In 2013-2016, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the European Commission (EC) implemented a pilot demonstration project on Ecosystem-based Disaster Risk Reduction (Eco-DRR) in Haiti. The Eco-DRR project aimed to reduce disaster risks in the Municipality of Port Salut through a landscape or ridge-to-reef approach. The pilot demonstration project in Port Salut provided a practical example of Ecosystem-based Disaster Risk Reduction (Eco-DRR) in a coastal area. The project aimed to demonstrate how Eco-DRR measures could mitigate hazards, and reduce exposure and vulnerabilities to disasters, thereby contributing to disaster risk reduction in Port Salut.

On 19 August 2006, the ship Probo Koala off-loaded 528 cubic meters of liquid wastes in the port of Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. The material was transferred onto tanker trucks operated by a local contractor, and dumped in twelve different locations around the city. In June 2012, UN Environment received a formal request from the Government of Côte d’Ivoire to undertake an independent and scientific environmental audit of the sites that were impacted by the dumping of wastes of the Probo Koala. The Government wished for UN Environment to determine whether the sites continued to pose risks for the environment or for public health, and to make recommendations about additional or corrective clean-up measures that would need to be carried out in case contamination was detected.

UNEP conducted a technical mission to study both the technical and institutional issues associated with solid waste management in Liberia. The mission was hosted by the EPA and undertaken between 17– 27 June 2007. This report summarizes its findings.

This publication provides a snapshot of the acute and chronic environmental issues facing the country and UNEP’s efforts to help resolve them. It gives an insight into the types of activities and challenges that UNEP and its partners have to deal with in such a post-disaster setting, and sets out lessons learned so that UNEP itself – and other environmental organizations – can better understand and prepare to assist in the event of future major crises.