1. THE ENVIRONMENT OF AFRICA
SS7G2:
The student will discuss environmental issues across the continent of Africa.

2. The Nile River Many countries do not have enough clean water
The Nile is used for water & transportation
Overpopulation and poor sanitation have made life along the Nile difficult
The Nile is contaminated with human and industrial waste

3. The Aswan High Dam
The dam provides Egypt with year round irrigation instead of depending on the flooding of the Nile to bring water
Because the Nile no longer floods, silt (rich topsoil carried by the floodwaters) is no longer deposited in the fields
Farmers now use chemical fertilizers which have caused heavy concentration of salt in the fields

4. The Niger & Congo Rivers
The Niger river provides relief to those living in the Sahel
The Niger is important for transportation & agriculture
The Congo river provides water for the irrigation of farmland
Africa could soon be involved in “water wars” because of competition between countries that share a river system
Countries that have started factories pollute the water with industrial waste; the government ignores industrial pollution because they want the factories to make a profit

5. The Sahel
Poor farming practices and the destruction of trees have led to an expanding desert
Deforestation (the destruction of trees and other vegetation) has occurred because animals have overgrazed and people cut down trees for fuel
Droughts (times of very little rainfall) have caused poor soil and dry conditions which result in few crops
Desertification (places where the desert expands into areas that had been farmland) causes an increase in starvation and poverty
Desertification has been caused by overuse of the land by the people

6. The Rainforest
The country in West Africa losing rainforest at the fastest rate is Nigeria
Nigeria has lost about 55 percent of it’s forests due to:
Logging
Clearing land for farming
Cutting trees for fuel

7. The Kalahari Desert
The people around the Kalahari Desert face the same problems as those in the Sahel
The most desertification in southern Africa is in the Kalahari Desert
The Green Line is the place where the cultivated land ends and the desert begins