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Environment Issues
1. Deforestation : Africa’s deforestation rate is twice that of the world’s. 90% of Africa’s population requires wood to use as fuel for heating and cooking. The rate of illegal logging, which is another main cause of deforestation, varies from country to country, such as 50% in Cameroon and 80% in Liberia. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, deforestation is primarily caused by the needs of the poor, along with unsupervised logging and mining. In Ethiopia, the main cause is the country’s growing population, which induces an increase in agriculture, livestock production, and fuel wood. Low education and little government intervention also contributes to deforestation. Madagascar’s forest loss is partially caused by citizens using slash-and-burn techniques after independence from the French. Nigeria has the highest rate of deforestation of primary forests, according to the FAO. Deforestation in Nigeria is caused by logging, subsistence agriculture, and the collection of wood for fuel. According to the FAO, deforestation has wiped out nearly 90% of Africa’s forest. West Africa only has 22.8% of its moist forests left, and 81% of Nigeria’s old-growth forests disappeared within 15 years. Deforestation also lowers the chance of rainfall; Ethiopia has experienced famine and droughts because of this. 98% of Ethiopia’s forests have disappeared over the last 50 years. Within 43 years, Kenya’s forest coverage decreased from about 10% to 1.7%. Deforestation in Madagascar has also led to desertification, soil loss, and water source degradation, resulting in the country’s inability to provide necessary resources for its growing population. In the last five years, Nigeria lost nearly half of its primary forests. Ethiopia’s government, along with organizations like Farm Africa, is starting to take steps to stop excessive deforestation.

2. Soil degradation : A main cause of soil degradation is lack of manufactured fertilizers being used, since African soil lacks organic sources of nutrients. The increase in population has also contributed when people need to crop, as a source of income, but do not take measures to protect the soil, due to low income. The current methods create too much pressure on other environmental aspects, such as forests, and are not sustainable. There are also ecological causes of the poor soil quality. Much of the soil has rocks or clay from volcanic activity. Other causes include erosion, desertification, and deforestation. Degradation of African soil causes decreased food production, damaging ecological effects, and an overall decrease in the quality of living in Africa. This issue would lessen if fertilizers and other cropping supplies were more affordable and thus used more. The United Nations has commissioned a Global Assessment of Human Induced Soil Degradation (GLASOD) to further investigate the causes and state of the soil. Access to information collected is freely available, and it is hoped that awareness will be raised among politicians in threatened areas.

3. Air Pollution: Fuel is needed to power lights at night. The fuel being burned causes great emissions of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Because of the increased urbanization in Africa, people are burning more and more fuel and using more vehicles for transportation. The rise in vehicle emissions and the trend towards greater industrialization means the urban air quality in the continent is worsening. In many countries, the use of leaded gasoline is still widespread, and vehicle emission controls are nonexistent. Indoor air pollution is widespread, mostly from the burning of coal in the kitchen for cooking. Household coal and wood burning for cooking inside the house causes indoor pollution. Compounds released from fuel stations and nitrogen and hydrocarbon released from airports cause air pollution. Carbon dioxide other greenhouse gases in the air causes an increase of people with respiratory issues.