Desertification

The observed distribution of different aridity levels, based on data for 1981-2010. Shading colour indicates regions defined as cold (grey), humid (green), dry subhumid (red), arid (dark orange), semiarid (pale orange) and hyperarid (pale yellow), Image: Map produced by the European Commission’s Joint Research Unit. Status of desertification in arid regions of the world. Image: Taken from Dregne, H. E. (1977) Desertification of arid lands, Economic Geography, Vol. 53(4): pp.322-331. © Clark University, reprinted by permission of Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group, www.tandfonline.com on behalf of Clark University. Global Assessment of Human-induced Soil Degradation (GLASOD). Shading indicates type of degradation: chemical (red), wind (yellow), physical (purple) and water (blue), with darker shading showing higher levels of degradation. Image: Source: Oldeman, L. R., Hakkeling, R. T. A. and Sombroek, W. G. (1991) World Map of the Status of Human-Induced Soil Degradation: An explanatory note(rev. ed.), UNEP and ISRIC, Wageningen. Map showing “convergence of evidence” of 14 land degradation risks from the third edition of the World Atlas of Desertification. Shading indicates the number of coincident risks. The areas with the fewest are shown in blue, which then increase through green, yellow, orange and the most in red. Image: Credit: Publication Office of the European Union

What is desertification and why is it a problem? Causes of desertification Examples of desertification How to stop desertification? What is desertification and why is it a problem? According to article 1 of the desertification definition is the natural phenomenon which refers to the degradation of arid land areas, semi-arid land, and sub-humid drylands resulting from various factors such as climatic variations and human activity. Due to climatic variations and human activity, deterioration of vegetation can occur, as well as soil erosion and population migrations. What is the difference between desert places and desertification? Deserts are naturally occurring places that are very dry, have low sporadic rainfall, and seasonal high temperatures. Desertification is the process of productive or arable land being degraded into desert-like conditions largely due to human activity. Causes of desertification Although there are numerous causes of desertification, almost all are attributable to man and inadequate agricultural practices. Some of the human causes of desertification include: • Deforestation; • Over exposure of the earth and excessive grazing of livestock (excessively exploiting vegetable resources of a surface); • The absence of fallow land in the farmland cycle, which doesn’t allow agricultural land to replenish itself; • The depletion of the water table; • Mining. The natural causes of desertification are all extreme climate phenomena related to climate change (recu...

Desertification poses a serious challenge to sustainable development and humanity’s ability to survive in many areas of the world. The UNCCD’s goal is a future that avoids, reduces, and reverses desertification. Our work paves the way for a land degradation neutral world, one that fosters sustainable development to achieve the goals set in the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.​ Humanity needs productive land. Yet the desertification and the mounting losses of productive land driven by human action and climate change have the potential to change the way billions of people will live, both now and later in this century.​ The warming global climate means desertification poses a challenge across the world, especially in existing drylands. As the global population increases, ever-larger areas are devoted to intensive agriculture. Widely, excessive irrigation erodes precious soil and depletes aquifers, especially in arid areas. ​ Currently, about 500 million people live within areas that have experienced desertification since the 1980s. People living in already degraded or desertified areas are increasingly negatively affected by climate change.​ Desertification aggravates existing economic, social, and environmental problems like poverty, poor health, lack of food security, biodiversity loss, water scarcity, forced migration, and lowered resilience to climate change or natural disasters.​ Addressing desertification requires long-term integrated strategies that focus ...

Desertification was described as “the greatest environmental challenge of our time” by the UN’s top drylands official in 2010, Luc Gnacadja. Since the early 1980s, a quarter of the planet’s inhabitable land has been despoiled; now, climate change is making things worse. Earth.Org takes a closer look. — What is Desertification? JOIN THE MOVEMENT TODAY Desertification is quite hard to define, but generally speaking, it is the process by which lands become infertile through a variety, and often a combination of mechanisms. One of these is soil erosion, by which it is stripped of nutrient-rich topsoil by the action of wind, water and waves, all natural processes which are exacerbated by poor agricultural practices that leave the land bare. Overuse of fertilizers can leave the ground acidified, just as saltwater intrusion can leave it salinated. And finally, climate change can make droughts too intense, and wildfires too frequent for the land to bear. Where Desertification is Happening Desertification is assailing the world’s arable lands. Increased drought, poor land-use decisions and bad agricultural practices leaves much of our land open to erosion, nutrient loss and other problems, eventually leaving it infertile. Most of the world’s soil is currently in degraded condition, and this could rapidly become the biggest environmental problem on earth. We used the Normalized Differentiated Vegetation Index (NDVI), a remote sensing technique, to look at the loss of greenery in som...