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dust storm
The US Must Join the Global Fight Against Desertification to Prevent a Second Dust Bowl
Desertification is no longer a distant issue; it’s an urgent threat that directly impacts food security, economic stability, and the resilience of communities in the U.S. and beyond.
Dec 10, 2024
You grab the duct tape and sprint to the windows in an attempt to seal them from the wind that blows in heavy dust and dirt. But your attempts at prevention are ineffective, yet again. You smother Vaseline inside your nostrils, hoping the moisture will catch the dust particles before they irritate your lungs. As you shelter from the dust storm, you feel the ache in your stomach from the lack of food. Crops have been failing due to the ferocity of the wind, and the sky is dark black from the dust clouds that hang overhead. Not a single ray of sunshine has broken through the complete obscurity in weeks.
This description is not a dystopian imagining of a far-off future. It’s a real firsthand account from a farmer who lived in Oklahoma during the years of the 1930s Dust Bowl, one the most devastating natural disasters in U.S. history.
The Dust Bowl wasn’t just the result of drought; it was driven by unsustainable land use practices, including the removal of native grasses and over-plowing for agriculture. What followed was environmental devastation, economic collapse, and the displacement of millions. This period remains a dark reminder of what happens when land is mismanaged, and its lessons are more relevant than ever as the world faces the growing crisis of desertification.
With the incoming Trump administration looking set to block and reverse climate measures that would otherwise prevent another Dust Bowl event, America’s land, and communities, hang in the balance.
Desertification is the degradation of dry lands that receive limited rainfall (known as arid and semi-arid lands). Degradation occurs when unsustainable land use practices, such as overgrazing, deforestation, drainage of wetlands, and intensive farming, strip the land of its natural vegetation, leaving the soil exposed and vulnerable to erosion.
The world’s largest forum for addressing desertification, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP16), is taking place right now in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. And while you may not have heard of it—given the competition with recent headlines—it comes at a pivotal time for the United States. With the incoming Trump administration looking set to block and reverse climate measures that would otherwise prevent another Dust Bowl event, America’s land, and communities, hang in the balance.
Desertification in Your Backyard
While the UNCCD COP16 is focusing on tackling the issue of desertification on a global scale, for the U.S., the problem hits much closer to home than many might realize.
Desertification impacts more than 30% of land in the U.S. States such as California, Arizona, and Nevada are already grappling with land degradation caused by drought and unsustainable agricultural practices. As the impacts of climate change intensify, the risks to these regions will only grow, creating the exact ingredients for another Dust Bowl to take place.
But we don’t need to merely speculate about the future consequences of land degradation—this past year, natural disasters have shown how degraded landscapes amplify the devastating effects of extreme weather in the here and now. When land degrades, it loses the ability to retain water and nutrients. This exacerbates drought conditions and increases the risk of wildfires, like those that ravage the Pacific Northwest so often that a period of the year is termed “wildfire season.” Degraded soils also worsen flooding due to their inability to retain water, leading to destructive floods like those witnessed in Florida and North Carolina in October.
On a global scale, land degradation impacts as much as 40% of the world’s land area, affecting more than 3.2 billion people. While desertification in distant regions like Spain or sub-Saharan Africa may seem unrelated to American lives, the reality is that the effects are far from remote.
Moreover, the ripple effects of global land degradation directly impact food security, economic stability, and supply chains. As disruptions to food production in one part of the world drive up prices and destabilize agricultural markets, the effects are felt across U.S. grocery stores and rural economies.
The Trump Presidency: a Forecasted Disaster
As the world struggles to address desertification, U.S. policies under President-elect Donald Trump are set to exacerbate the crisis. Trump’s environmental agenda prioritizes fossil fuel development over renewable energy, a strategy that will accelerate land degradation both in the U.S. and abroad.
Trump’s nominee for Interior Secretary, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, has deep ties to fossil fuel companies and supports expanding oil and gas drilling on federally owned lands. With the federal government controlling nearly one-third of U.S. land, opening these areas to fossil fuel extraction will devastate fragile ecosystems, disrupt local water cycles, and intensify pollution.
By prioritizing sustainable land management, investing in restoration, and fostering international cooperation, the impacts of desertification can be mitigated to prevent future natural disasters.
Indigenous communities, proven to be the best stewards of land and water, have long called for expanded roles in managing natural resources. Yet, Trump’s policies sideline these voices, favoring short-term profits over sustainable practices.
His withdrawal from international climate agreements, such as the Paris climate accord, weakened global efforts to address environmental crises, reducing momentum for collaborative action. This retreat disrupted progress on tackling interconnected issues like desertification, which is exacerbated by rising temperatures and extreme weather. A repeat of such actions would further undermine international cooperation and stall critical progress in combating land degradation.
Restoration Is Still Possible (and Economical?)
Despite these huge barriers to action, the fight against desertification would offer immense opportunities to the U.S.. Restoring degraded land provides economic, environmental, and societal benefits that far outweigh the costs of implementation.
Economically, restoring an area a little bigger than India could contribute up to $9 trillion in ecosystem services, providing economic gains nine times the initial investment. For every dollar invested in restoration, there is a return of up to $30, making it one of the most cost-effective strategies for combating climate change and land degradation. Restoration efforts could also create up to 395 million jobs globally by 2030.
Restoring degraded landscapes plays a critical role in mitigating climate change, with the potential to reduce global emissions by 26 gigatons by 2030. In the U.S., where recent disasters have caused billions of dollars in damages, restoration can also enhance disaster resilience. Every dollar spent on restoration yields tenfold benefits in terms of food security, disaster risk reduction, and economic growth.
Integrated landscape restoration projects demonstrate how collaboration between communities, governments, and businesses can create sustainable and scalable solutions. They unlock the possibility to reverse land degradation and build a foundation for long-term environmental and economic stability.
Preventing a Future Dust Bowl Requires Action
The Dust Bowl taught us a harrowing lesson: When we fail to protect and manage our land responsibly, the consequences can be catastrophic. Today, the stakes are even higher as climate change and unsustainable practices converge to create a global crisis of land degradation. Desertification is no longer a distant issue; it’s an urgent threat that directly impacts food security, economic stability, and the resilience of communities in the U.S. and beyond.
The ongoing UNCCD COP16 in Riyadh offers a crucial opportunity for nations to unite against desertification, but it is clear that the U.S. must step up as a leader in this fight. By prioritizing sustainable land management, investing in restoration, and fostering international cooperation, the impacts of desertification can be mitigated to prevent future natural disasters.
History has shown that inaction is far more costly than action. Restoration offers a path to resilience, providing economic benefits, creating jobs, and protecting ecosystems. The question is no longer whether we can afford to act—it’s whether we can afford not to.
The introduction to this article pieces together quotes and paraphrases sections of Caroline A. Henderson’s letters, which were originally published in The Atlantic.
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Deadly Dust Storm in Illinois Blamed on Shortsighted Industrial Farming Methods
"This tragedy should be a wake-up call to Congress to take action in the 2023 Farm Bill," said one advocacy group. "We urge them to shift funds toward practices like cover cropping and conservation buffers, which protect soil from erosion."
May 02, 2023
Agricultural policy experts on Tuesday said the deadly dust storm that led to "zero visibility" for highway drivers this week in Illinois should be a "wake-up call" for lawmakers as advocates fight against industrial farming practices.
A day after at least six people were killed and more than 30 were injured in a pileup on Interstate 55 outside Springfield, the research and advocacy group Farm Action said the dust storm may have been driven by the chronic erosion of soil in rural areas, which has resulted as agribusiness pushes practices such as monocropping—a profitable method which can trigger the depletion of soil nutrients and the weakening of soil.
"Incidents like these are a tragic consequence of the shortsighted practices demanded by the monopoly corporations that control our agriculture system," said the organization in a statement. "Industrial practices which limit crop rotation in favor of monocropping and heavy herbicide application have resulted in unprecedented soil erosion and severe weather events—which cost us not only our agricultural system's resilience but human life itself."
Monocropping became more common in the middle of the 20th century, and herbicide applications increased from 18% of crops in 1960 to 76% of crops in 2008, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, further eroding soil.
Along with Farm Action, experts including Matt Wallenstein, chief soil scientist for gricultural company Syngenta, pointed to profit-driven industrial farming methods as a possible cause of the dust storm.
"Let's take this as a wake-up call to prioritize regenerative agriculture practices that can help prevent soil erosion and build healthier soils," said Wallenstein.
\u201cAnother example (\ud83d\ude41) to emphasize why we need to proritize regenerative agriculture, use of cover crops, grasses, reduced till etc not only add soil Carbon but might prevent these tragic dust storms, soil erosion etc. \n\nhttps://t.co/FSuxO9pFHY\n\n@regeneration_in @soil4climate\u201d— JAY NEPAL (@JAY NEPAL) 1682986328
Farm Action has called on lawmakers to include in the 2023 Farm Bill provisions that would offer subsidized insurance programs and disaster payments for farmers and companies that use regenerative farming practices that limit mechanical disturbances and reduce the use of chemical herbicides and fertilizers.
Methods include "cover cropping," or planting crops in soil that would otherwise be bare after cash crops are harvested, in order to keep living roots in the soil; moving livestock between pastures for grazing; "no-till farming," in which the soil is left intact rather than plowed; and conservation buffers such as hedgerows "that act as windbreaks and habitat for beneficial organisms," according to the Natural Resources Defense Council.
"The deadly dust storm was preventable. Our staff mourns the abrupt and senseless loss of life, and our hearts go out to the communities of central Illinois," said Farm Action. "This tragedy should be a wake-up call to Congress to take action in the 2023 Farm Bill. We urge them to shift funds toward practices like cover cropping and conservation buffers, which protect soil from erosion."
"If these sustainable practices were scaled up and supported by U.S. farm policies," the group added, "we would see a safer and more resilient system emerge."
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'Virtually Unstoppable' Blazes, Record Heat, and Mass Evacuations as Australia Wildfires Intensify
"We are still yet to hit the worst of it," said Gladys Berejiklian, premier of New South Wales.
Jan 03, 2020
Powerful winds and sweltering heat on Saturday combined to intensify catastrophic bushfires across Australia, forcing more than 100,000 people to evacuate their homes as firefighters struggled to contain the "virtually unstoppable" blazes ravaging large swaths of the continent.
At least two dozen people and an estimated half a billion animals have been killed by the fires, which have scorched more than six million hectares of land since September.
Australian authorities said Saturday and Sunday are likely to be two of the worst days since the fire season began late last year. "We are still yet to hit the worst of it," warned New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian.
As the Associated Pressreported Saturday, "the fire danger increased as temperatures rose to record levels across Australia on Saturday, surpassing 43 degrees Celsius (109 Fahrenheit) in Canberra, the capital, and reaching a record-high 48.9 C (120 F) in Penrith, in Sydney's western suburbs."
\u201c#Canberra has reached 43.6C\u2014a new hottest temperature record for any month. The previous Canberra records are 42.2C at Canberra Airport in 1968 and 42.8C at the now-closed Acton site in 1939. Observations at: https://t.co/8mMXbj9VGR\u201d— Bureau of Meteorology Australian Capital Territory (@Bureau of Meteorology Australian Capital Territory) 1578110868
According to CNN, three fires in the Omeo region in Victoria state combined overnight "to form a single blaze bigger than the New York borough of Manhattan."
Angus Barners, an incident controller at the Rural Fire Service in Moruya, NSW, told CNN that "we can't stop the fires, all we can do is steer them around communities."
\u201c"The entire sky has been turned this deathly shade of orange"\n\nThe BBC's Phil Mercer reports from a dust storm in New South Wales - the high winds are making conditions perilous for firefighters tackling Australia's bushfires\n\nhttps://t.co/gXPAKxtGGt\u201d— BBC News (World) (@BBC News (World)) 1578140799
Prime Minister Scott Morrison--who has faced fierce criticism from residents for failing to take sufficient action to confront the blazes--announced the 3,000 Australian Defense Force Reserve troops Saturday to help fight the devastating fires.
Defense Minister Linda Reynolds told reporters that it is the first time reservists have been called up "in this way in living memory and, in fact, I believe for the first time in our nation's history."
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