Humans, though independent as they may seem, have various needs such as food and a tolerable environment among many others. If even one of these needs is left unmet, the quality of life of man would decline, eventual death of some is not impossible. Among the many needs of man, land is involved most of the times. Men need shelter, they put their houses in lands; men need food, they cultivates them in lands. According to Kassas (1995), land is the terrestrial system that includes soil, water, some organismal growth, and the environmental processes that occur within the system. Such system may produce relevant products like crops and pasture that are used by humans and other animals for growth and survival. Aside from the obvious agricultural
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Drought is the condition of insufficient moisture brought about by a deficit in precipitation over a period of time (Doesken, N.J., Kleist, J., & McKee, T.B., 1993). Drought only means that the average amount of moisture or rainfall that would satisfy agricultural, livestock, domestic use, among others is not fully met (Kassas, 1995). Desertification is defined by the United Nations Environment Programme or UNEP as land degradation in dry sub humid, arid, and semi-arid areas caused by various factors such as climatic variations and human impact. This definition is a revision from a 1977 definition by the United Nations Conference on Desertification that described desertification as the formation of desert-like conditions brought about by the destruction of the biological capacity of the land (UNCOD, …show more content…
In terms of income foregone, the annual cost of desertification in 1990 amounted to around 11 billion US dollars for irrigated lands alone. The income forgone in rainfed croplands amounted to eight billion US dollars while rangeland income foregone amounted to 23 billion US dollars, both in 1990 as well. The overall income foregone amounts to 42 billion. In terms of rehabilitation cost, the cost is high since there is a need for an effective drainage system (Chou, N.T., & Dregne, H.E.,
Drought is the condition of insufficient moisture brought about by a deficit in precipitation over a period of time (Doesken, N.J., Kleist, J., & McKee, T.B., 1993). Drought only means that the average amount of moisture or rainfall that would satisfy agricultural, livestock, domestic use, among others is not fully met (Kassas, 1995). Desertification is defined by the United Nations Environment Programme or UNEP as land degradation in dry sub humid, arid, and semi-arid areas caused by various factors such as climatic variations and human impact. This definition is a revision from a 1977 definition by the United Nations Conference on Desertification that described desertification as the formation of desert-like conditions brought about by the destruction of the biological capacity of the land (UNCOD, …show more content…
In terms of income foregone, the annual cost of desertification in 1990 amounted to around 11 billion US dollars for irrigated lands alone. The income forgone in rainfed croplands amounted to eight billion US dollars while rangeland income foregone amounted to 23 billion US dollars, both in 1990 as well. The overall income foregone amounts to 42 billion. In terms of rehabilitation cost, the cost is high since there is a need for an effective drainage system (Chou, N.T., & Dregne, H.E.,