The degradation or destruction of the Earth's surface and soil, directly or indirectly because of human activities
Land
The basis for agriculture and other rural and urban land uses, encompassing soils, climate, vegetation, topography, and other natural resources
Land degradation includes deforestation, desertification, mining, soil salinization, and urban sprawl
Although natural causes may lead to deforestation, the focus in this unit is on anthropogenic activities
Deforestation
The massive removal of a forest or the clearing of vast forest areas either for lumber source, conversion to agricultural lands, or for urbanization
Since 1960, over half of tropical rainforests have been destroyed
Causes of Deforestation
Agriculture
Urbanization
Timber Extraction
Anthropogenic Climate Change
Social and Political
Agriculture as a cause of deforestation
Conversion of forest into lands into agricultural lands for crops and livestock farming to meet the growing food demands of an exponentially increasing global population
Urbanization as a cause of deforestation
Clearing of forests to give way to settlements and infrastructure projects such as the building of roads, bridges, railways, airports, and power generation and transmission
Timber Extraction as a cause of deforestation
The global demand for timber has supported illegal and unsustainable logging in various forests of the world, aside from using timber for building settlements, they are also exploited for furniture and paper industries, as well as firewood and charcoal businesses
Anthropogenic Climate Change as a cause of deforestation
Climate change has brought severe and frequent droughts, hurricanes and tropical storms, heatwaves, and fires that destroyed forests worldwide, although these are natural phenomena, the change in the normal cycle of the climate is due to human activities
Social and Political causes of deforestation
Lack of discipline and responsible demand on trades on the part of communities, Failure of the government to implement environmental laws due to incompetence or corruption
Effects of Deforestation
Anthropogenic Climate Change
Soil Erosion and Flooding
Reduced Air Humidity
Loss of Habitat and Biodiversity
Anthropogenic Climate Change as an effect of deforestation
Loss of the carbon dioxide absorbing capacity of forests leads to the accumulation of this greenhouse gas in the atmosphere, Increase in greenhouse gases leads to global warming that leads to climate change
Soil Erosion and Flooding as an effect of deforestation
Roots of plants, especially trees, bind soil particles, preventing them from being washed out during a storm or heavy rains, without these trees, water will simply rush and flood to low lying areas
Reduced Air Humidity as an effect of deforestation
Without vegetation, the rate of evapotranspiration is greatly decreased, affecting the normal water cycle, Decrease in evapotranspiration decreases the amount of water vapor in the atmosphere, decreasing condensation, and decreasing rainfall
Loss of Habitat and Biodiversity as an effect of deforestation
Destruction of the homes of thousands of species that live in the forest, Leads to a decline in both species richness and species diversity, Numerous species are now extinct, and more are in the endangered species list
Dealing with Deforestation
Reforestation and Afforestation
Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR)
The Power of the Marketplace
Changing the Politics
Standing with Indigenous Peoples
Reforestation
The process of restoring forests by planting the same tree species that are native to that specific forest
Afforestation
Planting trees in areas that were never forests, converting (not restoring) an area into a forest
Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR)
Planting trees is not enough to restore forests, so IUCN has collaborated with FLR enthusiasts to bring people together to identify and implement the most appropriate restoration interventions in a landscape, It includes multiple activities like managing natural regeneration, agroforestry, protect wildlife reserves, mange plantations, erosion control, and improved land management by addresses the underlying drivers of forest loss
The Power of the Marketplace
Companies can make an impact by introducing and implementing "zero deforestation" policies that clean up their supply chains, set ambitious targets to maximize the use of recycled wood, pulp, paper and fiber in their products, and ensure that any virgin fiber used has transparent, credible assurances that it was sourced in a legal way that respects principles of environmental and social responsibility
Changing the Politics
The National Integrated Protected Areas System Act of 1992 (Republic Act No. 7586) or known as the NIPAS Act provides the legal framework for the establishment and management of protected areas (PAs) in the Philippines, and that the use and enjoyment of these protected areas must be consistent with the principles of biological diversity and sustainable development
Standing with Indigenous Peoples
Indigenous peoples call the forests their homes and have shown cultures indicative of sustainable forest management, This shows that they are the best protectors of forests, thus the best way to save forests is to recognize the claims of indigenous peoples to their forest territories
Desertification
The conversion of a productive land to an unproductive barren land, characterized by the loss of soil moisture and nutrient rich topsoil to the point where the land loses its productivity or ability to produce vegetation
Causes of Desertification
Overgrazing
Anthropogenic Climate Change
Deforestation
Unsustainable Farming Methods
Overuse of Groundwater
Overgrazing as a cause of desertification
Occurs when too many animals graze for too long, exceeding the ability of a grassland area to support them, overgrazed lands have grasses that were eaten down to its soil level, exposing the topsoil to elements of erosion
Anthropogenic Climate Change as a cause of desertification
Severe drought and moisture loss kill vegetation and prevents any other from thriving on an extremely dry land
Deforestation as a cause of desertification
Removal of trees means removal of the forest cover, exposing forest soil to direct sunlight, Increasing soil temperature also increases the rate of evaporation, making the land very dry, Soil erosion due to deforestation removes the nutrient rich topsoil, converting a productive land to a barren land
Unsustainable Farming Methods as a cause of desertification
Failure to employ crop rotation depletes the topsoil of nutrients, degrading the soil, Over tilling the soil dislodges soil particles, making them vulnerable to erosion and eventually lose soil nutrients and ability to store water, Overuse of chemical fertilizers and pesticides alters the chemical balance of the soil, making it in hospitable for plant growth
Overuse of Groundwater as a cause of desertification
Excessive pumping of ground water for human consumption dries up the ground water reservoir, depriving vegetation of much needed water supply
Effects of Desertification
Decrease in Crop Yield
Loss of Habitat and Biodiversity
Migration and Overpopulation
Decrease in Crop Yield as an effect of desertification
With the much-needed food for the growing population, losing viable agricultural lands to desertification poses as a major problem that could lead to food shortage
Loss of Habitat and Biodiversity as an effect of desertification
Desertification makes it impossible for plants and animals to survive and sustain their population, it is the decline in population that makes species vulnerable to extinction
Migration and Overpopulation as an effect of desertification
Loss of both food supply and livelihood drives people to leave and migrate to more productive areas, which in the end will be overpopulated by the influx of migrants
Dealing with Desertification
Rotational Grazing
Better Farming Methods
Reforestation
Sustainable use of Ground Water
Decrease Greenhouse Gas emissions
Rotational Grazing
Involves dividing an entire Pasteur to sub-pastures or paddocks, Cattle grazing in these paddocks are done so by schedule, allowing time for Pasteur plants to rest, grow, and recover before being grazed again
Better Farming Methods
Practice of crop rotations, use of organic fertilizers, and improved tilling methods
Reforestation
In areas that were subjected to deforestation, reforestation efforts should take precedence
Sustainable use of Ground Water
Using just enough water to prevent depletion and allowing ground water to be replenished