Terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems are reaching "a tipping point"

The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations on Thursday turned on the alarm button and issued a serious warning to the whole world: the progressive deterioration of the state of soil, land and water resources around the globe will make it difficult to feed a world population expected to reach almost 10 billion people by 2050.

"Current pressures on land and water ecosystems are intense and many are under stresses that are bringing them to a tipping point," warned the director-general of the UN agency in the foreword to a report launched Thursday that analyses land and water resources in relation to food and agriculture.

At the launch of the study, UN Director-General Qu Dongyu stressed that "current patterns of agrifood production are proving unsustainable", but noted that "agrifood systems can play an important role in alleviating these pressures and contributing positively to climate and development goals".

If the current trajectory continues, the report notes that to produce an extra 50% of essential food would mean an increase in water withdrawals for agriculture of up to 35%.

An increase that could lead to environmental disasters, increased competition for resources and fuel new social challenges and conflicts.

"In this context, it is clear that our future food security will depend on the protection of our land, soil and water resources. Increasing demand for agrifood products requires us to look for innovative ways to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals in the context of climate change and biodiversity loss," he reasoned.

The report argues that success in this endeavour will depend on how well we manage "the risks to the quality of our land and water ecosystems, how we combine technical and institutional solutions to address local circumstances and, above all, the extent to which we can focus on improving land and water governance systems. 

• Human-induced land degradation affects 34% of agricultural land, some 1.66 billion hectares. 
• More than 95% of our food is produced on land, but productive land area can barely be expanded 
• Although urban areas occupy less than 0.5% of the earth's land surface, rapid urban growth is significantly affecting land and water resources, polluting and encroaching on good quality agricultural land that is crucial for productivity and food security. 
• Water scarcity threatens the world's food security and sustainable development, and threatens 3.2 billion people living in agricultural areas. 

• With current constraints on arable land and freshwater resources, the Organisation considers a rapid increase in technological resources and innovation to be "vital". 
• Land and water governance must be more inclusive and adapted to benefit millions of smallholder farmers, women, youth and indigenous peoples, as they are the most vulnerable to climate and socio-economic risks and suffer the most from food insecurity. 
• Sustainable soils, land and water are the foundation of resilient agri-food systems. Sustainable use of these resources is fundamental to achieving climate change adaptation and mitigation goals. 

For example, the wise use of soils alone can absorb one third of greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural land. 

• Rain-fed agriculture produces 60% of the world's food and occupies 80% of cultivated land; irrigated agriculture produces 40% on 20% of land. 
• Nearly 33% of our soils are moderately to severely degraded. 
• Globally, agriculture accounts for 72% of all surface and groundwater withdrawals, mainly for irrigation purposes. 
• Sustainable Development Goal indicator 6.4.2 on global water stress increased from 15.4 per cent in 2000 to 17 per cent in 2017, although there were significant regional variations 
• Inland capture fisheries reached 11.9 million tonnes in 2019, a record that represented 13 per cent of total global capture fisheries production. 
• Only 17 countries produced 80 per cent of the total global fish catch. 
•  Asia recorded the largest inland fish catch accounting for 66% of total world capture fisheries