The deserts are growing (Level 1)

Desertification, in the words of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, is one of the world’s most alarming processes of environmental degradation. The issue is often obscured, however, by a common misperception: that it’s a «natural» problem of advancing deserts in faraway developing countries.

In fact, Desertification is about land degradation: the loss of the land’s biological productivity, caused by human-induced factors and climate change. It affects one third of the earth’s surface and over a billion people. Moreover, it has potentially devastating consequences in terms of social and economic costs. Each year fertile land of the area of Ireland is getting lost. The UN estimates that over 100 Million people have to leave their land and thaat in the next 5 years ofer 50 million will become environmental refugees if this developement cannot be stopped.

Please don't hesitate to solve the quiz by guessing! You will find more hints and links in the answers. You can solve the quiz as often as you like.

: Three answers are correct.
: One answer ist correct.

Linktips:
Die Official site on the International Year of Deserts and Desertification
Wikipedia on desertifikation

1	Which trends are considered causes of desertification?

	Higher live stock densities and deforestation due to increased population pressure.
	Intensive agriculture with irrigation and use of pesticides.
	The rising see and groundwater level.
	The increase of weather extremes - especially droughts.

2	Who many people live in "drylands"? (Drylands are defined as regions where the evaporation ist greater than precipitation). Tip: The world population is currently approx. 6.5 billion people.

	less than 1 million
	approx. 0,5 billion
	approx. 1 billion
	more than 2 billion people.

3	Approximately 40% of the total land area are considered as dryland. Which part of these drylands are affected by desertification?

	1-10%
	10-20%
	20-30%
	30-40%

4	Which is the largest desert of the world? A B C D

	A) The Gobi Desert in Asia
	B) The Sahara Desert in Africa
	C) The Australian Desert
	D) The Arabian Desert

5	Desertification forces many people to leave their home country. How many environmental refugees does the UN expect in the following 15 years?

	1 million
	2 million
	50 million
	2000 million

6	What are the aims of the "international Year on Deserts and Desertification 2006"?

	To combat poverty
	Better access to food and water.
	The fusion of all states affected by desertification
	To prevent people from becoming environmental refugees.

7	How can consumers to contribute to combatting desertification?

	Watch for environmental labels on cotton and wood.
	Chose water saving hotels and use less water when traveling in dry areas.
	Don't travel to countries with deserts.
	Choose seasonal and organic fruits and vegetables.