Geographical Issue
Western Africa includes the countries Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea- Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo, and the Canary Islands. The geography in Western Africa causes many issues. Some of these issues are drought, soil erosion, desertification, and deforestation. These also all help cause a lack of needed natural resources for people to live their daily lives. Drought is when there is not a lot of precipitation and a lack of water for a long period of time. Soil erosion is when water washes the soil away. Desertification is when fertile land becomes a desert. Deforestation is when there are no trees.
A major drought occurred in Western Africa from 1972-1974. The drought was caused by a decrease of rainfall. The destruction was that the countries financial business went down. Droughts have many affects on Western Africa. One affect is that it makes a big impact on the food chain. Plants need water to survive and with little water they won’t be able to live. Animals then need plants to eat to live and if all the plants die then the animals won’t be able to survive. Another major drought in Western Africa caused famines. Many people don’t have enough to eat because of the droughts going on in Sahel which is a part in Western Africa. Droughts are a major geographical issue in Western Africa.
The soil of Western Africa has a coarse textured surface horizon and is highly inclined to be compressed and erode by water. Soil erosion can also occur by wind. They call these soils that are in drier climate areas Alfisols. There is 60% of the Western African Savanna covered by these soil areas. Soil erosion is most severe in the savanna regions. Soil erosion affects Western Africa because it wears away and destroys the land which causes a loss of topsoil. Having a loss of topsoil will hurt the people who farm and then they wouldn’t be able to grow all their food that they need to live.
Most of desertification in Africa occurs near the border with the Sahara Desert. Many things in Western Africa cause desertification. Some of the things that help cause desertification are soil erosion, global climate change, forest fires, droughts, and some human actions. There is much land in Western Africa that is taken up by deserts. In Western Africa there is more and more land becoming desert because of desertification. This causes the people in Western Africa to not have as much water available and not fertile land to farm on.
There are parts of the coastal Africa in Western Africa are having big deforestation problems. This causes losses of natural resources such as mangrove forests. Mangrove forests are very important in West Africa because many different types of species live in these forests. If deforestation keeps occurring and these mangrove forests keep getting ruined then soon many animals are going to become endangered in West Africa.
These four natural occurrences: drought, soil erosion, desertification, and deforestation are major issues having to do with Western Africa’s geography. They all cause people not to get all the resources that they need to live and that is a big issue.
~Jamie~
A major drought occurred in Western Africa from 1972-1974. The drought was caused by a decrease of rainfall. The destruction was that the countries financial business went down. Droughts have many affects on Western Africa. One affect is that it makes a big impact on the food chain. Plants need water to survive and with little water they won’t be able to live. Animals then need plants to eat to live and if all the plants die then the animals won’t be able to survive. Another major drought in Western Africa caused famines. Many people don’t have enough to eat because of the droughts going on in Sahel which is a part in Western Africa. Droughts are a major geographical issue in Western Africa.
The soil of Western Africa has a coarse textured surface horizon and is highly inclined to be compressed and erode by water. Soil erosion can also occur by wind. They call these soils that are in drier climate areas Alfisols. There is 60% of the Western African Savanna covered by these soil areas. Soil erosion is most severe in the savanna regions. Soil erosion affects Western Africa because it wears away and destroys the land which causes a loss of topsoil. Having a loss of topsoil will hurt the people who farm and then they wouldn’t be able to grow all their food that they need to live.
Most of desertification in Africa occurs near the border with the Sahara Desert. Many things in Western Africa cause desertification. Some of the things that help cause desertification are soil erosion, global climate change, forest fires, droughts, and some human actions. There is much land in Western Africa that is taken up by deserts. In Western Africa there is more and more land becoming desert because of desertification. This causes the people in Western Africa to not have as much water available and not fertile land to farm on.
There are parts of the coastal Africa in Western Africa are having big deforestation problems. This causes losses of natural resources such as mangrove forests. Mangrove forests are very important in West Africa because many different types of species live in these forests. If deforestation keeps occurring and these mangrove forests keep getting ruined then soon many animals are going to become endangered in West Africa.
These four natural occurrences: drought, soil erosion, desertification, and deforestation are major issues having to do with Western Africa’s geography. They all cause people not to get all the resources that they need to live and that is a big issue.
~Jamie~