The Looming Threat: Global Drylands on the Rise

A UNCCD report highlights a significant global increase in drylands, covering over 40% of Earth's land by 2020. If greenhouse gas emissions aren't curbed, more humid areas will convert to drylands, impacting billions. Key affected regions include parts of Europe, the US, and Asia.

In a stark revelation, a report by the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) warns of an accelerating trend in global dryland expansion, now encompassing more than 40% of Earth's land. The document, unveiled at the 16th conference of the UNCCD in Riyadh, outlines the dire consequences of unchecked greenhouse gas emissions.

The past three decades have witnessed an addition of 4.3 million square kilometers of drylands, an area larger than India by nearly a third. Without measures to mitigate emissions, the phenomenon could convert an additional three percent of humid regions to arid landscapes by the century's end.

The burgeoning issue of desertification poses an existential threat to 2.3 billion people currently residing in these drylands, a number projected to swell to five billion by 2100. Countries across Europe, the US, and China are among the most vulnerable, as highlighted by UNCCD Executive Secretary Ibrahim Thiaw.

(With inputs from agencies.)