Gonâve Island

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Gonâve Native name: Île de la Gonâve
Satellite view of Gonâve
Geography

Location	Haiti
Area	743 km² (287 m²)
Highest point	778 m
Administration
Haiti
Department	Ouest Department
Demographics
Population	100,000

Gonâve Island (French: Île de la Gonâve) is an island of Haiti located to the west-northwest of Port-au-Prince in the Gulf of Gonâve. The island is an arrondissement in the Ouest Department and includes the communes of Anse-à-Galets and Pointe-à-Raquette. Made up of mostly limestone, the reef-fringed island of Gonâve is 60 km (37 miles) long and 15 km (9 miles) wide and covers an area of 743 km² (287 sq. miles). The island is mostly barren and hilly with the highest point reaching 778 meters (2,552 feet). The island gets anywhere from 800mm to 1600mm of rain a year, higher areas representing the latter figure. Issues of overgrazing and water resource overexploitation affect the island's approximately 100,000 residents. The island was once used as a base for pirates.^[1]

[edit] Water Scarcity

La Gonâve is referred to as one of the water most scarce locations in the world. Residents on the western side of the island are known to walk 12-15 kilometers roundtrip to collect their water that is often brackish.

Dozens of wells have been drilled on the island as an effort to bring water relief to the poor residents of the island.

As of 2007, 8 water wells have been drilled on the island in an effort to meet the needs of the residents. The drilling of the wells has been completely sponsored through the Tougher Than Hell Motorcycle Rally, organized by Guts Church in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The drilling of more wells on the island has been planned for the near future.