Nndefinition of land degradation pdf files

It is viewed as any change or disturbance to the land perceived to be deleterious or undesirable. Unesco eolss sample chapters water resources management vol. Degraded land is land that has lost some degree of its natural productivity due to humancaused processes. It is a complex process involving various causal factors, among which climate changes, land usecover changes and human dominated land management play a dominant role barbier 1997. However, there is no single internationallyapproved definition of degraded land. Desertification has been defined as land degradation in arid, semiarid, and dry subhumid areas resulting from various factors, including climatic variations and human activities11. The condition of the soil is one of the best indicators of land degradation. Land degradation is the major consequences of direct interference of human activities in the natural phenomenon. Soils decline in quality, but productivity can be maintained by applying artificial nutrients and by appropriate soil management. Land degradationthe deterioration or loss of the productive capacity of the soils for present and futureis a global challenge that affects everyone through food insecurity, higher food prices, climate change, environmental hazards, and the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services. In this report, land degradation is defined as a negative trend 4 in land condition, caused by direct or indirect humaninduced processes including anthropogenic. Economics of land degradation in china springerlink. Forests play an important role in maintaining fertility of soil by shedding their leaves which contain many nutrients. Land degradation is a process in which the value of the physical environment is affected by a combination of humaninduced processes acting upon the land.

Land degradation control and its global environmental benefits. Life on land is one of the sustainable development goals and it encourages countries to achieve a land degradation. Land degradation takes many forms, including the various types of water erosion. Land degradation food and agriculture organization of the united. The emphasis on land, rather than soil, broadens the focus to include natural resources, such as climate, water, landforms and vegetation. The aim of this section is to present specific case studies on various aspects of land degradation in victoria. More information on these processes, and on occurrence in victoria is available on the soil erosion pages. Land degradation, a decline in land quality caused by human activities, has been a major global issue during the 20th century and will remain high on the international agenda in the 21st century. Land degradation and deforestation evergreen agriculture. Induced degradation happens more quickly than natural degradation. History, nature, causes, consequences, and solutions conacher, arthur encyclopedia of life support systems eolss above. Other kinds of land degradation are as waterlogging, chemical contamination, acidification, salinity and alkalinity etc. Therefore, cutting forests will affect the soil adversely.

This has resulted in degradation of the landscape in the area. This book contains selected contributions from the sixth meeting of the international geographical unions commission on land degradation and desertification, held in perth, australia, in september 1999. Is increasingly becoming a serious problem in bhutan. This link between degradation which is often caused by land use practices and its effect on land use is central to nearly all published definitions of land degradation. Land thus covers climate and water resources, landform, soils and vegetation, including both grassland resources and forests fao, 1976. Nine main causes of land degradation are as follows. Land degradation intruduction 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. Land degradation is a broad term that can be applied differently across a wide range of scenarios. Land degradation can be considered in 3 categories. In turn, unsustainable land use is driving land degradation. Land degradation is often linked to sustainability in terms of keeping its productivity. It is caused both by natural processes and human activities such as unsustainable lumberjack holding the chainsaw. Induced degradation results from inappropriate land use and management.

Thus, arthur and jeanette conacher defined land degradation as alterations to all aspects of the biophysical. Land degradation is a humaninduced or natural process which negatively affects the land to function effectively within an ecosystem. Any change that decreases productivity of the land land clearing poor land management practices 2 3. Mining was a primary activity that has competed with farming in the area. Conversion of agricultural land in nonagricultural uses is one of the main reasons to follow. Soil erosion this is the where soil is scoured and lost from its position in the landscape. Pollution of water resources from the contamination of. With increasing human population, trees around the world are cleared everyday to make way for agriculture in fertile lands to meet the increasing food demand. Using a comprehensive analysis to determine the extent, degree, and drivers of soil degradation, oldeman et al. Status and trends of land degradation and restoration horizon ird. Deforestation is a major cause of land degradation and destabilization of natural.

Land degradation is a process in which the value of the physical environment is affected by a. Convention defines desertification as land degradation in the arid, semi arid and dry subhumid areas resulting from various factors, including climatic. Loss of natural fertility of soil because of loss of nutrients. Land is a vital resource to humankind, like air and water. The human dimension of land degradation and forest degradation. Some of the most important types of land degradation and those that we will focus on include. Poor land management practices include grazing of stock that has hard hooves, growing of crops that require large amounts of fertilisers and pesticides especially superphosphate and nitrogen. The economics of land degradation eld initiative is a global initiative based on an economic study created by a network of partners thinking and working for a joint vision.

It is a process in which the value of the biophysical environment is affected by a combination of humaninduced processes acting upon the land. It may refer to the destruction or deterioration of the health of terrestrial ecosystems, thus affecting the associated biodiversity, natural ecological processes and ecosystem resilience. The phenomenon of land degradation, therefore, includes the degradation of vegetation functions and services, usually over time, either within a landusecover type e. This practical handbook sets out rapid and nontechnical methods for measuring and assessing land degradation in the field. Abu sayeed during the last few years the agriculture sector is facing danger in many ways. Causes and impacts of land degradation and desertification. The ipbes assessment report on land degradation and restoration. The global problem of land degradation and desertification. The soil integrates a variety of important processes involving vegetation growth, overland flow of water, infiltration, land use and land management. To transform global understanding of the economic value of productive land. It thus covers the various forms of soil degradation, adverse human impacts on water resources, deforestation, and lowering of the productive capacity of rangelands. A case study on keyain village of munshigonj district. Rangeland degradation is occurring as a result of no grazing management plans.

Land degradation and deforestation deforestation in agriculture accounts for 60% of global land degradation as well as about 30% of all manmade carbon emissions. Case studies in land degradation vro agriculture victoria. Land degradation can be defined in several ways depending upon the subject that needs to be emphasized. The concept of land degradation as mentioned above, land degradation means much more than the degradation of the landsoil. The causes of land degradation in this category will require immediate application or available technology and the development of new technology to prevent. The areal extent of global degraded areas varies depending on the definitions eswaran et al. Stocking and murnaghan demonstrate these by using indicators that are relevant and applicable to real farming situations. Land degradation caused by agriculture takes many forms and has many causes. 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. There are several issues related to land degradation that intersect with other concerns. Soil degradation is, in itself, an indicator of land degradation. Sapphire and other minerals such as corundum, zircon, ruby and garnet were the minerals mined in the area. Globally, about 24% of the global land area has been affected by degradation and over 1. Forests are also helpful in binding up of soil particles with the help of roots of vegetation.

Many of these are in africa, acknowledging the severe. Land degradation is the temporary or permanent lowering of the productive capacity of land unep, 1992b. Land degradation involves change in the properties of land and soil texture, color, grain size and its functions water holding capacity, infiltration, supporting plant life. Land degradation stock photos download 7 royalty free. As sustainability and productivity are not easy to define, degradation of land can better be described in terms of non. To address this threat effectively, we will need to shift our focus away from land as the main problem towards land as a key part of the solution. 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. Background information land degradation in australia. What is land degradation and how much agricultural land. Collectively, these contributions explicitly seek to understand not only the mechanisms responsible for the problem of land degradation but their social and. Land degradation is the major challenge in the rangelands of the earth. It also highlights state and impacts of degradation, along with policy and program responses. Land degradation as the land use section earlier in this chapter shows, demands on the land for economic development and pressures from a burgeoning population are leading to unprecedented land use change. Studying these tables, it is evident that soil degradation is a major problem in europe.