In the Northeast of Brazil, an area larger than the state of Ceará has already been hit by desertification, either seriously or extremely gravely. This means that 180,000 square kilometres have been degraded and in many places are quite useless for agriculture. If we add to this the amount of land where desertification has been moderate, the total land area affected by this phenomenon rises to 574,362 square kilometres, or almost one third of the land in the Northeast. Ceará and Pernambuco are the worst hit, although proportionally the state of Paraíba has the largest extension of its land affected – the effects of desertification already compromise 71% of its territory. Based on figures provided by the UN, the Brazilian government estimates an annual loss of U$ 300 million, given the loss of areas used for natural pasture, dryland-agriculture and irrigation. The semiarid Northeast is the largest and most populous desert area in the world, with almost 18 million inhabitants. Look at the following four centres of desertification in the Northeast and their characteristics:

Gilbués (PI)
Affected area:6,132 km2
Total number of inhabitants: 10,000

Main causes of desertification: mineral extraction and extensive cattle-farming

Municipal areas included : Gilbués and Monte Alegre

Characteristics: sandy soil with huge dunes and craters caused by serious wind and water erosion, which are now heading towards the urban part of the town. Due to the accelerated nature of the erosion, Gilbués presents one of the gravest pictures of desertification in the world. The problem is aggravated both in the winter, when the rains erode huge amounts of earth, as well as in the drought season, when the soil is scorched and the wind accentuates the erosive process even more. The marshland and riverbeds are being buried under eroded soil. As a result, the mean temperature in the region has increased by 2 degrees over the last few years. Page 3

Irauçuba (CE):
Affected area: 4,000 km2
Total number of inhabitants: 34,250

Main causes of desertification: Intensive deforestation, burning and unsustainable occupation of the soil

Municipal areas included : Irauçuba, Forquilha and Sobral

Characteristics: Shallow and rocky soil. The layers of earth have been removed in large quantities and in a uniform manner, resulting in the appearance of rocks. This is what the experts call laminar erosion. Many of these areas are located in steep, mountainous areas, which adds to the degradation process. In addition, the single-crop cotton farming typical of the 1950s and 1960s led to a further impoverishment of the soil. This was degraded yet again by deforestation carried out in the seventies, when wood was indiscriminately used to produce electrical power.

Seridó :
Affected area: 2,341 km2
Total number of inhabitants: 244,000

Main causes of desertification: Deforestation of the Caatinga to obtain firewood and clay, intensive use of natural resources and overgrazing

Municipal areas included : Currais Novos, Cruzeta, Equador, Carnaúba dos Dantas, Acaraí and Parelhas

Characteristics: superficial, stony soil, with a low water-retaining capacity. In many places, the wear on the land has led to rocks appearing, which has made farming impossible. To feed the furnaces of more than 80 ceramic factories in the region, the native vegetation is cut down without any control by IBAMA.

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Cabrobó:
Affected area: 5,690 km2
Total number of inhabitants: 24,000

Main causes of desertification: Overgrazing, deforestation and salinisation of the land

Municipal areas included : Cabrobó, Belém de São Francisco e Floresta

Characteristics: Great craters have opened up as a result of erosion. The salinisation process is very serious, and is a result of disastrous irrigation projects. The municipal area of Rodelas, in the north of Bahia, is being transformed into an enormous sandbank, with dunes reaching 5 metres high. The area of Cabrobó was the first to be identified as a desert centre by environmentalist Vasconcelos Sobrinho in the 1970s.

Desert in the Pampas

In the Southeast of Rio Grande do Sul, 100 square kilometres is no longer suitable for agriculture. While they do not fit into the UN concept of desert, the huge dunes in the region of Alegrete are considered areas of special note by the experts responsible for the National Plan to Combat Desert (PNCD).

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