What Factors Can Lead To Desertification In The Presence Of Natural Drought?

Overgrazing is the major cause of desertification worldwide. Other factors that cause desertification include urbanization, climate change, overuse of groundwater, deforestation, natural disasters, and tillage practices in agriculture that make soils more vulnerable to wind.

Which of the following factors can lead to desertification in the presence of natural drought quizlet?

The factors that can contribute to the process of desertification include human activities like overgrazing, deforestation, surface land mining , and poor irrigation techniques, during a natural time of drought.

Which of the following can lead to desertification?

Human activities that contribute to desertification include the expansion and intensive use of agricultural lands, poor irrigation practices, deforestation, and overgrazing . These unsustainable land uses place enormous pressure on the land by altering its soil chemistry and hydrology.

Which of the following is a natural contribution to desertification?

Both natural variability in climate and global warming can also affect rainfall patterns around the world, which can contribute to desertification. Rainfall has a cooling effect on the land surface, so a decline in rainfall can allow soils to dry out in the heat and become more prone to erosion.

What are the causes of drought?

Droughts are caused by low precipitation over an extended period of time . Atmospheric conditions such as climate change, ocean temperatures, changes in the jet stream, and changes in the local landscape are all factors that contribute to drought.

What are the causes of drought and desertification in South Africa?

Whereas over cultivation, inappropriate agricultural practices, overgrazing and deforestation have been previously identified as the major causes of land degradation and desertification, it is in fact a result of much deeper underlying forces of socio-economic nature, such as poverty and total dependency on natural ...

How does sedimentation affect bodies of water quizlet?

How does sedimentation affect bodies of water? Sedimentation causes increased turbidity , which results in lower levels of light being able to pass through bodies of water. This leads to lower plant production.

How can global warming lead to changes to the Earth’s surface quizlet?

Global warming can lead to changes to the Earth’s surface through the melting of glaciers . This can lead to rising sea levels, causing flooding. Antarctica’s land mass is being decreased by the process.

What is meant by sustainability quizlet?

Sustainability. The ability to sustain ; the ability to continue a defined behavior indefinitely. Environmental Sustainability. Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Which of these are causes of desertification quizlet?

What causes desertification? Over cultivation, overgrazing, deforestation, slash and burn, climate change .

What is desertification give two reasons for desertification?

‘Climatic variations’ and ‘Human activities’ can be regarded as the two main causes of desertification. removal of the natural vegetation cover(by taking too much fuel wood) , agricultural activities in the vulnerable ecosystems of arid and semi-arid areas, which are thus strained beyond their capacity.

What causes desertification in South Africa?

Poverty-related agricultural practices are a major contributor to desertification. Continuous cultivation without adding supplements, overgrazing, lack of soil and water conservation structures, and indiscriminate bushfires aggravate the process of desertification.

What are the physical causes of desertification?

• Climate change – especially long dry periods, causing drought. ...
• Too many animals within the area – leads to overgrazing .
• Population growth – traditional, less intensive, methods of farming decline.

What causes desertification in the Sahel?

But since the late 1960s, the Sahel has endured an extensive and severe drought. Desertification occurs when land surfaces are transformed by human activities , including overgrazing, deforestation, surface land mining, and poor irrigation techniques, during a natural time of drought.

What is the main cause of deforestation in Madhya Pradesh?

Deforestation is the chief reason for land degradation in Madhya Pradesh. As a result of urbanization and industrialization, a lot of forests and forest areas have been delegated for other purposes like agriculture, river valley projects, industries and townships, roads, etc.

What are 5 causes of drought?

• 1) Land and water temperatures cause drought. ...
• 2) Air circulation and weather patterns also cause drought. ...
• 3) Soil moisture levels also contribute to drought. ...
• 4) Drought can also be a supply and demand of water issue.

What natural factors cause droughts?

A lack of water in stores such as rivers, lakes, reservoirs and aquifers (water stored underground naturally) can lead to drought. Areas that rely on rainfall and surface water are more likely to experience drought. Surface water quickly evaporates in warm, dry conditions leading to an increased risk of drought.

What are the causes of drought in Africa?

The African drought cycles have a noticeable ‘natural’ component: they are partly caused by geophysical phenomena that make the continent’s humidity fluctuate . Unfortunately, in addition to these phenomena, emissions of greenhouse gases from human activities have led to serious droughts amplified by global warming.

What are the 10 causes of drought?

• Lack of rainfall which is likely to cause drought.
• Deforestation as a result of cutting down of trees.
• Drying out of rivers and lakes.
• Global warming.
• Weather patterns as well as air circulation.
• Depletion of soil moisture level.

What are the causes of drought in South?

Drought in South Africa caused by El Niño, human action and climate change . The present drought in Cape Town has been caused by extremely poor rainfall in recent months, with the result that the water supplies are under enormous pressure.

What are the effects of drought and desertification in South Africa?

How does sedimentation affect bodies of water?

Sediment deposits in rivers can alter the flow of water and reduce water depth, which makes navigation and recreational use more difficult. soil particles that settle at the bottom of a body of water. ... Wind, water and ice help carry these particles to rivers, lakes and streams.

What are erosions caused by?

Erosion is the geological process in which earthen materials are worn away and transported by natural forces such as wind or water . ... Most erosion is performed by liquid water, wind, or ice (usually in the form of a glacier). If the wind is dusty, or water or glacial ice is muddy, erosion is taking place.

What is the impact of erosion and sedimentation on aquatic resources?

The environmental impacts of sedimentation include the following: loss of important or sensitive aquatic habitat, decrease in fishery resources, loss of recreation attributes, loss of coral reef communities, human health concerns, changes in fish migration, increases in erosion , loss of wetlands, nutrient balance ...

How can global warming lead to changes to the earth’s surface?

How Will Global Warming Change Earth? The impact of increased surface temperatures is significant in itself. ... Warming modifies rainfall patterns , amplifies coastal erosion, lengthens the growing season in some regions, melts ice caps and glaciers, and alters the ranges of some infectious diseases.

How is global warming different from earlier changes in Earth’s climate quizlet?

What’s the difference between global warming and climate change? Global warming is the increase of the Earth’s average surface temperature due to build-up of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere . Climate change is a broader term that refers to long-term changes in climate, including average temperature and precipitation.

What do environmental scientists mean by sustainable development?

sustainable development. economic development that meets the need of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generation to meet their own needs .

How do conservation tillage practices in agriculture benefit the soil quizlet?

Conservation tillage practices reduce the amount of water required to grow crops . ... Conservation tillage practices help reduce soil erosion and maintain soil nutrient levels.

What is desertification geology quizlet?

Desertification. The spread of deserts into semi-arid areas due to climatic changes and human activities . Desertification lead to. A decline in land productivity.

How do greenhouse gases cause climate warming quizlet?

⦁ The warm surface of the Earth gives off infrared waves . Greenhouse gases block many of these infrared waves, keeping them inside our atmosphere and heating up the Earth. ... When snow melts, the darker exposed surface of the earth absorbs more sunlight, causing the Earth to heat up.

What are some human activities that degrade natural capital?

Rapid urbanization and infrastructure expansion, excessive water extraction and land conversion for agriculture and industry, unsustainable aquaculture, and fossil fuel use for energy and transport have, among other human activities, degraded the region’s natural capital and increased global greenhouse gas emissions ...

Which of the following is the greatest cause of extinction today?

The single biggest cause of extinction today is habitat loss . Agriculture, forestry, mining, and urbanization have disturbed or destroyed more than half of Earth’s land area.

What is the process of desertification quizlet?

Desertification: the process of fertile land transforming into desert typically as a result of deforestation and dought, improper agricultural practices.

How drought and desertification affect the economy?

In the province more than R5 billion was lost to the economy, largely due to the drought. ... From 2015 to 2017 South Africa’s economic grew by a mere 1.1% average per annum, with the agricultural sector growing at a rate of less than 0.5%.

What is drought geography?

Droughts occur when there is abnormally low rainfall for an extended period of time . This means that a desert would not be considered in drought unless it had less rainfall than normal, for a long period of time. Droughts can last from weeks to months and even years.

What type of erosion causes desertification?

Wind erosion leads to land desertification. Wind erosion is undermining the soil by moving it from one place to another. It’s a ‘natural process’ where wind power blows loose particles, soil, sediments, stones, debris, and more from one location to another.

What are the causes and consequences of desertification?

Climatic disturbances may be both a consequence and a cause of desertification. The destruction of the natural grass and woody vegetation cover in dry lands affects the topsoil temperature and air humidity, and thus influences the movements of atmospheric masses and rainfall.

What is the deforestation causes?

Direct causes of deforestation are agricultural expansion, wood extraction (e.g., logging or wood harvest for domestic fuel or charcoal), and infrastructure expansion such as road building and urbanization. ... But roads also provide entry to previously inaccessible—and often unclaimed—land.

How does poor irrigation lead to desertification?

Salinisation occurs when the water in soils evaporates in high temperatures, drawing salts from the soil to the surface. These salts are toxic to many plants and make the land unusable. ... Irrigation of land – when water is brought to land that is naturally dry – can cause salinisation on desert margins.

What are the 3 main causes of desertification in Africa?

• Animal grazing is a huge problem for many areas that are starting to become desert biomes. ...
• Climate change plays a huge role in desertification. ...
• Soil pollution is a significant cause of desertification. ...
• Mining is another big reason for desertification. ...
• Desertification.
• Land Degradation.

What is the most dominant natural factor affecting the environment of the African continent?

Deforestation . The large scale felling of trees and the resulting decreases in forest areas are the main environmental issues of the African Continent. Rampant clearing of forests and land conversion goes on for agriculture, settlement and fuel needs.