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Answer:
Land degradation is a significant global issue, and several factors contribute to this problem. Here are some of the major contributors:
1. **Deforestation**: The removal of trees for agriculture, logging, or urban development reduces the land's ability to retain water and nutrients, leading to soil erosion and loss of fertility.
2. **Overgrazing**: Livestock overgrazing can strip vegetation cover, exposing the soil to erosion by wind and water, and reducing soil fertility.
3. **Agricultural Practices**: Unsustainable farming techniques, such as monocropping, overuse of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, and improper irrigation practices, can lead to soil degradation, salinization, and nutrient depletion.
4. **Urbanization and Industrialization**: The expansion of cities and industrial activities can lead to soil sealing (covering of soil by impermeable materials), contamination from industrial waste, and loss of arable land.
5. **Climate Change**: Changes in climate patterns can exacerbate land degradation through increased frequency and severity of droughts, floods, and extreme weather events, which can accelerate soil erosion and reduce soil productivity.
6. **Mining Activities**: Mining operations often result in the removal of topsoil and vegetation, leading to soil erosion, habitat destruction, and contamination from mining waste.
7. **Water Mismanagement**: Poor water management practices, such as over-extraction of groundwater and inefficient irrigation methods, can lead to soil salinization, reduced soil moisture, and eventual desertification.
8. **Pollution**: Contamination of soil with pollutants from agricultural runoff, industrial activities, and improper waste disposal can degrade soil quality and reduce its productivity.
9. **Invasive Species**: The introduction of non-native plant species can alter soil composition and ecosystem balance, often leading to degradation of native soils and loss of biodiversity.
10. **Overexploitation of Resources**: Excessive extraction of natural resources, such as timber, minerals, and water, can lead to habitat destruction and soil degradation.
Addressing land degradation requires a multi-faceted approach that includes sustainable land management practices, reforestation efforts, better water management, and policies aimed at mitigating the impacts of climate change and human activities.
Answer:
Explanation:Land degradation is influenced by a combination of factors, including:
Extreme weather conditions, particularly drought.
Human activities that pollute or degrade the quality of soils and land utility, such as deforestation, excessive grazing, erosion, and pollution.
Urbanization and climate change which can reduce the fertility of the land and its capacity to support crops and feed cattle1.
These factors negatively affect food production, livelihoods, and the production and provision of other ecosystem goods and services2. For more detailed information, you can refer to this WHO article on land degradation and desertification2