Today's generation is surprised when told about how fog covered the whole of Kathmandu during winter in the Seventies, which made visibility extremely poor. The city's population in 1980 was around 225,143 whereas today it is more than 1.5 million. Inability to develop infrastructure as per the increased population has resulted in problems of sanitation, water supply, health and extreme heat in Kathmandu. This year World Environment Day will focus on land restoration, desertification and drought resilience, urging us to think about our cities converting into concrete jungles, uncontrolled migration, climate change and air pollution caused by wild fires.

Land degradation is the environmental process in which the chemical, physical and biological quality of land and soil worsens due to erosion, deforestation, salinisation and the loss of organic soil content. The unplanned management and usage of natural resources, drought, desertification and climate change are responsible for land degradation. Unequitable development leading to an increase in the population of the urban areas while emptying the villages has resulted in the unstainable usage of natural resources, erosion, deforestation and salinisation in order to meet the needs of the growing population. Our inability to meet the vital requirements for a well-planned city has led to the haphazard construction of big apartments, buildings and road infrastructure. The disorganised development activities will not only lead to land degradation, but will also have serious effects on agricultural production, food distribution, the ecosystem, biodiversity and the environment.

We experienced little or no rain last winter, which is necessary for the land to remain fertile or to keep drought at bay. Drought is a slow-onset disaster characterised by lack of precipitation, resulting in water shortage with serious impact on health, agriculture, economy, energy and the environment. Although climate change is a major factor behind drought, in our context, decreasing agricultural activities, traditional approach to irrigation, increasing infertility of the soil due to excessive use of pesticides and alteration of the crop cycle due to climate change have played additional roles.

Less rain in the monsoon season and excessive rain in the post-monsoon season have become a serious problem for more than decade in Nepal. The increase in the temperature of Nepal by 0.056 degrees Celsius per year compared to the global temperature rise of about 0.03 degrees Celsius a year is not a good symptom. Rising temperatures are making already dry regions drier and wet regions wetter. Therefore, in the dry regions, when temperatures rise, water evaporates more quickly, and thus increases the risk of drought.

The departure of men from their ancestral homes in search of employment and financial resource have left most of the rural areas with women only. People from the mountains and hills are migrating to the tarai, accelerating the deforestation process for settlement. The concentration of people in the urban areas has led to forest encroachment. In the last few years, we have been experiencing lengthy dry seasons, making the trees, leaves, bushes highly inflammable. Jungles, which help absorb carbon dioxide, has now become the emitter of the same gas. The maximum emission of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere due to wild fires can increase the global temperature. Deforestation coupled by a high degree of migration, leaving the fertile lands without agricultural activity, is one of the main reasons behind desertification.

Restoration of land or bringing back land to the previous state is the only solution for land degradation, drought and desertification, which is quite an uphill task. Mobilisation of the local people or formation of a consumers' forum can be a good tool to restore land, which has been successfully implemented in various regions. Creating awareness about the result of human-related activities on the environment and motivating them to actively participate in activities to combat environment change can prevent environment degradation activities.

It would be relevant to take an example of Tsum Valley, where the local people have committed themselves in written not to kill any animals and keep the village free from any sacrifices. This pioneering step has become successful in the conservation of natural biodiversity, ecosystem, endangered species and animals and, more importantly, the bond between humans and animals in this area.

Strict rules and regulations to demotivate forest-fire activities, use of organic fertiliser to maintain soil fertility, sustainable use of natural resources and equitable development are some of the measures for preventing land degradation, drought and desertification. But one of the major responsible factors is climate change, for which we are not so responsible, although we are the sufferers. With few options left with developing countries like us to neutralise the effects of natural disasters as a result of climate change, we can raise our voice to draw the attention of the developed nations to slow such activities responsible for climate change. Net zero carbon emission by 2050, more investment in renewable energy and discouraging the use of fossil fuels, sustainable use of natural solutions and creating awareness globally are some of the probable solutions to checking climate change.

Sindurakar is Chief Administrative Officer, Nepal Mountaineering Association