Africa is the continent most affected by desertification, and one of the most obvious natural borders on the landmass is the southern edge of the Sahara desert. The countries that lie on the edge of the Sahara are among the poorest in the world, and they are subject to periodic droughts that devastate their peoples.
What part of the world is affected by desertification?
Drylands encompass around 38% of the Earth’s land area, covering much of North and southern Africa, western North America, Australia, the Middle East and Central Asia . Drylands are home to approximately 2.7 billion people (pdf) – 90% of whom live in developing countries.
Which countries have the most desertification?
This situation is acute in Somalia, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Kenya , where the combination of weak governments and a lack of annual rains linked to climate change are driving desertification levels.
What are 3 causes of 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.
How can desertification be prevented?
- Planting more trees – the roots of trees hold the soil together and help to reduce soil erosion from wind and rain.
- Improving the quality of the soil – this can be managed by encouraging people to reduce the number of grazing animals they have and grow crops instead.
What is Australia doing to stop desertification?
What is Australia doing to combat desertification. The Indigenous Protected Areas (IPAs) program , in conjunction with the Working on Country Indigenous Ranger Programme, is one of the leading initiatives addressing environmental degradation in Australia. The IPA programme currently protects almost 70 million hectares.
How can desertification affect humans?
Land degradation and desertification can affect human health through complex pathways . As land is degraded and deserts expand in some places, food production is reduced, water sources dry up and populations are pressured to move to more hospitable areas. ... the spread of infectious diseases as populations migrate.
Why is desertification bad?
Desertification affects topsoil, groundwater reserves, surface runoff, human, animal, and plant populations . Water scarcity in drylands limits the production of wood, crops, forage, and other services that ecosystems provide to our community.
What is the main cause of 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.
Where is desertification occurring today?
Africa is the simple answer to the question: where is desertification happening? More specifically, desertification plays its largest role in the grasslands of East Africa , the Kalahari Desert and the Sahara Desert. These regions span over 65 percent of the land.
Which could cause topsoil to be lost?
Top soil can be lost by water erosion, wind erosion, and plowing .
Can we reverse desertification?
In order to prevent and reverse desertification, major policy interventions and changes in management approaches are needed . ... In areas where desertification processes are at the early stages or are relatively minor, it is possible to stop the process and restore key services in the degraded areas.
What is the impact of desertification?
Desertification has caused major environmental and socioeconomic problems in many arid and semiarid areas of the world 1 . It causes soil degradation and severely reduces potential land productivity 2 – 4 , which causes degradation of the ecosystem and its associated ecosystem services.
How does desertification affect the economy?
The impact of desertification on the socio-economic life of rural households leads to reduction in crop and animal production , as well as causing, livestock deaths and rise in the prices of foodstuffs.
Is Australia affected by desertification?
Desertification in some form is estimated to have occurred over about 42% of the 5 million km(2) of arid and semiarid lands in Australia. ... Desertification continues to be a problem, especially during droughts when grazing pressures reduce ground cover, laying bare landscapes to wind and water erosion.
Why is there desertification in Australia?
ABSTRACT: In Australia, desertification tends to be associated with land degradation in the range- lands . It results from unsustainable land use and the impact of European settlement, rather than chang- ing climate. Desertification can, however, be exacerbated or triggered by climate variability.
