A report by experts under the auspices of the UN estimates that drylands have increased by 4.3 million km2 in 30 years, an area almost a third larger than that of India.
According to study of the United Nations Convention to combat desertification (CNULCD) published Monday 9 December. Now, more than 75% of the Earth has experienced drought periods in the last 30 years.
Arid regions correspond to areas where a persistent lack of humidity does not allow the growth of most life forms. “Unlike drought, which is a temporary period of low rainfall, aridity represents a permanent and unstoppable transformation”explains Ibrahim Thiaw, executive secretary of the UNCCD. Ibrahim Thiaw adds it “When a region’s climate becomes drier, the ability to return to previous conditions is lost. The drier climates currently affecting much of the world will not return to the way they were before, and this change is redefining life on earth.”
Nearly 5 billion people will be affected by aridity in 2100
Currently, 2.3 billion people, or 30.9% of the world’s population, live in these arid areas. According to the study,this figure could double by 2100 if emission reduction measures are not sufficient. The hardest hit areas are expected to be the entire Mediterranean coast, Brazil, East Asia, Central Africa and the western United States. California would be particularly affected by aridity where, if emissions are high, wildfires are likely to increase by 74% by 2100.
The report describes “disastrous” the consequences for agriculture in arid areas where 90% of rare rainfall evaporates and is wasted. By 2040, yields could decline significantly due to increasing soil aridity, with losses estimated at 20 million tons of corn, 21 million tons of wheat and 19 million tons of rice. With current trends in greenhouse gas emissions, Kenya’s maize yields, the country’s main crop, will be halved.
The authors of the report recommend strengthening monitoring of soil aridity and changing our agricultural model through lasting management of resources such as water. The study also states that there is still a need to invest in anti-desertification projects such as the Great Green wall, an initiative that is no longer progressing due to financial mismanagement.