Scientists say area of global degradation exceeded size of Antarctica

A scientific report of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research said that the global area impacted by land degradation is 15 million square kilometres, larger than the size of Antarctica, TASS reports

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It is noted that soils around the world are degrading at a rate of 1 million square kilometres per year, which ‘undermines the Earth’s ability to maintain a human-friendly environment’.

The main cause of land degradation is agriculture, which uses chemicals that destroy soil and pollute ecosystems. The situation is exacerbated by climate change, drought and flooding.

As experts note, the most degraded areas are in southern Asia, northern China, the Great Plains area in the United States, the American state of California, as well as in the Mediterranean region due to the arid climate.