Assessing the economic impacts of soil degradation final report. The impact of land degradation on the quality of soils in a south african communal rangeland. The condition of the soil is one of the best indicators of land degradation. A general definition of land degradation is presented by wasson 1987 as. In order to assess the economic impacts of soil degradation, this study has used a methodology.
Vegetation degradation in central asia under the impact of human activities. Our land, water and soil are compromised when people exhaust resources or release harmful chemicals into the air. Degradation produces pressures that result in the current state of land resources, with a negative impact on society and the abstract the land resources of abu dhabi emirate, united arab emirates uae are being subjected to various land degradation stresses such as wind erosion, salinization, waterlogging, landfilling. The views expressed are of course those of the author, not of the institute which has no corporate view, its trustees, advisers or directors.
Policy department economic and scientific policy land. Higgitt encyclopedia of life support systems eolss 352 countries are, at the present time, overshooting the sustainable resource base. Analysis of climate and land use changes impacts on land. The importance of land degradation in calabar south is enhanced because of its impact on food security and quality of the environments.
Socioeconomic aspectsimpacts of land degradation in mid. History, nature, causes, consequences, and solutions conacher, arthur encyclopedia of life support systems eolss above. Assessing the economic impacts of soil degradation final. Land degradation indicators and management options in the. Land is a vital resource to humankind, like air and water. Assessing the economic impacts of soil degradation 3. The economics of land degradation eld initiative is a global initiative which aims to increase awareness of the benefits of sustainable land management and economic consequences of land degradation. Impact of land degradation on environmental services. Land degradation is an important problem in ethiopia, with more than 85 % of the land degraded to various degrees. Results the district level analysis of erosion the economic impact of crop losses 3. Assessing the economic impacts of soil degradation final report volume i. Desertification, a phenomenon referring to land degradation in arid, semiarid and dry subhumid regions as a result of climatic variations and human activities, is considered as one of the most severe environmental and socioeconomic problems of recent times. Buyinza m, mugagga f 2010 economics of land degradation in midhills of mt.
This paper explores the socioeconomic impacts of land degradation in the midhills of mt. An assessment of economic impacts of land degradation in. The principal aim of this study was to explore the impacts of desertification, degradation and drought on both the natural resources. Present values of benefits of action versus present values of costs of action and. Unesco eolss sample chapters human settlement development vol. Degradation occurs when earths natural resources are depleted. Water can be lost through evapotranspiration, evaporation, infiltration, runoff, pollution, or overuse. There is loss of not only water and plant nutrients but ultimately soil itself is lost, which, in turn, affects crop productivity.
It is viewed as any change or disturbance to the land perceived to be deleterious or undesirable. Given that livelihoods of the majority of the rural poor heavily depend on natural resources, countries in the region have designed a number of policies and strategies to address land degradation and to enhance productivity. Land degradation has negative consequences on agriculture. This formula states that total impact i on environment is a function of population p, affluence a and technology t. Land degradation can be defined in several ways depending upon the subject that needs to be emphasized. Desertification has been defined as land degradation in arid, semiarid, and dry subhumid areas resulting from various factors, including climatic variations and human activities11. We provide a global approach for the analysis of the economics of land degradation. Offsite effects can account for a sizeable proportion of the total economic impact of soil degradation. Population growth negatively contributes to environment through increased land and resource uses, and pollution. The map of the study area is presented on the next page. The findings reveal the commonest problems in the study area were physiological disorders and bacterial diseases followed by scorch and fire. Causes and impacts of land degradation and desertification. Population growth, especially in rural areas, had a strong effect on the.
A case study on keyain village of munshigonj district. Socioeconomic impacts of land degradation and the need for leadership for a complex world. The main outcome of land degradation is a substantial reduction in the productivity of land. The soil finds its way into beds of streams and rivers. Socioeconomic impacts of land degradation and the need. The economic cost of land degradation agricultural land degradation results in impacts costs both onsite and o. The land degradation processes include soil erosion, nutrient depletion, salinization, desertification and soil acidification or alkalinisation.
It shows that failure to act could impact over 12 % of gross domestic product. Economics of land degradation and improvement ifpri. The degradation also impacts our wildlife, plants, animals and microorganisms. Land degradation is a complex process which involves both the natural ecosystem and the socioeconomic system, among which climate and land use changes are the two predominant driving factors. Pdf an assessment of economic impacts of land degradation. April 1995 roger bate director, iea environment unit.
Abu sayeed during the last few years the agriculture sector is facing danger in many ways. This supports other findings which have shown that pastoral areas are less degraded than cropland areas in ssa. Andersonb, robert costanzac, ida kubiszewskic a department of geography and the environment, university of denver, united states b school of natural and built environments, university of south australia, australia c crawford school of public policy, the australian national. The eld initiative highlights the value of land and its services through research, capacity development, and active knowledge exchange. This chapter outlines the impact of land degradation towards the benefits that people can obtain from managing their land sustainably. A more specific definition states that land degradation is. Chapter 1 economics of land degradation and improvement. Figure 2conceptual framework of action versus inaction to prevent land degradation levels of land levels of land. Economics of land degradation initiative wikipedia. Increase in demand for goods and resources has led to land degradation. Recognizing the socioeconomic and biophysical causes of land degradation at the national. Chapters 7 and 8 are concerned with the economic and social consequences of land degradation. Pdf social and economic dimensions of land degradation and. Agricultural land degradation results in impacts costs both on.
Chapter 7 economic consequences of land degradation. Recent estimates using satellite imagery show that land degradation hotspots over the last three decades cover about 23 % of the land area in the country. Pdf the impact of land degradation on the quality of. Cause of land degradation and its impacts on livelihoods. Understanding the effects of resource degradation on socioeconomic outcomes in developing countries iii executive summary the links between the environment and the economy have risen on policy and academic agendas.
The consequence of a complex, wideranging suite of processes which exert pressure on land and resources, land degradation is. The soil integrates a variety of important processes involving vegetation growth, overland flow of water, infiltration, land use and land management. I urbanization and environmental degradation in jordan david l. Thus, arthur and jeanette conacher defined land degradation as alterations to all aspects of the biophysical environment by human actions to the. In turn, unsustainable land use is driving land degradation. Methodological approaches to the economic valuation of land degradation. Despite the severe impact of land degradation on the poor and the crucial role that land plays in human. Soil erosion is one of the most destructive phenomena of land degradation. The demand for npp is a result of the high levels of consumption characteristic of the population of a western european nation. Economics of land degradation and improvement in ethiopia. Land degradationthe deterioration or loss of the productive capacity of the soils for present and futureis a global challenge that affects everyone through food insecurity, higher food prices, climate change, environmental hazards, and the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services. Land degradation can be viewed as any change or disturbance to the land perceived to be deleterious or undesirable eswaran, 2001.
Soil degradation is, in itself, an indicator of land degradation. The eld initiative was cofounded in 2011 by the secretariat of the united nations convention to combat desertification unccd, the german federal ministry for economic. Political, economic and social impact of land degradation. Socioeconomic and biophysical determinants of land degradation. Land degradation is a change to land that makes it less useful for human beings. Assessing the economic impacts of soil degradation 5 2 aim and scope of the study the current study was undertaken in order to take stock of the existing knowledge on the economic impacts of soil degradation in europe and abroad, and to provide initial estimations of the total economic impact of soil degradation in europe. Subsaharan africa ssa has experienced the most severe land degradation in the world. Land degradation is a process in which the value of the physical environment is affected by a combination of humaninduced processes acting upon the land. Conversion of agricultural land in nonagricultural uses is one of the main reasons to follow.
Gibsona school of animal, plant and environmental sciences university of the witwatersrand, johannesburg, south africa submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of master of science in resource conservation biology supervisor. Cause and effects of land degradation environmental. In mexico land degradation is an important factor in mexicos national economy impacting 65% of the national land area. This study therefore seeks to identify the main impact of land degradation on. This perception has been replaced by a feeling of scarcity, especially in arid lands undergoing severe processes of degradation.
The ecosystems services that the land provides are at breaking point. Land degradation intruduction land degradation is a process in which the value of the biophysical environment is affected by a combination of humaninduced processes acting upon the land. Land degradation as the land use section earlier in this chapter shows, demands on the land for economic development and pressures from a burgeoning population are leading to unprecedented land use change. Economics of land degradation in subsaharan africa. Urbanization and environmental degradation in jordan. And, above all, it makes a credible economic and humanitarian case for africa to achieve a number of sustainable development goals. Usually land degrad ation is described in terms of the loss in natural resources soil, water, fauna and flora or in the biophysical process by which it functions. The analysis of the possible impact of social and economic policies on the main driving forces of land use change and desertification focuses. Highlighting the need for a holistic and harmonized methodology, tools for assessing the value of land are outlined, by accounting for ecosystem services derived from land. Land degradation impacts extend beyond 18 the land surface itself, affecting marine and freshwater systems, as well as people and ecosystems far 19 away from the local sites of degradation very high confidence. While data is not precise, it is estimated that losses of nutrients and productivity in agricultural and grazing areas costs over. This paper scopes out the linkages between resource degradation and socioeconomic outcomes, focusing on land and water degradation.
What are the economic, social and environmental costs of land degradation and net benefits. This underscores the seriousness of land degradation and its impact on human welfare and food security. Cattle density has negative impact on cost of land degradation suggesting that areas with higher cattle density are less degraded than other areas. Unesco eolss sample chapters water resources management vol. An introduction and overview chapter 2 concepts and methods of global assessment of the economics of land degradation and improvement chapter 3 institutional framework of inaction against land degradation chapter 4 biomass productivitybased mapping of global land degradation hotspots chapter 5 evaluating global land. To comprehensively and quantitatively analyze the land degradation process, this paper employed the normalized difference vegetation index ndvi as a proxy to assess land degradation. The result is a loss of land productivity with impacts on livelihoods and the. Understanding the effects of resource degradation on socio. The resources which are affected include water, air and soil.
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