Pdf the south african soil environment shoana leigh. Of particular interest is the identification of areas susceptible to degradation. Environmental degradation in the greater horn of africa. Land degradation connotes loss of biological and economic productivity of the soil as a result of agricultural, mining and urban development activ ities agele, 2011. New studies show that land degradation is advancing and that african countries are among the worst hit. The implementation of the land degradation assessment in drylands lada programme in south africa has been included as one of the deliverables in the strategic plan of the department of agriculture since 2007.
The country has a wide range of interrelated environmental and development challenges existing in a sociopolitical context recently subject to substantial change. Over 40% of croplands in east and southern africa are severely degraded but. Subsaharan africa ssa has experienced the most severe land degradation in the world. The aim of this paper is to reassess the land degradation and desertification problem in south africa. Desertification and degradation of africas rangelands. Land degradation is, usually, the result of complex interrelationships between biophysical and socioeconomic issues which affect many people and their land, specially in the tropics and developing countries. Land degradation in south africa 745 while our study has obvious implications for policy, we were not commissioned to produce a policy document for the nap process. Also, the most important socioeconomic reasons for land degradation are discussed. The health impacts of desertification and drought pdf, 1. A case study in the denku microwatershed oromia region by kassu kebede beyene submitted in accordance with the requirement for the degree of masters in human ecology at the university of south africa supervisor. This resource contains various chapters and factsheets on land degradation in south africa. Land degradation is a global environment and development issue.
Vlek center for development research zef, bonn, germany west african science service center on climate change and adapted land use wascal, accra, ghana. The nature, extent and causes of land degradation in south. While commercial farmers have certainly contributed to widespread land degradation in south africa, conservation policies have had at least some effect in slowing that degradation and enhancing sustainable land use practice. Studies of land degradation in south africa have seldom addressed the issue for the whole country. As a signatory, south africa is required to develop a national action programme to combat desertification and commissioned a survey of the extent and causes of land degradation in the country. Previous research indicates that over 70% of the countrys surface has been affected by varying inten. Economics of land degradation in subsaharan africa. Land degradation in south africa almost says it all. Ninetyone percent of the lands in south africa are classified as drylands, where variable precipitation and droughtprone climate increase their vulnerability to degradation hoffman and ashwell, 2001. South africa has a long history of desertification research which stretches back to the last century. Coupled with this are the uniquely south african land tenure problems which have arisen as a result of this countrys colonial and apartheid past.
An assessment of land degradation in the save catchment of. The importance of land degradation in calabar south is enhanced because of its impact on food security and quality of the environments. Land degradation is defined as the temporary or permanent decline in the productive capacity of the land, and the diminution of the productive potential, including its major land uses e. Also, the most important socioeconomic reasons for land degradation. The linkages between land degradation, poverty and social capital in uganda. Land coveruse system developed for south africa 8 3. Figure 1 shows global extent of droughts and desertification. Vulnerability to desertification in africa is assessed using the information on soils, climate, and the previously evaluated land resource stresses. Land degradation in south africa the openuct initiative. As pointed out at the outset of the article, the horn of africa s environmental degradation is attributable to global climatic changes and regional human activities. The frontispiece of the book by timm hoffman and ally ashwell entitled nature divided. Throughout the continent, regardless of the climatic zone, meteorological records show.
Land degradation management in southern africa prof. The most direct human contribution to land degradation is land use practice. South africa, namibia and botswana and pre land reforms zimbabwe. To establish the scale of land degradation, experts have been conducting research from space. In africa, the most conspicuous symptoms of the negative impact of land degradation on food production are stagnating and declining yields and increasing levels of poverty. Desertification has been defined as land degradation in arid, semiarid, and dry subhumid areas resulting from various factors, including climatic variations and human activities11. In all eight out of the ten countries constituting southern africa region most people live in rural areas and depend on subsistence agriculture for their livelihoods. The most widespread cause of degradation was water erosion, followed by wind erosion. Land degradation in south africa is a significant environmental problem throughout the whole country meadows and hoffman, 2002. May 22, 2012 to restore healthy soil to the seasonally humid and dry grasslands of the world requires substantial numbers of large herbivores on the land, tightly herded together, grazing, trampling, dunging and urinating on a piece of land and then moving on after a brief period, just as the great wildlife herds once did. The term land degradation involves both soil and vegetation degradation.
The economics of land degradation benefits of action outweigh the costs a complementary report to the eld initiative the economics of land degradation in africa. Water availability trends water scarcity is dynamic and varies in time as a result of natural. Land degradation and climate change in south africa. These activities include measures that restore carbon stock of degraded lands. Soil erosion and veld degradation are continually being depicted as acute problems, and overpopulation, overstocking and poor agricultural practices are viewed as the major causal factors. The human dimension of land degradation and forest degradation 414. However, awareness of the problem and attitudes towards it have changed little over the past century.
Poverty in southern africa sadc region has been described as one of the root causes of environmental degradation. One of the most important activities in the lada work plan is the development of a land use system for south africa that could serve as the. Land degradation processes are ongoing over large part of the earth land surface figure 3. Figure 2 shows a regional african extent of the problem. 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. As a consequence, land degradation is a frequent outcome in these areas duvel 1995, hoffman and ashwell 2001. The future of the environment in southern africa is in the hands of its people numbering about 6 million expected to double in the next 24 years chenje, 1994. Monitoring soil erosion in south africa at a regional scale. Sumnerc introduction soil erosion is a major problem confronting land resources throughout south africa. Land degradation can be viewed as any change or disturbance to the land perceived to be deleterious or undesirable eswaran, 2001.
Regional assessment of soil changes in africa south of the sahara. 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. The change in the characteristic and quality of soil which adversely affect its fertility is called as degradation. Land degradation management in southern africa springerlink. This annex is the most detailed and comprehensive of all the regional annexes to the convention. Desertification and degradation of africa s rangelands jerrold l. The predominantly arid and variable climate makes south africas rangelands particularly susceptible to degradation. The economics of land degradation in africa eld initiative. Land degradation is a significant issue in south africa see figure 1 and figure 2 with 60% of the land currently degraded unep, 1997 and approximately 91% of south africa potentially susceptible to desertification hoffman and ashwell 2001.
South africa ratified the united nations convention to combat desertification unccd in september 1997. It is viewed as any change or disturbance to the land perceived to be deleterious or undesirable. Land degradation is a process in which the value of the biophysical environment is affected by. The country is therefore prone to land degradation and droughts. Help resolve tradeo s and alternate courses of action source. Causes and impacts of land degradation and desertification. To explore the possible impacts of land degradation on food security, we compared the baseline results with two alternative scenarios. Poorer communities suffer the most though there is some cause for hope. Increases in land degradation may lead to a vicious cycle of biodiversity loss and climate change. Department of geography, university of the free state and hendrik smith, conservation agriculture facilitator, grain sa. South africa is a water stressed, arid country, with 91% of the country falling within the unccds subhumid, semiarid and arid categories that define areas potentially vulnerable to desertification and land degradation.
For over a century, governments and aid organizations have tried to combat soil erosion in africa. Read this article to learn about the meaning, factors responsible, prevention and control measures of land degradation. Dodd conventional and politically correct wisdom usually states or imphes that massive areas of africa have been and are being desertified by domestic livestock. University of cape town press, cape town, south africa. In the third section, a conceptual framework of the environmental degradation poverty nexus is provided. In this report, land degradation is defined as a negative trend 4 in land condition, caused by direct or indirect humaninduced processes including anthropogenic. The principal aim of this study was to explore the impacts of desertification, degradation and drought on both the natural resources. The south african drainage sa dea, 1999 soil erosion is one of the major causes of land degradation, below are some of the various factors affecting land degradation. The following section outlines sustainability theory and how this has progressed over the last four decades. Land degradation the process of land degradation in southern africa is blamed on water and wind erosion, sedimentation, longterm destruction of vegetation and diminution of the bioresources. Land degradation and improvement in south africa i main points 1. Large herds on the move revitalise degraded veld farmers. The united nations conference on environment and development drew up a convention to combat desertification to address the problem of land degradation. Sep 17, 2014 south africa has a long history of desertification research which stretches back to the last century.
This book is an accessible summary of a technical report on land degradation and also discusses the impact of apartheid land division policies on the country as a whole. Unlike previous investigations into land degradation in south africa this analysis suggests that climatic conditions, especially those since the late 1970s, might have had a more important influence on land degradation patterns in south africa than is currently appreciated. Soil erosion in africa threatens food and fuel supplies and can contribute to climate change. Southern africa south africa, namibia, zambia, zimbabwe, malawi. Africa s environment, economy, lifestyles and livelihoods. Most of the degradation is due to soil erosion and biodiversity loss in the less populated areas, while water shortage, soil depletion and soil pollution are most common in the most agricultural areas. Africas environment, economy, lifestyles and livelihoods. Desertification goes hand in hand with accelerated soil erosion. A high proportion 72 percent of degraded land was in drylands. However, awareness of the problem and attitudes towards it have changed little over the past. These resources contain literature on water, soil and veld degradation in both commercial and communal areas of south africa. The map of the study area is presented on the next page.
The unccd regional implementation annex for africa outlines an approach for addressing desertification, land degradation and drought dldd on the african continent. What we see is not what we get nas presentation a sustainability challenge. A further 8% is hyperarid and only 1% is humid hoffman and ashwell, 2001. Longterm studies of land degradation in the sneeuberg. Feb 18, 2016 alarm over land degradation in africa. Uptodate, quantitative information is needed to support policy and action for food and water security, economic development, environmental integrity and resource conservation. Reversing the global factors, even if possible, is beyond the regions control. Soil erosion is a major environmental problem confronting land and water resources in south africa. Overview and stocktaking of land degradation in general and in africa.
Land degradation the process of land degradation in southern africa is blamed on water and. The highest numbers of people affected are in south and east asia, the circum sahara region including north africa, and the middle east. International conference on land degradation and desertification, khon kaen, thailand. Land degradation is currently a major concern in south africa. 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. 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.
Land degradation and climate change in south africa 169 action programmes naps to combat desertification and south africa, as a signatory to the united nations convention to combat desertification, is obliged legally to embark on such a programme. Experiences from the south african land degradation. Final submission land degradation in the limpopo province 2 c. Soil erosion in south africa its nature and distribution. Reduced area losses to land degradation arable land in asia, africa, and latin. The linkages between land degradation, poverty and social. Migration is a complex process, made more so by the role it played in the creation of the apartheid state. Land degradation and improvement in south africa 1. Land resource stresses and desertification in africa nrcs soils. Dr c seymour sanbi, dr a skowno sanbi university for registration. Chapter 6 land department of environmental affairs. Many south african ranchers are affected by an ongoing degradation of natural.
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