Published: December 04, 2008

Expanding Deserts Threatening Mauritania

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Deforestation and land degradation is costing Mauritania an estimated $192 million, or 14 percent of the national budget a year, according to a new United Nations report distributed by the U.N. news agency IRIN.

The report states that degradation of the environment in the poor West African country is responsible for the dangerous displacement of sand dunes that has wiped out homes, livestock and livelihoods throughout the country.

U.N. researchers have reached the price tag by calculating the value of lost cultivable land, disappearing trees and water resources, in addition to the health care costs from air and waterborne diseases related to the poor management of natural resources.

Droughts in the 1970s and 1980s forced many of the country's nomads to settle down, increasing competition for pastoral land and increased migration. Due to the drought many farmers began cutting down the country's forests to feed their animals and to supplement their livelihoods. The increased deforestation accelerated the expansion of the desert and further amplified the effect of the droughts.

One local botanist based in the capital Nouakchott told IRIN that the fight against the desert was turning into a daily battle and that it was worrying to see bulldozers clearing sand from national roads.

One particularity sensitive stretch is the 93-mile road leading from Nouakchott to Boutilimit. If this road in closed, some 80 percent of the country will not be able to reach the capital to resupply, choking off commerce and food supplies.

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