Understanding land degradation: an overview

Intro -- About the Book -- Contents -- About the Author -- 1 Introduction -- 2 Factors Causing Land Degradation -- 2.1 Soil Erosion -- 2.1.1 Rainfall -- 2.1.2 Runoff -- 2.1.3 Soil Erodibility -- 2.1.4 Topography -- 2.2 Salt Intrusion -- 2.3 Vegetative Cover -- 2.4 Human Activities -- 2.4.1 Tillage -- 2.4.2 Shifting Cultivation -- 2.4.3 Deforestation -- 2.4.4 Mismanagement -- 2.5 Climate Change -- 2.5.1 Floods -- 2.5.2 Drought -- 2.6 Wind Erosion -- 2.7 Land Tenure -- 2.8 Land Use Policies -- References -- 3 Effects of Land Degradation -- 3.1 Physical Properties -- 3.1.1 Soil Texture -- 3.1.2 Soil Depth -- 3.1.3 Soil Structure -- 3.1.4 Aggregates and Aggregate Stability -- 3.1.5 Water Holding Capacity -- 3.2 Chemical Properties -- 3.2.1 Nutrient Availability -- 3.2.2 Soil pH -- 3.2.3 Salinity -- 3.3 Biological Properties -- 3.3.1 Macroorganisms -- 3.3.2 Microorganisms -- 3.4 Environment -- 3.4.1 Eutrophication -- 3.4.2 Floods -- 3.4.3 Droughts -- 3.5 Food Security -- 3.6 Poverty -- 3.7 Economy -- 3.7.1 Gross Domestic Product -- References -- 4 Control of Land Degradation -- 4.1 Contour Drains and Bunds -- 4.2 Terracing -- 4.3 Tillage -- 4.3.1 Zero Tillage -- 4.4 Mulches -- 4.5 SALT Technology -- 4.6 Use of Vetiver -- 4.7 Community Involvement -- 4.8 Control of Wind Erosion -- 4.9 Extension -- 4.10 Land Use Policies -- 4.11 Legal Acts -- References -- 5 Benefits of Land Degradation Control -- 5.1 Increase Land Productivity -- 5.1.1 Improve Food Security -- 5.2 Poverty Alleviation -- 5.2.1 Better Living Standards -- 5.3 Improvement of the Economy -- 5.4 Improvement of the Environment -- 5.5 Achieving the SDG Goals -- 5.6 Reduction of Floods and Droughts -- References -- 6 Climate Change and Land Degradation -- 6.1 What is Climate Change? -- 6.2 Climate Change and Land Degradation -- 6.3 Factors Causing Climate Change -- 6.4 Effects of Climate Change.

6.5 Climate Change Phenomena and Their Relevance for Future -- References -- Index.