Water was a motivating factor when we moved here. We wanted a climate that received a lot of rain for farming, and that would allow us to collect rain water for daily use. An article written by Rob earlier this year talks about how we have been able to obtain water by using the well of a neighbor. Our goal is to get to a point where we are using rain water collection for 100% of our water. However, learning the extent of this drought has been surprising and discouraging. There is a dry season here that typically lasts from February to April, but at the time of this writing, in August, extreme drought conditions exist. We are now at the beginning of hurricane season and have started to see some rain. It is amazing to see the change so quickly, and with so little water.

These photos were taken between June 27th to July 24th, during that time we received only 2.89 inches. It seems these pictures might be misleading because while we are now seeing greener vegetation, cisterns, wells, and ground water are still depleted.

Impact on the vegetation

In this region of St. Croix we have semi-deciduous dry forests, which need around 33 to 43 inches of rain a year. St. Croix averages around 50 inches of rain a year. It is worth noting that there is confusion about St. Croix having a rainforest, many people consider the forests on the west side of the island to be rainforests, however, they are not. Rainforests require between 79 and 394 inches of rain a year and St. Croix just doesn't get that. Driving down mahogany road can feel like a rainforest with florals and lush vegetation, however, it is technically a semi-deciduous forest. The closest rainforest to St. Croix and also a US territory is in Puerto Rico,El Yunque National Forest is a rainforest managed by the US forest service. Fortunately, in looking at the drought map linked above it appears that this part of Puerto Rico is not currently experiencing drought.

The impact of the drought on vegetation has been significant. The pictures below are the first and last photos of the video, and demonstrate this fairly well. Driving around the island in mid to late June was concerning. Parts of the island looked worse than this first photo, and watching live stock eat vegetation that protects top soil I wondered how much of it we were loosing.

Impact on Farming

Importing food to the island can be expensive and there has been a push in recent years to encourage local farming. I was surprised to learn while researching for this post that the VI government had been providing free water to farmers. Unfortunately, farmers are now being asked to conserve their water due to exceptional drought conditions. This change is undoubtedly difficult for farmers, especially those with livestock. A local sheep farmer told me that everyday he drives around with his flat bed trailer in case he sees someone selling hay. The grass where he has his sheep graze is depleted, and a lack of water prevents new grass from growing. He told me he has been seeing more and more dead sheep on his neighbors property and feels he cannot sell his livestock because they are too skinny for potential buyers.

It is not uncommon to see livestock or horses grazing on land that does not belong to the animals owner. About a month ago Rob and I were at our storage unit and the office manager came out and asked if we could help with a horse problem she had. Apparently, an unknown person had dropped their horses off at the lot adjacent to the storage facility and the horses had wandered into the gated parking lot. The office manager didn't know how to get the horses out and back into the field. We were able to help get the horses out, but continued to see the horses on the storage facilities property for about another month. When grazing on owner owned land is no longer possible, it seems any available grass is fair game.

Impact on island residents and ourselves

It has become a requirement that homes be built with cisterns in the Virgin Islands. For a single story dwelling it is required that a cistern have 10 gallon capacity for every square foot of roof. Many single family homes have a cistern below the home where they draw water for daily use. When the cistern runs dry it may be necessary to have water trucked in by one of the water companies on island. Water is sold in large quantities and can be expensive. We are currently using IBC totes with a water capacity of around 300 gallons, in calling around we learned that water suppliers on island do not sell water in quantities less than 3000 gallons. This is why we are not currently utilizing a water company. We have been able to direct water from the solar panels, and roof of the camper to collect water, and are using less than 100 gallons of water a week. Currently we are trying to only use the rain water we collect. However, we know we need more surface area for collection, and more storage if we are going to make it through a dry season. We hope to grow both over the next couple of months.