MAURITANIA There is no rainforest in Mauritania and very little tropical forest.

Environmental degradation is a serious problem in Mauritania. The leading causes of deforestation are subsistence agriculture, clearing for livestock grazing, and iron-ore mining. Forest clearing has resulted in soil erosion and further desertification and extended drought. Plagued by a large foreign debt it seems increasingly likely that Mauritania's forests will be used as a source of income.

0.2 percent of Mauritania is under some form of protection.


Image copyright Google Earth, MDA EarthSet, DigitalGlobe 2005

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Last updated: 4 Feb 2006