Desertification - Process of land chang-ing from farmable, pro-ductive land into desert

Cause 1 - Cattle Over-grazing - animals eat too much plant life

Movement of cattle compacts soil

Large # of animals feeding in one area —> complete loss of vegetation

Cause 2 - Deforestation — cutting of trees

Loss of vegetation & roots that stabilize the ground

Result: Soil not able to absorb H2O easily - flood-ing possible

Reason for cutting trees - fuel, heating, cooking

Increased population —> increased cutting

Shade removed - soil in direct sunlight

Soil temp increases - H20 leaves soil

Salination of soil = salt content increases

Result: soil becomes useless

Result: Estimated total money lost each year from desertification = 42$ bil

Appx. 50 mil people dis-placed - next 10 years

Mass migration

Each year - 6 mil. hectares of farmable land —> de-creased food production

Increased prices of food - due to loss of farmable land

Poorest affected - 250 mil people / 1 bil - at risk of food shortage

Dec. food prod. —> in-creased food prices, esp. staples like wheat, rice, corn

Ex: wheat cost up 130% in 2008

Poor countries - no money to prod. food - cannot af-ford imported food

Global effects of De-sertification