Desertification is land degradation in dry areas caused by climate variations and human activities like overgrazing, deforestation, and agriculture. It impacts over 35% of the global land area and costs $300-600 billion annually. India has 32.7% of its land affected by desertification processes like soil erosion and loss of vegetation cover. Integrated land and water management, protecting vegetation cover, sustainable grazing/farming, and alternative livelihoods can help prevent further desertification.
Land degradation means the loss of potential production capacity of soil as a result of degradation of soil quality.
Partial or entire loss of one or more functions of soil.
Land degradation means loss in the capacity of a given land to support growth of useful plants on a sustained basis (Singh,1994)
Globally, about 25 percent of the total land area has been degraded.
24 billion tons of fertile soil was being lost per year, largely due to unsustainable agricultural practices
If this trend continues, 95 percent of the Earth’s land areas could become degraded by 2050.
Globally, 3.2 billion people are affected by land degradation
Land is a complex, multi-component natural entity that becomes a resource base when used for a specific purpose or purposes. Land degradation is a concept in which the value of the biophysical environment is affected by one or more combination of natural and human-induced processes acting upon the land. It is a temporary or Permanent decline in the productive capacity of land. It is also the reduction in the capability of the land to produce benefits from a particular land use under a specified form of land management. Major forms of land degradation are water and wind erosion, desertification and chemical erosion. Urban expansion is also a form of land degradation. Negative effects of land degradation affect heavily on environment and economy which is a cause of grave concern. Land degradation has significant costs, particularly in developing countries (Rosegrant and Ringler, 1991). It does not only reduces farm productivity affecting livelihood and regional economies, it also leads to reduced biodiversity. Land degradation in most developing countries is becoming a major constraint to future growth and development. About 40-75% of the world’s agricultural land’s productivity is reduced due to land degradation (IFPRI, 2001). Increased support for research and extension to increase crop yields is crucial to meeting the needs of a growing human population for food, biomass energy, fiber, and timber. There is a need to increase support to biodiversity preservation by alleviating pressure to convert remaining natural habitat to croplands. There is a need for more public investments to support SLM to slow land degradation.
What lasting solutions to desertification - land degration issues lecture i...Luc Gnacadja
What lasting solutions to Desertification Land degradation and Drought issues in the context of "The Future We Want"?
Outline
1). Land as a strategic commodity in the Nexus of Poverty-Food-Energy-Water
2). Understanding Land degradation, Desertification and Drought
3). The UNCCD from Rio Summit (1992) to Rio+20
4). Land-degradation neutral world: a holistic framework for lasting solutions?
5). The reasons for hope
IFPRI Policy Seminar “Economics of Land Degradation and Improvement--A Global Assessment for Sustainable Development” held on December 3, 2015. Presentation by Rattan Lal, Carbon Management and Sequestration Center.
Asia Regional Program Planning Meeting- Climate Change Impacts in Asia,Prese...ICRISAT
Land degradation -a temporary or permanent decline in the productive capacity of the land, or its potential for environmental management.2 billion ha (22.5%) out of 8.7 billion ha degraded; support ~1.5 billion people Cost of land degradation –300 billion USD per annum Causes -Water & wind erosion, nutrient and or soil organic C depletion, water logging, compaction, salinization, acidification, pollution. Soil chemical degradation like nutrient-loss accounts for >40% of cropland degradation.
Land Degradation Neutrality and adaptation to climate changeNAP Events
Presentation by: Lorena Santamaria Rojas
3.4 Synergy between climate change adaptation and other issues
The session will introduce approaches for facilitating synergy and inter-linkages in the implementation of climate change adaptation actions in the context of the formulation and implementation of NAPs, and relevant actions on biodiversity and desertification/land degradation. It will discuss the existing arrangements and opportunities, including capacity-building, and how can countries build on these to explore synergy between the three issues. It will also include practical experiences from countries.
Land degradation means the loss of potential production capacity of soil as a result of degradation of soil quality.
Partial or entire loss of one or more functions of soil.
Land degradation means loss in the capacity of a given land to support growth of useful plants on a sustained basis (Singh,1994)
Globally, about 25 percent of the total land area has been degraded.
24 billion tons of fertile soil was being lost per year, largely due to unsustainable agricultural practices
If this trend continues, 95 percent of the Earth’s land areas could become degraded by 2050.
Globally, 3.2 billion people are affected by land degradation
Land is a complex, multi-component natural entity that becomes a resource base when used for a specific purpose or purposes. Land degradation is a concept in which the value of the biophysical environment is affected by one or more combination of natural and human-induced processes acting upon the land. It is a temporary or Permanent decline in the productive capacity of land. It is also the reduction in the capability of the land to produce benefits from a particular land use under a specified form of land management. Major forms of land degradation are water and wind erosion, desertification and chemical erosion. Urban expansion is also a form of land degradation. Negative effects of land degradation affect heavily on environment and economy which is a cause of grave concern. Land degradation has significant costs, particularly in developing countries (Rosegrant and Ringler, 1991). It does not only reduces farm productivity affecting livelihood and regional economies, it also leads to reduced biodiversity. Land degradation in most developing countries is becoming a major constraint to future growth and development. About 40-75% of the world’s agricultural land’s productivity is reduced due to land degradation (IFPRI, 2001). Increased support for research and extension to increase crop yields is crucial to meeting the needs of a growing human population for food, biomass energy, fiber, and timber. There is a need to increase support to biodiversity preservation by alleviating pressure to convert remaining natural habitat to croplands. There is a need for more public investments to support SLM to slow land degradation.
What lasting solutions to desertification - land degration issues lecture i...Luc Gnacadja
What lasting solutions to Desertification Land degradation and Drought issues in the context of "The Future We Want"?
Outline
1). Land as a strategic commodity in the Nexus of Poverty-Food-Energy-Water
2). Understanding Land degradation, Desertification and Drought
3). The UNCCD from Rio Summit (1992) to Rio+20
4). Land-degradation neutral world: a holistic framework for lasting solutions?
5). The reasons for hope
IFPRI Policy Seminar “Economics of Land Degradation and Improvement--A Global Assessment for Sustainable Development” held on December 3, 2015. Presentation by Rattan Lal, Carbon Management and Sequestration Center.
Asia Regional Program Planning Meeting- Climate Change Impacts in Asia,Prese...ICRISAT
Land degradation -a temporary or permanent decline in the productive capacity of the land, or its potential for environmental management.2 billion ha (22.5%) out of 8.7 billion ha degraded; support ~1.5 billion people Cost of land degradation –300 billion USD per annum Causes -Water & wind erosion, nutrient and or soil organic C depletion, water logging, compaction, salinization, acidification, pollution. Soil chemical degradation like nutrient-loss accounts for >40% of cropland degradation.
Land Degradation Neutrality and adaptation to climate changeNAP Events
Presentation by: Lorena Santamaria Rojas
3.4 Synergy between climate change adaptation and other issues
The session will introduce approaches for facilitating synergy and inter-linkages in the implementation of climate change adaptation actions in the context of the formulation and implementation of NAPs, and relevant actions on biodiversity and desertification/land degradation. It will discuss the existing arrangements and opportunities, including capacity-building, and how can countries build on these to explore synergy between the three issues. It will also include practical experiences from countries.
Soil is a thin covering over the land that consist of a mixture of minerals, organic material, living organisms, air and water.
Land is part of the earth not covered by water. Land is the solid part of the earth's surface. Our land is home to many unique plants and animals
Soil degradation is the decline in soil condition caused by its improper use or poor management, usually for agricultural, industrial or urban purposes. It is a serious environmental problem.
Soil degradation is the loss of land’s production capacity in terms of loss of soil fertility, soil biodiversity, and degradation. Soil degradation causes include agricultural, industrial, and commercial pollution; loss of arable land due to urban expansion, overgrazing, and unsustainable agricultural practices; and long-term climatic changes. According to a recent report to the United Nations, almost one-third of the world’s farmable land has disappeared in the last four decades. It was also reported that all of the World’s topsoil could become unproductive within 60 years if current rates of loss continue
Degraded land is land that has lost some degree of its natural productivity due to human-caused processes. In the context of developing policies to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation degraded land refers to areas with low carbon stocks.
Land degradation is the reduction or loss of the biological or economic productivity and complexity of rain—fed cropland, irrigated cropland, or range, pasture, forest or woodlands resulting from natural processes, land uses or other human activities and habitation patterns such as land contamination, soil erosion and the destruction of the vegetation cover
Desertification is the persistent degradation of dryland ecosystems.
It threatens the livelihoods of some of the poorest and most vulnerable populations on the planet. Desertification is largely caused by unsustainable use of scarce resources.
What options exist to avoid or reverse desertification and its negative impacts?
2. OVERVIEW
o What is it?
o Regions affected by desertification
o Causes
o Impacts
o Indian scenario
o Summary
3. What is Desertification
• Land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry
sub-humid areas resulting from various factors,
including climate variations and human
activities.
4. The process through which a desert takes
over a formerly non-desert area. When a
region begins to undergo desertification, the
new conditions typically include a significantly
lowered water table, a reduced supply of
surface water, increased salinity in natural
waters and soils, progressive destruction of
native vegetation, and an accelerated rate of
erosion.
5.
6. Estimates of percentage of human
actions causing desertification are:
overgrazing (35%),
Deforestation (30%),
other agricultural activities (28%),
overexploitation of fuel wood (7%),
and bioindustrial activities (1%)
Human impacts can exacerbate but
not initiate desertification
7. Climatic Effects
• Natural global cycles of dry and rain
• Change over significant amounts of time
• Not induced by human actions, but can
work in combination with them.
9. IMPACTS:ECONOMICAL
Loss of fertility and productivity in
soils
In China alone, about $6.5 billion
annually is
lost to the effects of desertification
Worldwide $300-600 billion lost
annually
Since 1985, Kazakhstan has lost
12.5 million
acres of grain-growing land.
Benefits of prevention and
restoration are 2.5x
greater than allowing desertification to
continue.
10. IMPACTS: HUMAN
Desert lands are inhospitable,
sometimes uninhabitable.
2/3 of arable land in Africa at
risk.
Loss of arable land means
increased poverty, famine.
Food insecurity leads to more environmental
refugees and displaced persons, more forced
migrations.
People are important, too.
11. As local human
populations have
increased, their
escalating food needs
have lengthened the
cultivation period.
Grain crops are now
planted longer into
the dry season
preventing trees and
grasses from
reproducing as they
did in the past. Much
of the land has
12. INDIAN SCENARIO
"In India, the problem of 'Desertification' is recurrent with
visible evidence of its ravages in Jaisalmer, Barmer, Jodhpur
and Bikaner districts.
According to a recent estimate by Govt. of India, 32. 7 per
cent of the country's land is affected by different
degradation processes.
Arid areas in our country experience an annual rainfall
between 100 and 400 mm with a very high coefficient of
variation ranging from 40 to 70 per cent.
Low and erratic rainfall coupled with extreme temperatures
and intense solar radiation (200-600 cal cm2 day 1) results
in frequent crop failures and considerably affects the
agricultural economy in the region.
13. HOW TO PREVENT DESERIFICATION?
-Integrating land and water management to protect soils from
erosion, salinization, and other forms of degradation,
-Protecting the vegetative cover, which can be a major instrument
for soil conservation against wind and water erosion.
-Integrating the use of land for grazing and farming where
conditions are favourable , allowing for a more efficient cycling
of nutrients within the agricultural systems.
-Applying a combination of traditional practices with locally
acceptable and locally adapted land use technologies.
14. -Giving local communities the capacity to
prevent desertification and to manage dryland resources
effectively.
-Turning to alternative livelihoods that do not depend on
traditional land uses, such as drylandaquaculture
,greenhouse agriculture and tourism-related activities, is
less demanding on local land and natural resources, and yet
provides sustainable income.
-Creating economic opportunities in dryland urban centers
and in areas outside of drylands.
15. SUMMARY
Desertification is a growing worldwide
problem
that impacts a huge percentage of the world’s
population.
The economic cost of desertification is in
the
many hundreds of billions of dollars.
Desertification can be slowed and even
reversed by re-vegetation, water
conservation,
livestock management and wise agricultural
methods.
Editor's Notes
Slash and burn- short term methd of cultivatin n which land z cleard by destroingnd burning tress ndothrvegitation 4a temporary agricultural use…..Salinization-The accumulation of salts in soil to the extent that plant growth is inhibited. This is a common problem when crops are irrigated in arid regions; much of the water evaporates and salts accumulated in the soil. Also see Leaching Requirement. Dessication z a process of becoming cmpltly dried out..
Exacerbate---irritate or worse..
Ravages - To bring heavy destruction onDegradation – reducingErratic - Irregular; changeable.