Victoria Falling

Climate change, deforestation, erosion take toll on African landscape

Posted at 3:01 PM on 10 Jun 2008

A new United Nations atlas depicts alarming changes to Africa's landscape. On a continent that produces a mere 4 percent of the world's greenhouse-gas emissions, significant landmarks are taking a hit from climate change: Lake Chad and Lake Victoria are shrinking each year, and Mt. Kilimanjaro could be snow-free by 2020. The deforestation rate in Africa is twice the world average, and the continent each year loses enough forest to cover the state of Maryland. Sixty-five percent of African farmlands are threatened by chemical damage and/or erosion; some areas are losing more than 22 tons of soil per acre each year. But there are also "many places across Africa where people have taken action -- where there are more trees than 30 years ago, where wetlands have sprung back, and where land degradation has been countered," says U.N. Environment Program head Achim Steiner. "These are the beacons we need to follow to ensure the survival of Africa's people and their economically important nature-based assets."

sources: Associated Press, Agence France-Presse, Reuters, The Guardian

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Comments: (5 comments)

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Deforestation, soil loss don't happen in a vacuum

Gee, do you think any of these problems could be exacerbated by exponential population growth? Both in Africa and elsewhere on the globe?

Oh, I forgot: one is not supposed to mention "population growth" as a "problem" on this site, especially in the context of an underdeveloped country, as it raises uncomfortable issues and it doesn't pass the politically-correct test with some people.

All I know is, there are about 2.3 people on this planet today for every 1.0 that existed when I was born only a few decades ago. Also the fact that everywhere I've gone on this small planet -- everywhere -- I've seen environmental degradation that is clearly aggravated by local population pressures.

Just as the impacts can be seen where every reader of this comment lives, I bet.

So I'm just saying, until we address the root problem ...

by GonzoDon at 8:53 PM on 10 Jun 2008

elephants

It is gratifying to know that elephants are not implicated in major deforestation in Africa. Locally, of course they are.

On cruelty shown to captive elephants (mostly Asian elephants, but some African elephants), see this recent PETA video:

http://www.petatv.com/tvpopup/Prefs.asp?video=training_an ....

It is also encouraging that the UN spokesman found good news too to draw from this otherwise dismal report, that sometimes conservation actually works. Who would have thought!

Chickens deserve our true friendship! So do fish! So do other sentient beings! Let us learn to be kind.

by caniscandida at 4:11 AM on 11 Jun 2008

Anyone who has lived in Africa can tell you

that Africans are the ones destroying their environment. They kill anything and everything. Ridiculous ideas of "African Shamans" who are in tune with nature and other such B.S. are just that, B.S. Africans kill each other with abandon, and it has nothing to do with the West or any other part of the world. They have ALWAYS been killing each other with abandon. The only reason Africa has not been trashed more than it is is because Africans haven't figured out a more efficient way to do it.

I lived in East Africa for two years, and it was obvious that at least there, the African capacity for destruction of anything and everything was prodigious.

Victory in Pattani

by MAD MAC at 4:44 AM on 11 Jun 2008

Overpopulation And Other Harms

GonzoDon,

I fully agree that human overpopulation is the biggest problem on the planet, and I came to this realization many decades ago when I was 14. And you're completely correct that the PC cops don't want anyone raising this issue, and those who agree are obviously more leftist than environmentalist. But the other root of all environmental problems is overconsumption, and it's just as important to stop this as it is to greatly reduce human population.

Unfortunately, the U.S. is suffering from both gross overpopulation and overconsumption, and thus has to be the most ecologically and environmentally destructive country on Earth. As Americans, we need to loudly advocate for reductions in both population and consumption, not one or the other.

by Wolverine at 12:19 PM on 11 Jun 2008

Mt. Kilimanjaro

On a continent that produces a mere 4 percent of the world's greenhouse-gas emissions, significant landmarks are taking a hit from climate change: Lake Chad and Lake Victoria are shrinking each year, and Mt. Kilimanjaro could be snow-free by 2020.

It's misleading to suggest that greenhouse gas emissions are the cause of shrinking the snow cap on Mt.Kilimanjaro. As the title of this piece hints at, this tragedy is caused by deforestation for logging and by fires set by humans. That said, the West has long exploited Africa's natural resources, and through wars has destabilized some regions. We are none of us innocent in these days of globalization.

by sweetbeans at 8:05 AM on 17 Jun 2008

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