Developing a Multidisciplinary Approach for Combating Desertification and Sustainable Management of the Steppe Environment: Ecological Analysis and Modelling of Human Rules (Case of the Southern Oranian High Steppe Plains)

Three reasons can be cited to explain the difficulty of analysing the phenomenon of desertification.The first relates to the complexity of the phenomenon. Indeed, desertification results from several mechanisms interacting within the ecosystem, notably human interventions through overexploitation of resources and climatic factors. These mechanisms have been individually well studied, but understanding their interactions remains very approximate.

The second relates to the great variability of the causes of degradation. The interacting processes are also diverse; they range from sand encroachment to soil salinisation, and include water erosion during rain events, which are characterised by their stormy nature. Consequently, the evolution of degradation will be specific to the environment and the temporal and spatial scales studied. This makes transferring results from one context to another difficult.

The third is more methodological in nature. The investigations necessary to characterise this phenomenon over time, and the environmental factors that cause it, are extensive and costly.

In view of the three levels of difficulty described above, the following questions were formulated:

The objectives of the present project proposal have been set to highlight the current state of the steppe ecosystem and the significance of desertification, through the analysis of the main discriminating factors in the evolution of this ecological problem and its socio-economic consequences on the balance of the traditional pastoral organisation system.