Causes of Desertification | AQA GCSE 9-1 Geography

What is desertification? What are the causes of desertification? What is over-grazing? What is over-cultivation?

This is the thirty-second video for the AQA GCSE 9-1 Geography course, and the twelfth video of The Living World topic.

The Living World Playlist:

Follow me on all platforms:

Do you have a video suggestion?

Video Script:
Desertification is the process of land becoming a desert. This happens gradually over time and is usually at the borders of existing deserts. Some of the areas at risk from desertification include the Sahel region in Africa, parts of Europe, Australia and the United States.

This is caused by a variety of factors, many of which are linked to humans. Population growth puts more pressure on the environment to provide for the increasing numbers of people. This results in unsustainable use of the land.

The increased demand for food causes two problems. Overgrazing is where the number of livestock feeding from the land is too high, resulting in the destruction of vegetation. Over-cultivation is where crops are being grown too much, removing natural vegetation and removing nutrients from the soil.

This loss of vegetation exacerbates another cause of desertification, soil erosion. The lack of vegetation leaves the soil exposed, making it easily eroded by the wind and rain.

This is further increased due to deforestation. Wood is used for fuel, which means as the population grows, the demand for wood increases too. The removal of trees means roots are no longer binding the soil together, making it more vulnerable to soil erosion.

And finally, climate change means desert regions are experiencing hotter temperatures and lower average rainfall.

--
GCSE Geography
06/05/2023
Keducate