单选题
Deforestation and Desertification (沙漠化)
The Sahel zone lies between the Sahara desert and the fertile savannahs (热带大草原) of northern Nigeria and South Sudan. The word
sahel
comes from Arabic and means marginal or transitional, and this is a good description of these semi-arid (半干旱) lands, which occupy much of the Western African countries of Mali, Mauritania, Niger, and Chad.
Unfortunately, over the last century the Sahara desert has steadily crept southwards eating into once productive Sahel lands. United Nations surveys show that over 70 percent of the dry land in agriculture use in Africa has
deteriorated
over the last 30 years. Droughts have become more severe, the most recent lasting over twenty years in parts of the Sahel region. The same process of desertification is taking place across southern Africa as the Kalahari desert advances into Botswana and parts of South Africa.
One of the major causes of this desert advance is poor agricultural land use, driven by the pressures of increasing population. Overgrazing—keeping too many farm animals on the land—means that grasses and other plants cannot recover, and scarce water supplies are exhausted. Over cultivation—trying to grow too many crops on poor land—results in the soil becoming even less fertile and drier, and beginning to break up. Soil erosion (侵蚀) follows, and the land turns into desert.
Another cause of desertification is loss of tree cover. Trees are cut down for use as fuel and to clear land for agricultural use. Tree roots help to bind the soil together, to conserve moisture, and to provide a habitat for other plants and animals. When trees are cut down, the soil begins to dry and loosen, wind and rain erosion increase, other plant species die, and eventually the fertile topsoil may be almost entirely lost, leaving only bare rock and dust.
The effects of loss of topsoil and increased drought are irreversible. They are, however, preventable. Careful conservation of tree cover and sustainable agricultural land use have been shown to halt deterioration of soils and lessen the effects of shortage of rainfall. One project in Kita in south-west Mall funded by UNDP has involved local communities in sustainable management of forest, while at the same time providing a viable (有活力的) agricultural economy. This may be a model for similar projects in other West African countries.