Desertification

From WaterWiki.net

Title

Desertification

Description/Definition

The process of degrading of the biological potential of land from a combination of adverse climate and excessive human exploitation, leading ultimately to desert-like conditions.

Facts and Figures

DID YOU KNOW...? FACTS AND FIGURES ABOUT DESERTIFICATION

• Desertification has been defined as land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas resulting from various factors, including climatic variations and human activities.
• Desertification directly affects over 250 million people. It threatens the lives of some 1.2 billion people in 110 countries who are among the world’s poorest and who depend on land for most of their needs.
• A third of the Earth’s land surface, or over 4 billion hectares, is threatened by desertification.
• Each year, desertification and drought cause an estimated US$ 42 billion in lost agricultural production worldwide. The annual cost of fighting land degradation is estimated at US$ 2.4 billion.
• The consequences of desertification include:

- diminished food production, reduced soil productivity and a decrease in the land’s natural resilience

- increased downstream flooding, reduced water quality, sedimentation in rivers and lakes, and the siltation of reservoirs and navigation channels

- aggravated health problems due to wind-blown dust, including eye infections, respiratory illnesses, allergies, and mental stress

- loss of livelihoods forcing affected people to migrate.

• In the developing world, the total land area affected by desertification is estimated at between 6 and 12 million km2 (for comparison, the countries of Brazil, Canada and China are all between 8 and 10 million km2).
• Desertification is found to some degree on 30% of irrigated lands, 47% of rain-fed agricultural lands, and 73% of rangelands. Annually, an estimated 1.5 to 2.5 million hectares of irrigated land, 3.5 to 4 million hectares of rainfed agricultural land, and about 35 million hectares of rangeland lose all or part of their productivity due to land degradation.
• In Africa alone, 36 countries are affected by desertification or by land degradation, and an estimated 75% of the continent’s farmland is rapidly losing the basic nutrients needed to grow crops.

Publications related to desertification

• UNESCO Courier on ‘Desertification: Turning back the sands of time?’

By the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), © UNESCO 2006.

In the 1950s, scientists thought that technology could green the world's deserts. Today, technological optimism has been replaced by realism and concern. On the occasion of an international conference on the future of drylands to be held in Tunis on 19-21 June 2006, this edition of the UNESCO Courier is dedicated to the topic of desertification. [1]

• Global Deserts Outlook

By the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), © UNEP 2006.

The Global Deserts Outlook, launched on 5 June 2006, during the World Environment Day, is the first thematic report in the Global Environment Outlook (GEO) series of environmental assessments by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). This GEO report, prepared by experts from across the globe, traces the history and astonishing biology of the deserts and assesses likely future changes. [2]

Chapter 4 on the ‘State and Trends of the World’s Deserts’ analyzes trends in land use and land degradation in deserts, impact of land degradation and responses, among other topics.[3]

Links

• United Nations Statistics Division Environmental Glossary [4]

• UNEP’s ‘Facts About Deserts and Desertification’ [5]

• UNESCO Courier on Desertification (June, 2006) [6]

• International Year of Deserts and Desertification (2006) website [7]

• Secretariat of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) [8]

The UNCCD entered into force on 26 December 1996 and was established by the United Nations General Assembly to assist the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INCD) in the negotiation of the Convention to Combat Desertification and the preparation for the sessions of the Conference of the Parties (COP).

Official documents, action programmes, meetings, publications are available in this website.

• 2006 - International Year of Deserts and Desertification (IYDD [9]

At its 58th session, the United Nations General Assembly declared 2006 to be the International Year of Deserts and Desertification (IYDD). In so doing, the General Assembly underlines its deep concern for the exacerbation of desertification, particularly in Africa, and notes its far-reaching implications for the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) which must be met by 2015.

This website contains information on the IYDD, news, events, links and publications.

• Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) website on desertification[10]

This website aims to assist national, regional and international stakeholders and networks involved in sustainable development of drylands, in particular, the implementation of the UNCCD. The website contains technical and scientific data and information, available at FAO, as well as links to a number of highly informative websites on desertification.

• World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) website on Desertification [11]

This website explains what is desertification and droughts, and describe the WMO's strategy and activities in the field of desert.

• The Water Links Section of the UNESCO Water Portal provides a single interactive access point to water related websites around the world. [12]

Source (s)

Thia article is based on the UNESCO WATER PORTAL WEEKLY NEWSLETTER No. 144: DESERTIFICATION, 16 June 2006