Define desertification and also state its consequences.
Answers
Features and factors of desertification and drought
2. Desertification is a worldwide phenomenon: it affects about two-thirds of the countries of the world and one-third of the earth's land surface, on which approximately one billion people live. Desertification does not concern natural deserts, and can only occur on land which is vulnerable to the desertification process.
3. The vulnerability of land to desertification is mainly due to the climate, the topography, the state of the soil, the natural vegetation, and the ways in which these resources are used.
4. Climate affects the chemical and biological deterioration of the soil and conditions water and wind erosion. The state of the soil (texture, structure and chemical and biological properties) is the major vulnerability factor, particularly in the dry sub-humid zones where the influence of climatic factors is less predominant. Natural and cultivated vegetation plays an essential role in protecting the soil, particularly trees and bushes which, due to their long life and their capacity to develop powerful root systems, guarantee effective protection against soil degradation. Their disappearance considerably increases the vulnerability of the land to desertification.
5. Droughts occur frequently in the areas affected by desertification, and are generally a natural feature of the climate of such regions. The relations between desertification and drought on the one hand, and human influence on the other, are unknown and complex. Occasional droughts (due to seasonal or inter-year variations in rainfall) and long-term severe droughts can both be caused or aggravated by the influence of man on the environment (the reduction in vegetation cover, the change in the Albedo effect, changes in the local climate, the greenhouse effect, etc.). Human activities can, therefore, accelerate desertification and aggravate its negative consequences on people. Furthermore, land degradation can hasten the effects of drought by reducing the chances of local people to face difficult, dry periods.
6. 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. Furthermore, the destruction of soil cover encourages wind erosion.
7. The severeness of desertification depends on factors which vary from one region, country, or year to another. These include:
(i) the severity of the climatic conditions during the period considered (particularly in terms of annual rainfall);(ii) population pressure and the standard of living of the people involved;(iii) the level of the country's development, and the quality of the preventive measures taken.# Consequences at the local and national level
8. By impoverishing the natural potential of ecosystems, desertification also reduces agricultural yields and make them less predictable. It therefore has a bearing on the food security of people living in affected areas. In order to attend to their most urgent needs, the people develop a survival strategy which, in turn, aggravates desertification and impedes development.
9. The most immediate and frequent consequence of these survival attitudes is the increased overexploitation of accessible natural resources. This strategy is often accompanied by a breakdown in solidarity within the community and within families, which encourages individualism and exclusion. It often leads to conflicts between different ethnic groups, families and individuals.
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