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Climate, Extreme Events and Land Degradation

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Climate and Land Degradation

Part of the book series: Environmental Science and Engineering ((ENVSCIENCE))

Abstract

The frequency of occurrence of climate extremes in temperature and precipitation is expected to increase during the next century (Easterling et al. 2000). Here we examine the impact of the climate extremes of heavy rainfall, drought, and high winds, on processes of land degradation, including floods, mass movements, soil erosion by both water and wind, and salinisation. Case studies are used to explore the impacts of individual events on land degradation, as well as the role of decadal-scale temporal and spatial variability in climate systems in driving extreme events. Predictions of future trends in the frequency and magnitude of extreme events, based on an ensemble of general circulation models and on regional climate models, are examined

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Nottingham, Nottingham, G7 2RD, UK

    Michèle L. Clarke

  2. Loughborough University, Loughborough, LE11, UK

    Helen M. Rendell

Authors
  1. Michèle L. Clarke
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  2. Helen M. Rendell
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Agricultural Meteorology Division, World Meteorological Organization, 7bis Avenue de la Paix, P.O. Box 2300, 1211, Geneva 2, Switzerland

    Mannava V. K. Sivakumar

  2. Committee on Science and Technology (CST), United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, Hermann - Ehlers - Str. 10, D-53113, Bonn, Germany

    Ndegwa Ndiang’ui

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Clarke, M.L., Rendell, H.M. (2007). Climate, Extreme Events and Land Degradation. In: Sivakumar, M.V.K., Ndiang’ui, N. (eds) Climate and Land Degradation. Environmental Science and Engineering. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-72438-4_7

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