Libya: Reversal of Land Degradation and Desertification Through Better Land Management - Combating Desertification in Asia, Africa and the Middle East - page 74

Tabl e 4. 1 Area as per aridity zones of Libya
Aridity zones Land Area (000' km 2 )

Average annual rainfall (mm) % of total area

Ve r y d r y < 50 1,589 90.8

Dry 50-200 130 7.4

Semi-arid 200-400 26 1.5

Sub-humid > 400 5 0.3

Total 1,750 100

Source :ACSAD( 2004 )

Fig. 4.2 Large-scale center pivot irrigation schemes are a feature of Libya's agriculture

territory is presented in Table 4.1 . Hence, Libya like many Mediterranean regions,
also experiences more long dry summers and water deficits prevail throughout the
year. The annual rate of evaporation is about 1,700 mm near the sea and 6,000 mm
in the central and southern regions (Libyan General Planning Council 2003 ).
Aridity plays a major role in the process of desertification. This has resulted
in low vegetation cover, increased soil erosion and land degradation on a large
scale and makes the region vulnerable to desertification. Groundwater in Libya
is classified into renewable ground water and non-renewable underground water.
Groundwater is the main source of water supply in Libya, and represents more
than 97 % of the total water consumed. Safe water extraction is estimated at about
3,000 million cubic meters per year (Libyan General Planning Council 2003 )andis
located in five major water basins (Fig. 4.3 ).
In general, Libya is regarded as one of the areas with low density of natural
vegetation due to lower annual rates and irregular distribution of rainfall (Table 4.2 ).