The world grapples with the growing issues of desertification and droughts. The rising severity of these environmental problems impacts the lives of millions, leading to disturbances in the ecological balance and affecting overall sustainability. The United Nations aims to highlight these pressing matters through the annual World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought.
World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought
Observed every year on June 17th, this day aims to draw attention to the global issues of desertification and drought. It is an opportunity to remind everyone that we can achieve land degradation neutrality with strong community involvement, problem-solving and cooperation at different levels. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) organizes the Desertification and Drought Day in India. On this day, the Union Minister released the Forest Stewardship Council’s Forest Stewardship Standard for India (FSC FSSI), a certification system setting criteria for timber-related product companies.
Desertification: An Overview
Desertification refers to the land degradation in arid, semi-arid, and dry sub-humid areas primarily due to human activities and climate variations. It doesn’t simply mean the expansion of existing deserts but the overall vulnerability of dryland ecosystems to overexploitation and inappropriate land use. Factors such as poverty, political instability, deforestation, overgrazing, and inadequate irrigation practices contribute significantly to this issue.
Drought: Understanding the Phenomenon
A drought is typically a prolonged period of deficient rainfall or precipitation resulting in water shortage, adversely impacting vegetation, animals, and humans. Forest fires can also induce drought, making the soil unfit for cultivation and causing soil water deficit. With increasing climate change and land degradation, the frequency and intensity of droughts are on the rise.
Current Status of Desertification and Droughts
The number and duration of droughts have increased by 29% since 2000 compared to the previous two decades. Around 55 million people are affected annually, and by 2050, nearly three-quarters of the global population may be impacted. More people are living in areas with extreme water shortages, including an estimated one in four children by 2040.
Combatting Desertification and Droughts
There are several ways to tackle these issues, including reforestation and tree generation, efficient water management—saving, reuse of treated water, rainwater harvesting, desalination, or direct use of seawater for salt-loving plants—and strengthening the soil through sand fences and windbreaks. Enriched and hyper-fertilization of soil along with Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR), enabling native sprouting tree growth through selective pruning of shrub shoots, are also suggested.
United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)
Established in 1994, UNCCD links sustainable land management to environmental development. It focuses specifically on arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas where some of the most vulnerable ecosystems and people exist. The convention encourages local people’s participation in combatting desertification and land degradation.
UNCCD and Sustainable Development
Goal 15 of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), 2030, aims to protect the planet from degradation through sustainable consumption and production, sustainably managing its natural resources, and taking urgent action on climate change.
Other Related Initiatives
Various national and global initiatives are combating desertification and drought. These include the Integrated Watershed Management Programme, Desert Development Programme, National Mission on Green India, and the Bonn Challenge, a global effort to restore deforested and degraded land.
