Famine and Desertification

Audrey Sylvain

 Famine and Desertification

Famine has been an issue for many years and has had many different causes. Climate change has made the problem worse, the loss of arable land to desertification has continued the incline of famines all over the world. The solution to this problem is hard to find when the big issue is climate change which is having this impact. 

Climate change is affecting the extreme and frequency of events, this includes droughts and rainfall. Meaning areas that are already prone to droughts are receiving even more severe droughts. These droughts can make the temperature increase in the areas causing the land to dry and killing the little number of plants that are there. When it does rain in areas that are going through a drought it is only a small relief and if it comes in a thunderstorm it can cause destruction, the rain continues to have an unstable pattern causing the drought to continue.

When desertification has happened different things will have effects, firstly land is lost for farming causing famine over the area. Lakes near will also start to lose water, this can worsen the famine. When water does return it can be in the form of vapor which can worsen heat conditions, water can also return as thunderstorms. Thunderstorms can cause damage to the land and worsen/prolong the famine, they may also cause mass floods which won't help the land to recover and can destroy towns and villages, all this contributes to the famine.

Knowing that desertification is causing famine and trying to find a solution is important. Once land is lost it can take up to 65 years to make it usable again.  Knowing that we can try to prevent desertification from taking arable land is important. National Geographic has thought of a solution that could help land stay arable. One way is to plant mesquite trees to keep the soil moist.  The downside is that they can become invasive, and can also cause farmers to lose massive amounts of land. 

In conclusion, losing arable land to desertification causes famine in many countries.  This problem is connected to climate change. Besides farmers doing their best to preserve their land, we need a better solution for the bigger problem that is arising. This problem of Climate Change is slowly becoming one between countries that can survive through the changes and ones that can't.  We can all work together to help the ones that need it.

Resources

“Desertification: 6. How Can We Prevent or Reverse Desertification?” Redirection, https://www.greenfacts.org/en/desertification/l-2/6-prevention-desertification.htm.

 Accessed 7 June 2021.

“Droughts: Things to Know.” USGS.Gov | Science for a Changing World, https://www.usgs.gov/special-topic/water-science-school/science/droughts-things-know?qt-science_center_objects=0#qt-science_center_objects. Accessed 7 June 2021.

“Explainer: Desertification and the Role of Climate Change.” Carbon Brief, https://www.facebook.com/carbonbrief/,  6 Aug. 2019, https://www.carbonbrief.org/explainer-desertification-and-the-role-of-climate-change#:~:text=Both%20natural%20variability%20in%20climate,which%20can%20contribute%20to%20desertification.&text=And%20a%20warmer%20climate%20can,to%20retain%20water%20and%20nutrients.

Nunez, Christina. “Desertification Facts and Information.” Environment, National Geographic, 31 May 2019, https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/desertification.