Libya: Reversal of Land Degradation and Desertification Through Better Land Management - Combating Desertification in Asia, Africa and the Middle East - page 79

Fig. 4.4 Rehabilitation of degraded rangelands can involve planting fodder species that provide
an intake of green material and also protect the soil surface. The photo shows a plantation in an
100 mm zone in Libya (Photo B.E. Norton)

4 Conservation of Water Resources

Libya has given a great attention to development and conservation of water
resources by adopting a short term and long term strict policy to prevent a serious
drain of water resources.
There are many other actions that contribute to the protection of soil and maintain
soil fertility, such as, following the method of crop rotations to maintain soil fertility,
especially in areas of expansion in the cultivation of grain; reforestation of waste
lands; protecting and improvement of natural pastures; the creation of economic
non-agricultural activities, especially in areas threatened by agricultural depletion
or degradation of quality (Libyan Department of Urban Planning 2005 ). Libya
has paid a great attention for pastures improvement and development as well as
the establishment of pastoral projects based on scientific methods to ensure the
preservation of ecological balance.
Attempts have been made to regulate grazing and rehabilitation of degraded
lands by a number of programs. Considerable efforts are made to reforest lands
threatened by erosion and desert encroachment in order to maintain the natural
ecological balance. These include protecting land and soil, Special attention goes