and urged many of their neighbors to do the same. They now, with CAMBIO PR, help the transition into renewable energy and ease the financial burden of this process so that they can bring this efficient solution to the unlit homes of Puerto Rico.
With their hard work, the U.S. Congress granted one billion dollars to help install more solar panels in less developed regions of Puerto Rico, with the money and resources to help install solar panels. Puerto Rico has much more going on behind the pretty beaches and flawless views. Puerto Rico is filled with people who rise together during their toughest battles to unite and help one another.
03/06/2023
Works Cited:
“Amid Power Outages, Puerto Rico Faces Critical Time on Its Energy Future.” NBCNews.com, NBCUniversal News Group, https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/puerto-rico-blackouts-power-grid-ailing-renewable-energy-rcna68754.
Office, U.S. Government Accountability. “Hurricane Recovery Can Take Years-but for Puerto Rico, 5 Years Show Its Unique Challenges.” U.S. GAO, 14 July 2022, https://www.gao.gov/blog/hurricane-recovery-can-take-years-puerto-rico-5-years-show-its-unique-challenges.
Vanasco, Jennifer. “When People Are Less Important than Beaches: Puerto Rican Artists at the Whitney.” NPR, NPR, 7 Jan. 2023, https://www.npr.org/2023/01/07/1144572043/puerto-rico-hurricane.
very nice article
Thank you, Krish!