Case Study: drought in the Sahel

Question 1

What kind of a hazard region is the Sahel?

Answer 1

The Sahel is one of the world’s most vulnerable drought hazard regions.

Question 2

What is drought hazard?

Answer 2

Drought hazard can be defined as a condition of abnormally dry weather,

• resulting in a serious hydrological imbalance.

Question 3

What are the consequences for people?

Answer 3

The consequences for people can include loss of standing crops, water shortages for livestock and human populations, and damage to property.

Question 4

Why are droughts a ‘creeping hazard’?

Answer 4

They develop slowly, often over a period of months, and can have a prolonged existence - a period of many years, for major events.

Question 5

Where can their impact extend over?

Answer 5

Their impact may extend over thousands of square kilometres.

Question 6

What does drought have many similarities to?

Answer 6

Drought has many similarities to long-term degradation, -

and it is often difficult to tell when a drought ends and human-induced desertification begins

Question 7

Which areas are at risk of desertification?

Answer 7

Areas on the fringe of hot deserts

Question 8

What is desertification?

Answer 8

Desertification is the degradation of land, which becomes increasingly dry losing vegetation and wildlife.

Question 9

What is desertification caused by?

Answer 9

A variety of factors including climate change and the overexploitation of soil through human activity.

Question 10

Where can areas at risk from desertification be found?

Answer 10

Areas at risk from desertification are found in dry arid environments where the rainfall will be anywhere between 100 and 1000mm of rain a year.

Question 11

When will this rainfall arrive? What is this season called?

Answer 11

Despite some areas seeming to have enough yearly rainfall, this rainfall will often only arrive in the “wet season” leaving several months of the year with very little or no rainfall at all called the “dry season”.

Question 12

Where are the areas of desertification located next to?

see maps and images in binder!

Answer 12

Next to desert areas, as the air above the deserts will be dry and very stable,

• the air next to the deserts often lack moisture and the dry air over the desert will sometimes move into the fringes affecting these areas even further.

Question 13

What are the 4 variety of droughts types?

Answer 13

1. Meteorological drought
2. Hydrological drought
3. Agricultural drought
4. Famine drought

Question 14

What is a meteorological drought

Answer 14

this involves a straightforward shortfall in precipitation. There is often no direct ecological or economic impact, and no effective human response.

aka rainfall deficit

Question 15

What is a. hydrological drought

Answer 15

this mostly involves water resources in rivers and lakes and urban water supplies.

responses from local authorities and water authorities may involve managing the supply of, and demand for, water- e.g hosepipe bans in the UK.

aka stream flow deficit

Question 16

What is an agricultural drought?

Answer 16

evidenced by widespread regional effects in more economically developed countries, and mostly affecting farm production.

direct responses are typically at a national level, involving compensation or similar measures.

aka soil moisture deficit

Question 17

What is a famine drought?

see and analyze great image in binder

Answer 17

this is the most severe type of hazard, which results in deaths from starvation. It is mostly confined to less economically developed countries which are dependent on subsistence the Sahel, occurring annually from agriculture.

aka food deficit

Question 18

Where is the Sahel?

Answer 18

The Sahel is a band crossing Africa from west to east, it lies directly south of the Sahara Desert.

Question 19

The environment is fragile in the Sahel due te the rainfall. Describe the rainfall in the Sahel

Answer 19

It is a fragile environment as it receives very little rainfall which can vary year to year. Some years are “wet” whilst others can be very “dry”.

Question 20

What has been put under pressure because of the changing environmentent?

Answer 20

people and the ecosystem under immense pressure.

Question 21

What does Sahel mean in Arabic?

Answer 21

Sahel is an Arabic word meaning ‘fringe’, or the ‘edge of the desert’.

Question 22

How far does this area extend?

Answer 22

This area extends over 2.5 million sq. km of the African continent, between latitudes 13”N and 17”N.

Question 23

What is the annual mean temperature in the Sahel, and the precipitation?

Answer 23

The annual mean temperature is 28°C to 30°C and the annual precipitation averages 250-500mm.

Question 24

The region is ….wet/dry…. with a …short/long… rainy season from July- Sept

Answer 24

The region is dry, with a short rainy season from July to September.

Question 25

Is the population dense in the Sahel?

Answer 25

It is an area of relatively high population densities and widespread subsistence economies, and it is extremely vulnerable to drought.

aka wonen te veel mensen, ruilhandel, droughts, kut dus

Question 26

what is a subsistence economy?

Answer 26

An economy which is not based on money,

in which buying and selling are absent or rudimentary

though barter (ruilhandel) may occur, and which commonly provides a minimal standard of living

aka middle ages

Question 27

What does the human impact on drought depend on?

Answer 27

The human impact of drought depends on the extent to which a particular society relies upon the climate to make a living.

Question 28

Why are the worst impacts of drought felt in the Sahel?

Answer 28

Because societies are organised simply, and dry conditions are prolonged.