e360 digest
26 Jun 2009:
Spreading Desertification
Affecting Mediterranean, Group Says
Growing depletion of aquifers and climate change are turning parts of Italy, Spain, and France into desert, according to the Italian environmental group, Legambiente. The group said that 11 percent of arable land in Sicily, Sardinia, and sections of southern Italy already shows signs of drying up and could eventually affect the livelihoods of 6.5 million people. The main cause is the depletion of underground aquifers, which can result in seawater intruding into the groundwater, effectively poisoning water supplies, Legambiente said. The group reported that 74 million acres of land in Italy, Spain, and the French Riviera were gradually turning to desert because of overexploitation of water resources, with 20 percent of the Iberian Peninsula already experiencing desertification. Legambiente said that nearly half of Egypt’s farmland had been compromised by brackish groundwater caused by saltwater intrusion. U.N. officials confirmed the threat of desertification to large areas bordering the Mediterranean, and Legambiente said that unless water and land-use policies are changed “the risk will become concrete and irreversible.” Climate scientists say that rising temperatures also are contributing to spreading desertification in Spain and around the Mediterranean.
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