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More than 75 percent of Earth's land area is already degraded, according to the European Commission's World Atlas of Desertification, and more than 90 percent could become degraded by 2050. The commission's Joint Research Centre found that a total area half of the size of the European Union (1.61 million square miles, or 4.18 million square kilometers) is degraded annually, with Africa and Asia being the most affected.
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More terrible news. Thanks OH
As well as the depressing figures, the bad news is about where it's happening, because of course we are so used to turning our backs on problems affecting Africa and Asia. So much environmental damage is invisible to us in the developed countries, which makes it so much more dangerous.
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"Invisible damage" reminded me of the hole in the ozone layer, which in the eighties was an early warning to scientists and governments that all was not well with the environment. Because it fell out of the headlines years decades ago, I thought an update might be instructive:-