Question

Interventions that the south African government employs to deal with environmental degradation in south Africa

Answer 1

There are actions that the South African Government has put in place to deal with degradation of the environment. The major degradation faced in South Africa are soil degradation and vegetation degradation which has resulted in degradation of water catchment areas like dams, rivers and estuaries. Degradation of environment has led to the drop of local agricultural production and also has caused significant effects to the South African economy.

The major causes of environmental degradation are:
1. Mining
2. Poor land use planning
3. Drought and rainfall inconsistency
4. Land use and management
5. Socio-economic factors like historical land policies

Intervention Employed By The South African Government:

1. Conservation tillage:- This is the production of environmentally friendly crops which results in agronomic, environmental and economic benefits.

2. The Integrated Sustainable Rural Development Programme, Landcare and the Comprehensive Agricultural Support Programme:- These are mainly programmes that  have been put in place to manage soil resource.

3. United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification and National Action Programme (UNCCD):- UNCCD is an international organization that tackles land degradation among other issues. In South Africa it has been tackling the issue of desertification

4. Sub-regional action programme – New Partnership for Africa’s Development:- Tackles issue of drought, desertification, land degradation more so that that cross national boundaries.