Sand, dust storms frequency increasing in many world regions, UN warns

Sand and dust storms are an under-appreciated problem now “dramatically” more frequent in some places worldwide, with at least 25 percent of the phenomenon attributed to human activities, according to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).

With impacts far beyond the source regions, an estimated two billion tonnes of sand and dust now enter the atmosphere every year, an amount equal in weight to 350 Great Pyramids of Giza.

In some areas, desert dust doubled in the last century.

“Sand and dust storms (SDS) have become increasingly frequent and severe having substantial transboundary impacts, affecting various aspects of the environment, climate, health, agriculture, livelihoods and the socioeconomic well-being of individuals. The accumulation of impacts from sand and dust storms can be significant,” says Feras Ziadat, Technical Officer at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), Chair of the UN Coalition on Combating Sand and Dust Storms.

“In source areas, they damage crops, affect livestock, and strip topsoil. In depositional areas atmospheric dust, especially in combination with local industrial pollution, can cause or worsen human health problems such as respiratory diseases. Communications, power generation, transportation, and supply chains can also be disrupted by low visibility and dust-induced mechanical failures. The United Nations Coalition on Combating Sand and Dust Storms, chaired by FAO, was created in 2019 to lead global efforts to address SDS.”

Accompanied by policy recommendations, the warning comes as a five-day meeting takes place in Samarkand, Uzbekistan to take stock of global progress in the Convention’s implementation. The UNCCD is one of three Conventions originated at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. The other two address climate change (UNFCCC) and biodiversity (UN CBD).

The meeting, November 13 to 17, includes a high-level session on 15 November hosted by the Government of Uzbekistan on ways to address the impacts of sand and dust storms on global agriculture, industry, transportation ​, water and air quality​, and human health​.

Ibrahim Thiaw, UNCCD’s Executive Secretary, said: “The sight of rolling dark clouds of sand and dust engulfing everything in their path and turning day into night is one of nature’s most intimidating spectacles.

“It is a costly phenomenon that wreaks havoc everywhere from Northern and Central Asia to sub-Saharan Africa.”

“Sand and dust storms present a formidable challenge to achieving sustainable development. However, just as sand and dust storms are exacerbated by human activities, they can also be reduced through human actions.” ​

While sand and dust storms (SDS) are a regionally common and seasonal natural phenomenon, the problem is exacerbated by poor land and water management, droughts, and climate change, according to UNCCD experts.

And fluctuations in their intensity, magnitude, or duration “can make SDS unpredictable and dangerous.”

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