The sahel (desert fringe) (case study)

Question 1

Where is the sahel?

Answer 1

The sahel is in a line crossing the middle of Africa, located along the south of the Sahara desert

Question 2

What is desertification?

Answer 2

The process of semi-arid grassland becoming degraded and drier, turning into a desert

Question 3

How many people are living in areas at risk of desertification?

Answer 3

1 billion

Question 4

Why has the population in semi-arid areas grown?

Answer 4

• Natural increase as economies and standards of living improve in semi-arid areas.
• Migration as people escape conflicts; such as 3 million people in the Darfur region of Sudan.

Question 5

What has happened to the Sahel over the past 50 years?

Answer 5

Less rainfall means less grazing and crop production as well as stopping underground water reserves from recharging. The lack of precipitation has caused the Sahel to slowly become a desert.

Question 6

What are the reasons for desertification in the Sahel?

Answer 6

• Deforestation
• Poor farming practices
• Climate change
• Population growth

Question 7

Where does most of the domestic energy come from in the Sahel?

Answer 7

80% of domestic energy comes from burning firewood.

Question 8

What is happening to the demand for energy in the Sahel?

Answer 8

As population increases, the demand for energy increases.

Question 9

What do people do to get firewood?

Answer 9

• They cut down every tree they can find.
• They strip the branches and leaves off the trees.

Question 10

Why is Deforestation causing desertification in the Sahel?

Answer 10

• When there are less leaves to provide shade, the soil dries out quicker.
• Roots don’t hold the soil together anymore, causing soil erosion as the top layer of soil blows away or is washed away when it rains.
• Less leaves fall to the ground so there is less nutrients returned to the soil, making the soil less fertile.

Question 11

Why is population growth causing desertification in the Sahel?

Answer 11

• The new people need resources to build houses.

Question 12

What are the poor farming practices?

Answer 12

• Overgrazing
• Overcultivation
• Monoculture
• Poor irrigation systems

Question 13

What is overgrazing?

Answer 13

• Overgrazing occurs when a farmer allows animals to graze on one site for too long.

Question 14

Why does overgrazing cause desertification and what animals are the worst?

Answer 14

• They strip the vegetation so that there is nothing left to hold the soil together, causing the soil to blow away.
• The animals trample the land, leading to erosion.
• Goats and cattle are the worst

Question 15

What is overcultivation?

Answer 15

• Population growth puts more pressure on agricultural land to produce more food.
• This more intensive use of the land takes away the nutrients from the soil.
• Water stores are drained as more crops need to be watered.

Question 16

Why is overcultivation bad?

Answer 16

The countries have less crops to export, making them earn less money

Question 17

What is Monoculture?

Answer 17

Planting one crop

Question 18

Why is Monoculture bad?

Answer 18

Planting only one crop causes a lack of nutrients in the soil, causing the soil to become infertile

Question 19

Why are poor irrigation systems bad?

Answer 19

• Poor irrigation systems lead to unsustainable use of water as lots of water is lost through evaporation, causing a buildup of salt crusts.
• Leads to over-abstraction of water sources, causing rivers and lakes to dry up.

Question 20

Which countries are in the Sahel?

Answer 20

• Mauritiana
• Senegal
• The Gambia
• Guinea Bissau
• Mali
• Burkina Faso
• Niger
• Chad
• Sudan
• Eritrea

Question 21

What is the most significant cause of desertification?

Answer 21

Climate change

Question 22

What is cyclical drought?

Answer 22

A drought that occurs in cycles over a particular region. This means they are predictable but can still have impacts on agriculture, water supplies, ecosystems, and economies.

Question 23

How do you reduce the risk of desertification?

Answer 23

• Water management
• Soil management
• Tree planting
• Use of appropriate technology

Question 24

Water management

Answer 24

Drip irrigation is used to manage water supplies, ensuring that crops survive and soils don’t crack

Question 25

Soil management

Answer 25

Small walls called bunds are constructed parallel to the slope gradient, stopping soil from blowing away a bit like a groyne.

Question 26

Tree planting

Answer 26

• A scheme to plant a wall of trees across the entire Sahel region from the Atlantic to the Indian Ocean.
• Benefits include: Sustainable development for communities, generation of work for poor communities, political stability brought by cooperation in the region.

Question 27

Use of appropriate technology

Answer 27

• Drought tolerant crops
• Development and distribution of ‘efficient stoves’
• Solar power is being used to provide energy