For many years, poets, academics, and religious thinkers have been drawn to Chinguetti, an ancient Saharan trade hub that houses over a dozen libraries with countless manuscripts.
However, it now teeters on the verge of disappearance. The shifting sands have enveloped much of the old city’s 8th-century center for years and continue to threaten areas at its present periphery.
The locals believe that the desert shapes their fate.
As global temperatures rise and conditions become increasingly arid, sandstorms are now depositing substantial dune formations onto the streets and inside residents' homes in Chinguetti, completely burying some areas.
Efforts to combat desert encroachment through tree-planting initiatives are underway, yet these measures have not alleviated the profound concerns regarding what lies ahead.
It's like watching a gradual catastrophe unfold.
Chinguetti is among the four UNESCO World Heritage sites located in Mauritania, an African country in the west where merely 0.5 percent of the land is deemed suitable for agriculture.
In Africa—the continent that contributes the smallest amount to fossil fuel emissions—only Somalia and Eswatini have seen more climate change impacts as per the information from the World Bank.
The people of Mauritania consider Chinguetti one of the most sacred cities in Islam. The city’s dwellings, made with dry stones and clay mortar, along with its mosques and libraries, house some of the earliest Islamic texts and manuscripts from West Africa, which encompass subjects such as jurisprudence and mathematics.
The community leader, Melainine Med El Wely, is deeply distressed about the implications for the inhabitants and the historical significance of Chinguetti. It’s as though they are witnessing a natural disaster unfolding at a sluggish pace, he remarked.
"It's a city enclosed by a sea of sand that keeps expanding with each passing moment," stated El Wely, who serves as the president of the local Association for Participatory Oasis Management.
There are spots where I stroll nowadays, and I recall those same areas used to be rooftops when I was young.
Once upon a time, when so much sand had accumulated in his neighborhood that it buried the palm fronds used for roofing, a stray camel wandered in and ended up in what had previously been somebody's living space.
Deserts are growing at an alarming pace not seen before.
Studies indicate that sand movement significantly contributes to desertification. Deserts such as the Sahara are expanding faster than ever before, and "sand seas" are becoming active again. This involves shifting dunes and changing terrains where plants previously grew.
"What was previously considered the worst-case scenario five to ten years back is now appearing to be a more probable outcome than what we initially anticipated," stated Andreas Baas, an earth scientist at King’s College London, whose work focuses on shifts in wind patterns and their impact on sand movement.
More than Three-fourths of Earth's land surface has experienced increased dryness. In recent years, as highlighted in a 2024 United Nations report on desertification, increasing aridity has jeopardized the survival of plants, humans, and animals. This phenomenon strips land of essential moisture required for sustaining life, devastates crop yields, and may trigger sandstorms and wildfires.
The UN report stated that human-induced climate change is responsible; it not only warms the Earth but also increasingly renders more land arid. "Water scarcity due to dryness induced by aridity is leading to illnesses, deaths, and massive involuntary migrations across the globe," the report noted.
Researchers and policy makers are primarily worried about soil degradation occurring in previously fertile zones that are slowly turning into desolate lands, as opposed to regions far within the bounds of the Sahara Desert.
Houses are now buried beneath the sand.
In Chinguetti, a shifting climate is bringing about numerous outcomes that authorities had cautioned against. Trees are drying up, wells are running dry and livelihoods are vanishing.
Farmers such as 50-year-old Salima Ould Salem have increasingly struggled to provide sufficient nutrition for their palm trees. As a result, they must now transport water via tanks and prune more diligently to ensure efficient use of resources.
The area around Salem’s neighborhood was previously bustling with family homes, but these residents have slowly departed over time. Now, sand piles up against his front door. The same sand has engulfed what were once houses belonging to several neighbors. Additionally, an old guesthouse constructed by a Belgian developer many years back stands partially submerged beneath a shimmering, rust-colored sand dune nearby.
Although numerous individuals have left, Salem persists, recognizing that every departure diminishes its protective capacity. Consequently, the remaining members become increasingly vulnerable to being engulfed. desert .
The 50-year-old date farmer stated, "We choose to remain here. Should I depart, my place would vanish."
The trees that used to protect the neighborhood have vanished.
In the past, acacia, gum, and palm trees protected the neighborhood from advancing sand dunes, but these have slowly vanished over time. The disappearance can be attributed to either the trees dying due to lack of water or being chopped down by locals who needed wood for fires or vegetation as fodder for their livestock.
Retired teacher Mohamed Lemine Bahane mentioned that sandstorms aren't novel but they've grown more disruptive over time, with each one depositing massive piles of sand in the areas surrounding the outskirts of town. Due to the narrow lanes in the ancient part of the city, locals resort to using donkeys and handcarts to clear away the accumulated sand since automobiles and heavy machinery can’t access these roads easily.
Once the sand accumulates sufficiently, some individuals construct additional barriers on top of the existing ones.
"When you eliminate the vegetation, it allows the dunes to become more dynamic since the plants are what essentially keep the sand in place and prevent excessive movement," Bahane explained.
For many years, Bahane has been recording data on sand accumulation and precipitation, stating that Chinguetti has experienced an average yearly rainfall of 2.5 centimeters over the last ten years.
As rain decreases dramatically, trees perish, and an increased amount of sand shifts into the town. With lower acacia trees buried in sand, certain herders turn to chopping down date palms to nourish their livestock, thereby further destabilizing the environment and impacting dates. farming economy .
The sand particles likewise pose public health issues for the community due to inhalation of the dust, according to Bahane.
Can increasing tree plantations prevent sand from engulfing Chinguetti?
Bahane feels that the answer lies in increasing tree plantations within residential areas as well as around the outskirts of town.
These "green belts" have been suggested on an entire continent level As part of Africa's "Great Green Wall" initiative, as well as within local areas such as the town of Chinguetti.
The Ministries of Environment and Agriculture in Mauritania along with European-supported non-governmental organizations have proposed initiatives to plant trees aimed at protecting the city’s libraries and manuscripts from encroaching desertification.
Although many have been replanted, there isn't much evidence suggesting that this approach has effectively halted the advance of the desert. Deep taproots often require several years before they can penetrate far enough into the ground to reach water tables.
"We believe that desertification is inevitable for us. However, fortunately, there are individuals who remain steadfast in their belief that we can fight against it," stated El Wely, the community leader.
0 Comments