Areas at Risk of Soil Degradation
WorldPhysical EnvironmentLevels of concern for there to be a decline in soil quality caused by its improper use, usually for agricultural, pastoral, industrial, or urban purposes.
Geosystems: Intro to Physical Geography
A map illustrates areas at risk of soil degradation worldwide, categorized by serious concern, some concern, stable terrain, and non-vegetated land.
The map shows areas at risk of soil degradation using different colors. Areas of Serious Concern (light pink): North America: Great Plains, southwestern deserts, and Mississippi Valley. Central America: Most of the land. South America: Lands along the Andes mountains, parts of interior and coastal Brazil. Europe: Mostly in Eastern Europe. Africa: Near the Mediterranean in North Africa; lands of the Sahel along the southern border of the Sahara; in and around Nigeria in West Africa; the island of Madagascar; smaller patches in East Africa and southern Africa. Asia: Central and eastern China, much of mainland Southeast Asia, the islands of Borneo, and the Philippines. Australia: Southeast Australia has a small area of serious concern. Areas of Some Concern (light purple): Found in scattered regions across North America, South America, Europe, Africa, and Asia. Stable Terrain (light blue): These areas include parts of North America mostly in Canada, South America in parts of Brazil, and in parts of Europe, Africa, and Asia. Nonvegetated Land (dark blue): Predominantly in desert regions such as the Sahara, Central Asia, and parts of Australia.
Areas of serious concern | Areas of some concern | Stable terrain | Nonvegetated land | Abyssinia | Afghanistan | Alaska Territory, United States | Albania | Algeria, France | Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, United Kingdom | Angola, Portugal | Antarctica | Arabia | Argentina | Austria-Hungary | Bahama Islands, United Kingdom | Basutoland, United Kingdom | Bechuanaland, United Kingdom | Belgian Congo, Belgium | Belgium | Bhutan | Bolivia | Brazil | British East Africa, United Kingdom | British Guiana, United Kingdom | British Honduras, United Kingdom | British North Borneo, United Kingdom | Canada | Ceylon, United Kingdom | Chile | China | Colombia | Costa Rica | Crete, Greece | Cuba | Denmark | Dominican Republic | Dutch East Indies, Netherlands | Ecuador | Egypt, United Kingdom | El Salvador | Eritrea, Portugal | Falkland Islands, United Kingdom | Federated Malay States, United Kingdom | Fernando Pó, Spain | Fiji, United Kingdom | Formosa, Japan | France | French Equatorial Africa, France | French Guiana, France | French Indochina, France | French Somaliland, France | French West Africa, France | Gambia, United Kingdom | German East Africa, Germany | German Empire, Germany | German New Guinea, Germany | German South-West Africa, Germany | Gold Coast, United Kingdom | Greece | Greenland, Denmark | Guatemala | Haiti | Honduras | Iceland, Denmark | India, United Kingdom | Ireland, United Kingdom | Italian Somaliland, Italy | Italy | Jamaica, United Kingdom | Japan | Kamerun, Germany | Kerguelen Islands, France | Korea, Japan | Liberia | Liechtenstein | Luxembourg | Macao, Portugal | Madagascar, France | Mauritius, United Kingdom | Mexico | Mongolia | Montenegro | Morocco, France | Nepal | Netherlands | New Caledonia, France | New Hebrides, Great Britain and France | New Zealand | Nicaragua | Nigeria, United Kingdom | Norway | Nyasaland, United Kingdom | Ottoman Empire | Panama | Paraguay | Persia | Peru | Philippine Islands, United States | Portugal | Portuguese East Africa, Portugal | Portuguese Guinea, Portugal | Portuguese Timor, Portugal | Puerto Rico, United States | Réunion, France | Rhodesia, United Kingdom | Río Muni, Spain | Romania | Russian Empire | Samoa, New Zealand | Serbia | Siam | Sierra Leone, United Kingdom | Solomon Islands, United Kingdom | South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, United Kingdom | Spain | Spanish Morocco, Spain | Spanish Sahara, Spain | Spitzbergen, Norway | Sultanate of Muscat and Oman | Surinam (Dutch Guiana), Netherlands | Swaziland, United Kingdom | Sweden | Switzerland | Territory of Papua, United Kingdom | Togoland, Germany | Trinidad, United Kingdom | Tripoli, Italy | Tunisia, France | Uganda, United Kingdom | Union of South Africa, United Kingdom | United Kingdom | United States | Uruguay | Venezuela | |
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| 19.9% | 3.98% | 85.9% | 45.3% | 96.9% | 45.5% | 64.7% | 76.9% | 51.5% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 31.3% | 20.7% | 40.8% | 96.0% | 98.4% | 92.7% | 90.7% | 85.8% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3.03% | 22.0% | 8.18% | 55.1% | 99.4% | 99.9% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3.55% | 14.0% | 13.0% | 14.5% | 81.4% | 97.1% | 94.7% | 97.1% | 39.6% | 17.9% | 98.7% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 7.19% | 2.27% | 71.3% | 98.2% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 31.7% | 43.8% | 19.5% | 66.0% | 33.4% | 45.1% | 5.45% | 80.5% | 77.4% | 9.36% | 35.3% | 81.2% | 97.3% | 25.6% | 81.1% | 82.9% | 85.3% | 88.0% | 92.7% | 66.3% | 95.0% | 53.9% | 86.0% | 70.3% | 83.9% | 27.0% | 98.6% | 94.6% | 88.8% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 17.6% | 19.7% | 9.89% | 10.8% | 99.3% | 77.7% | 99.7% | 99.0% | 96.8% | 95.9% | 42.3% | 98.0% | 18.0% | 96.4% | 98.5% | 83.7% | 98.1% | 98.8% | 97.0% | 76.6% | 46.5% | 99.0% | 99.5% | 99.1% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 31.2% | 4.72% | 3.87% | 95.3% | 93.3% | 85.0% | 99.9% | 99.1% | 65.5% | 82.2% | 85.2% | 43.2% | 90.4% | 86.6% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 8.43% | 2.94% | 1.97% | 8.56% | 24.5% | 98.6% | 99.4% | 74.3% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 5.14% | 21.1% | 3.46% | 6.72% | 98.8% | 98.5% | 2.57% | 97.7% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 41.1% | 31.7% | 1.12% | 23.2% | 1.34% | 95.6% | 39.5% | 99.2% | 97.4% | 91.8% | 92.2% | 98.6% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 31.6% | 38.1% | 40.4% | 60.1% | 5.87% | 61.7% | 58.1% | 13.6% | 49.4% | 99.6% | 4.47% | 7.25% | 44.0% | 9.90% | 33.9% | 98.9% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 36.7% | 40.0% | 20.2% | 31.2% | 97.9% | 59.8% | 99.8% | 98.5% | 99.7% | 99.8% | 58.9% | 1.77% | 98.0% | 5.97% | 83.3% | 96.7% | 73.6% | 95.2% | 99.5% | 99.3% | 69.5% | 80.3% | 18.3% | 98.8% | 99.5% | 66.8% | 98.2% | 87.0% | 95.4% | 99.6% | 91.2% | 97.7% | 96.1% | 30.1% | 31.2% | 96.0% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||