Summary

A new UN report reveals that over 40% of the Earth’s land has become permanently dry over the past three decades, significantly impacting food and water security. This increase in aridity, mainly due to human-caused climate change, affects biodiversity and is driving mass migrations. Projections suggest that by 2100, nearly half of the global population could live in drylands, with dire consequences for agriculture and ecosystems.

Highlights – 🌍

40% of Land Dry: Over 40% of Earth’s land is now arid, a 3% increase since the last three decades.
Population Increase: The population in drylands has risen from 1.2 billion to 2.3 billion since 1990.
Economic Losses: Africa has lost approximately 12% of its GDP due to rising aridity, with further losses expected.
Climate Change Impact: Human-induced climate change is cited as the primary driver of increasing aridity.
Drought Risks: Rising temperatures are affecting the water cycle, leading to more frequent droughts.
Ecosystem Degradation: 40% of arable land faces increased soil aridity, threatening agricultural productivity.
Global Conference: A UN conference in Saudi Arabia is addressing land degradation and potential restoration agreements.

Permanently dry – or arid – land is less fertile and inhabitable for most animal and plant species, leading to greater food and water insecurity and large-scale forced migration.

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An area almost a third larger than India has turned from humid conditions to permanently dry – or arid – in the past three decades, according to a new UN report published on Monday as a global conference on land degradation enters its second week.

Excluding Antarctica, drylands now make up 40.6% of all land on Earth, a 3% increase compared to the earlier 30-year period. Meanwhile, some 77.6% of the planet’s land experienced a drier climate within the same timeframe.

The number of people living in drylands has also increased, from 1.2 billion three decades ago to 2.3 billion in 2020, equivalent to 30.9% of all people on Earth. By 2100, as many as 5 million people – two in every five people on the planet – could live in drylands.

The Science-Policy Interface, the group of scientists for the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) behind the new report, said the changes can be attributed to human-caused climate change.

Rising temperatures are altering the water cycle in many areas of the world, increasing the risk of droughts.