What is the process called when fertile land becomes desert due to drought, deforestation, or inappropriate agricultural practices?

What is the process called when fertile land becomes desert due to drought, deforestation, or inappropriate agricultural practices?

• A. Desertification
• B. Land cover change
• C. Pollution
• D. Deforestation

Answer: (A)

Desertification is the process by which productive land becomes desert-like because soil moisture and vegetation are lost through drought and unsustainable land use. When forests are cleared or soils are overworked and poorly managed, the soil structure breaks down, organic matter declines, erosion increases, and the land loses its ability to retain water. Over time, this degradation turns once-fertile croplands or rangelands into barren areas with little vegetation and greatly reduced yields, creating a desert-like landscape even if rainfall hasn’t changed dramatically. Drought can start the decline, but human practices accelerate the damage, pushing land toward desert conditions under current management. The other terms are broader or refer to different ideas: land cover change is any shift in what covers the land, pollution means contamination, and deforestation is the removal of forests, which can contribute but doesn’t alone define the full process.

Desertification is the process by which productive land becomes desert-like because soil moisture and vegetation are lost through drought and unsustainable land use. When forests are cleared or soils are overworked and poorly managed, the soil structure breaks down, organic matter declines, erosion increases, and the land loses its ability to retain water. Over time, this degradation turns once-fertile croplands or rangelands into barren areas with little vegetation and greatly reduced yields, creating a desert-like landscape even if rainfall hasn’t changed dramatically. Drought can start the decline, but human practices accelerate the damage, pushing land toward desert conditions under current management. The other terms are broader or refer to different ideas: land cover change is any shift in what covers the land, pollution means contamination, and deforestation is the removal of forests, which can contribute but doesn’t alone define the full process.