Desertification- When The Dry Gets Drier.

In one of my previous posts, I broadly described how climate change will impact Africa’s hydrological cycle by making wet areas wetter and dry areas drier. There are a considerable number of negatives to extreme aridity: drought, degradation of vegetation and overstretching of resources to name three. All three of these impacts can contribute to desertification.

Desertification is a specific type of degradation that occurs in dryland areas, extending arid areas beyond their existing boundaries and changing the environment of the landscape. It includes declines in the quality of soil, vegetation, and water resources, all of which can be either temporary or permanent. These declines are drastic for human populations, globally 2.7 billion of whom live in dryland areas. There is a complex relationship between climate change, drought, and desertification, linked by a number of feedback loops and this complexity has often hindered the comprehensive monitoring of desertification processes. The issue is widely regarded as one of the most pressing environmental stresses the global community is currently facing, so it seems important to discuss it in this blog.

Pictured: An area in the Sahel undergoing the desertification process. Source.

40% of the African continent is dryland area and so, while desertification is an issue globally, it is especially pertinent for Africa, with areas like the Sahel already witnessing this process. When we consider existing issues like income and food insecurity and poor management and distribution of resources, desertification becomes a more frightening issue as it exacerbates them all. Without interference, dryland ecosystems may be able to cope with and recover from the impacts of drought. However, as per the common theme for environmental change across the world, human activity also has a heavy hand to play in the desertification process and this significantly hinders the ability of the drylands to recover from the change. These pressures include over-cultivation, over-grazing, and deforestation, many of which are in response to the existing pressures over food security. This creates a positive feedback loop that increasingly threatens livelihoods and food security.

The climate change-induced dry periods impacting dryland areas are unlikely to decrease in severity over the coming years and so therefore in order to mitigate and adapt to desertification, the human factors in its onset must be managed. Communities in Botswana rotate their livestock to un-pastured land during drought periods, allowing the regular pastoral areas to restore their natural balance without the pressure of grazing. Equally, many farming communities are adapting their planting and ploughing schedules to align with the new patterns of rainfall to minimise the impact of drought on their yields. Community-led management such as this provides an accessible means of land management for the population it most affects. Involving local expertise and knowledge of the ecosystem creates more realistic management strategies as well as increases the desire to maintain these strategies. However, the burden of this issue should not be falling solely on dryland communities in the way we're currently seeing. Further policy is required to ensure the livelihoods of dryland communities and protect the land from desertification as much as possible such as sustainable irrigation practices, a plan to reduce food insecurity and, ultimately, a drive to reduce the CO₂ emissions that are influencing the reduction in precipitation over much of the African continent. My next post will feature the discussions that occurred at COP27 and we'll examine if the results of the conference will lead to any further support for countries currently facing the effects of climate change, such as desertification. 

Until next time!