Desertification

Question 1

Outline the distribution of deserts around the world

Answer 1

• approximately 40% of the world can be classified as dry lands
• globally, 1.9 million hectares of land is degraded, this has a negative impact on 1.5 billion people

Question 2

What is desertification? Describe the process.

Answer 2

Desertification is the loss of previously productive land in specific dry land regions of the world - a process of land becoming more arid and desert like.

Question 3

What are the geographical characteristics of drylands?

Answer 3

• water scarcity
• precipitation : in arid or semiarid zones more water is evaporated than falls each year
• very windy environments
• frequent dust storms
• support 44% of the worlds food production
• 50% of the worlds livestock
• home to one third of the worlds population

Question 4

Name one example of the following factors that impact desertification:

• economic
• social
• environmental
• political

Answer 4

ECONOMIC
- poverty is both a cause and a consequence

SOCIAL
- population growth
Eg. Across the Sahal region of Africa the population increased by 30% in just ten years (2000-2010) increasing the need for dry land to provide food, water, ect

ENVIRONMENTAL
- prolonged drought
Eg. The drought in the Sahal region of Africa in 2014 effected the livelihoods of 20 million people.

POLITICAL
- governments under pressure to provide even the basic human needs, therefore, environmental concerns get little attention or money allocated to them

Question 5

Name an area that is suffering from desertification .
Outline one reason for this
Outline one impact of this

Answer 5

Niger
Over the past 20 years Niger has experienced four severe droughts and three catastrophic droughts.
The 2010 drought saw the loss of 25.5% of the country’s cattle population (the second most important export after uranium), 37% of sheep, 31% of goats and 3% of camels.

Question 6

Name and describe a global response to desertification. Why or why want this response effective?

Answer 6

• In 1994 the United Nations Convention for Combatting Desertification (UNCCD) was formed.
• Primarily, the UNCCD initiated action and encourages regions and individual countries to develop their own action plans for preventing dry land degradation and mitigating the effects of drought in affected areas.
• the program was successful in signing agreements by 194 countries, raising awareness (eg. World Desertification Day on 17 June every year).
• limiting factors include the fact that desertification has not been halted, the number of countries suffering dry land degradation has increased from 110 in 1990 to 168 in 2013.