The Economics of Desertification, Land Degradation, and Drought

ABSTRACT
Attention to land degradation and environmental pollution has increased significantly in the past 25
years, largely due to greater levels of international cooperation and recognition that local changes in
land resources have global impacts. As the world’s focus on climate change increases, so, too, does
the attention being paid to drought and its rise in frequency and severity. Despite this heightened
global awareness, action to prevent or mitigate land degradation and drought at national or
international levels has been limited, primarily because there are limited assessments regarding the
cost of land degradation. Past global assessments have largely focused on the biophysical impacts of
land degradation while little has been done to assess its global economic costs or the costs-versusbenefits
of preventing or mitigating it. Additionally, past studies have largely focused on loss of onsite
productivity and have paid limited attention to the off-site costs of land degradation and off-site
benefits of land improvement. As part of the effort to address these and other gaps, this study was
undertaken to prepare a framework for global assessment of the economics of desertification, land
degradation, and drought (E-DLDD).
A review of literature on global evaluations of land degradation shows a significant
development in methods and approaches to mitigate it. Earlier evaluations based their assessments on
expert opinion and concentrated on only a few types of land degradation—namely soil erosion and
deforestation. Recent studies have expanded the types of land degradation assessed to include other
major indicators of terrestrial ecosystem services—made possible, in part, by rapid technological
development. Specifically, satellite imagery has been used to assess vegetation land cover using
normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), which is a measure of plant growth vigor, vegetation
cover, and biomass. The time series NDVI data are appealing because they are readily available,
however, there has been criticism on use of NDVI as an indicator of land degradation or
improvement.
To evaluate the costs and benefits of the actions needed to address land degradation, this
study proposes the total economic value approach, which takes into account both on-site and off-site
direct and indirect costs and benefits of ecosystem services. In order to recommend the appropriate
steps to address land degradation, this study also identifies a number of proximate and underlying
causes of land degradation, namely institutions and their role in regulating the drivers of land
degradation. Therefore, to carry out the E-DLDD study, a partnership and roles for each partner were
identified. Given the current global attention on land degradation and the growing interest in investing
in land, there is great potential for mobilizing partnerships around a global E-DLDD assessment and,
later, for implementing its recommendations. This would require champions of the cause to coordinate
and facilitate action in both the policy and scientific spheres.
Keywords: desertification, land degradation, economics, drought, cost of inaction, prevention
of land degradation
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