NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL. OFC. OF INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS. BOARD ON SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Environmental change in the West African Sahel
In order to ascertain the differing impacts of human and climatic interventions on the degradation of Sahelian ecosystems so that appropriate measures for long-term environmental rehabilitation can be identified, this study, prepared by international experts, was undertaken at A.I.D."s request.
1970
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Abstract
A paleoenvironmental review, presented in Chapter I, uses geological studies and the fossil record to demonstrate that during the last 2,500 years overall minimal climatic change in the arid Sahel has been punctuated with rapid, short-term variability. This analysis is supported in Chapter II, in which historical data are used to reconstruct environmental conditions and confirm periodic droughts and floods since 850 A.D. Recent (post-1960) drought conditions, while fitting into this pattern, may also represent the driest period in over 1,000 years. The tremendous negative impact of human activity on the amount and variety of Sahelian vegetation and wildlife and on soil-water ecosystems since prehistoric times is examined in Chapter III; specifically considered are fire, settlement patterns, trans-Saharan trade, gum-arabic trade, irrigation, cattle farming, firearm use, modern transportation, and urbanization. The fragility of the Sahelian environment and the need to restore and assure biological diversity and stability so as to sustain continuing human habitation and planned development are emphasized in Chapter IV. Recommendations are made for cooperation in research, education, and development projects to promote awareness of the need for and activities conducive to environmental rehabilitation. An 8-page bibliography (1937-83) is included and reports on West African shelterbelt establishment and on the climatology of sub-Saharan Africa are appended.
