FACT 9 (land degradation) Irresponsible and short-sighted land use practices have led to the destruction of alarming areas of the planets land zones, and millions of hectares are being rendered useless every year.

Some quotes to illustrate…
Over 40% of all agricultural land is badly degraded, 80% of grasslands are affected by soil degradation, 20% of drylands are in danger of becoming deserts and 58% of coral reefs are imperiled by human activity (People and Ecosystems: The Fraying Web of Life - UN report, 2000).
Between 60% and 80% of South Africa's wetter grasslands had been irreversibly transformed by the mid-1980s. (Enviro Facts - Grasslands, ShareNet, Howick, 1999)
Worldwide, about 12 million hectares of land per year are being rendered useless for cultivation. In South Africa, land mismanagement and associated desertification results in the loss of 300 - 400 million tons of topsoil every year. (Enviro Facts - Desertification, ShareNet, Howick, 1999)
In 1996 it was estimated that more than half of South Africa's wetlands had already disappeared (Enviro Facts -Wetlands, ShareNet, Howick, 1999)
Two thirds of all fish harvested depend at some point in their lives on coastal wetlands which are disappearing fast (People and Ecosystems: The Fraying Web of Life - UN report, 2000).

This information was made available by the;
Sustainable Living Centre, P.O.Box 261, Noordhoek, 7878, Cape Town
Tel (021) 789 2920 fax (021) 789 2954
email info@sustainable.co.za  web www.sustainable.co.za