Desertification

Process of desertification

Desertification does not happen overnight; it is a process that usually takes time to develop. So, how does this happen?

We start with a non-desert, with fertile soil, flora, fauna, and water retention. When something disturbs the regular operation of a non-desert, the soil can degrade and lose its quality, leading to plants dying off. When plants die, herbivores can die out or move away, leading to less food supply for the carnivores/omnivores. This can then contribute to further or quicker desertification. Talk about a huge ripple effect!

Fig. 1 - Desertification.

Causes of desertification

Let's look at the causes of desertification, see if they are human or natural causes, and what issues they actually cause.

Table 1

As you can see in the table above, there is not just one cause of desertification; there are several causes, usually with a snowball effect where one cause leads to another.

Fig. 2 - Over-grazing.

Impacts of desertification

The impact of desertification is not just restricted to the physical environment. It can also hugely impact people, animals, plants, and even money. The below table shows (the potential) impacts of desertification. Pay attention to whether the impacts are social, economic, or environmental.

Table 2

These impacts all sound pretty bad, right? Luckily, there are some ways that we can reduce or even prevent the effects of desertification.

Solutions to desertification

Solutions come in different forms, where we can either try to prevent, reverse or reduce desertification.

Prevention

You know the phrase “prevention is better than cure," right? Well, it's true! Prevention means you stop something from happening, which will have short-term and long-term benefits. Prevention is also way more cost-effective than reversal or rehabilitation.

It has already been shown that dryland populations, i.e. people living in dry arid regions, can prevent desertification through active innovation, where agricultural and grazing practices are improved sustainably. Preventative actions include:

Reversal

Rehabilitation and restoration of land can help reverse desertification and help restore ecosystems.

Reversal actions include:

• Establishing seed banks.
• Reintroduce selected species which may have inhabited the area before desertification and were responsible for creating a balanced ecosystem.
• Use terracing and other measures to counter erosion.
• Enrich the soil with nutrients, which will help with plant growth which, in turn, will create more stable soil and provide food for the local fauna.
• Planting trees will keep the soil healthy and stable and provide a food source for the local fauna.

Reducing

Prevention is the most important way to battle desertification, but if that is not an option, both reversing or reducing are options because it is better than not acting at all.

Desertification example

Now that you know all about desertification, let's look at an example.

Sahel region in Northern Africa

The Sahel region faces serious environmental issues due to desertification. Over-farming, over-grazing, and natural soil erosion have caused severe desertification.

One solution is the Great Green Wall of Africa, a 9.3 mi/15km wide and 4,971 mi/8,000km-long plant barrier along the Sahel's northern edge. It aims to prevent the spread of desertification.

Fig. 3 - Map showing the Sahel region (orange) in Africa.