Worsening sand, dust storms driving global land loss, says UN

The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) has warned that nearly 1 million square kilometers of productive land is lost each year due to sand and dust storms worsened by human activities. The storms, which release approximately 2 billion tons of sand and dust into the atmosphere annually, cause economic damage and have far-reaching impacts on food supplies, migration, navigation, and security. The UNCCD called for improved land management practices.