UN Report on Land Degradation

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According to a new United Nations report, land degradation is weakening the Earth’s ability to sustain humanity and failure to reverse or reverse the process will pose challenges for generations to come.

About the Report:

• Title: ‘Stepping back from the precipice: Transforming land management to stay within planetary boundaries’
• Issued by: United Nations Convention against Desertification (UNCCD) in collaboration with Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Germany
• The report is being published by UNCCD in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia). The report was released ahead of the start of the 16th session (COP 16) of the Conference of Parties to the UN.

Key findings of the report:

• One million square kilometres of land is being degraded every year. It is estimated that 15 million square kilometres of land has been degraded, which is more than the entire area of ​​the continent of Antarctica.
• Land degradation has reduced the ability of land ecosystems such as trees and soil to absorb anthropogenic carbon dioxide by 20% in the last decade. Earlier, these ecosystems could absorb about one-third of such pollution.
• Deforestation, urbanisation, etc. are leading to global land degradation on an unprecedented scale, threatening not only various components of the Earth system but also human survival.
• The report identifies several hotspots of land degradation in arid regions such as South Asia, North China, the High Plains in the US and California and the Mediterranean.
  • One-third of humanity now lives on dry lands, including three-quarters of Africa.
• The report also states that land degradation disproportionately affects low-income countries. This is because its impact is concentrated in tropical and dry regions and poor countries have less capacity to withstand land degradation and its consequences.
• Unsustainable irrigation practices deplete freshwater resources while excessive use of nitrogen and phosphorus-based fertilizers destabilizes ecosystems.

What is land degradation:

According to the UNCCD, land degradation is the reduction or loss in the biological or economic productivity and complexity of rain-fed agricultural land, irrigated cropland, or field, pastures, forests and woodlands, resulting from a combination of different pressures, including land use and management practices.

Causes of Land Degradation:

• Unsustainable Agricultural Practices: Unsustainable agricultural practices such as excessive use of chemical inputs, pesticides and water diversion are the biggest causes of land degradation as such practices lead to increased soil erosion and pollution.
• Climate Change: A major factor in land degradation is climate change as land degradation not only contributes to climate change but is also induced by it.
  • According to a report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), global warming has worsened land degradation by increasing the frequency, intensity and amount of heavy rainfall as well as increasing heat stress.
• Rapid Urbanization: Rapid urbanization is currently taking place globally, which has accelerated land degradation by contributing to habitat destruction, pollution and biodiversity loss.

Effects of Land Degradation:

Land degradation adversely affects humans and ecosystems around the Earth. Its impacts include:

• Increasing the risk of malnutrition by reducing the quality and quantity of food production
• Increased water and food-borne diseases caused by poor sanitation and lack of clean water
• Negative impacts on marine and freshwater systems
  • For example, soil erosion carrying fertilizers and pesticides into water bodies harms both the organisms living there and the local communities that depend on them.
• Also contributes significantly to climate change.