Land degradation: A socioecological perspective

Land degradation raises interesting research issues, when defining related processes in their conceptual and quantitative aspects, and when studying implications on natural resources and ecosystems. Understanding land degradation requires a multidisciplinary approach, in view of the different processes involved, as well as the acquisition of a considerable amount of basic information. Land degradation can evolve into an irreversible phase of 'desertification'. This term, although bringing the root 'desert' back to the foreground, should not be understood as a 'generator of deserts'; in many countries geographically far from desertic areas, it is possible to find latent conditions of desertification. Land degradation becomes manifest only when it is too late to withdraw from the irreversible conditions that were generated (Salvati et al., 2008a, 2009). According to United Nations data sources, a worrying picture emerges: 70% of arid arable land, corresponding to about 30% of total land, is affected by land degradation (Salvati et al., 2008b). Given the serious effects on populations and environments, the problem is particularly relevant in Africa, Asia, South America and the Caribbean. However, countries with structurally strong economies (e.g., United States, Australia, Japan and Europe) are also affected by land degradation, whose genesis and evolution, although attributable to a patchwork of different causes, appears unequivocally connected and reinforced by climate change.