While Lake Chad’s surface area fluctuates considerably with the seasonal rains, these dry-season images of Lake Chad show the long-term trend since the 1960sChanges in rainfall during this period have been a major factor as has diversion for irrigation

LAKE CHAD’S VARIABILITY

Africa: Atlas of our Changing Environment

One Planet Many People: Atlas of our Changing Environment

Death of a seaARAL SEA, KAZAKHSTAN

Images show death of the world’s fourth largest inland sea

• 1986: 60% of the volume had been lost

• 1999-2004: The sea is now a quarter of the size it was 50 years ago

• 1973: The surface of the sea once measured 66 100 km2

• 1975 -Healthy natural vegetation

• 1989 - “Fishbone” pattern on the landscape indicates agriculture fields

• 2001 - Agriculture continues to replace forest cover

RONDONIA, BRAZIL Converting forests to farmlands

One Planet Many People: Atlas of our Changing Environment

UNEP Global Environmental Alert Service

1984/1985: south-west to north-east path cut through the forest in an area of north-central Mato Grosso where highway BR-163 was built in 1973, and another highway branching to the northwest off BR-163

MATO GROSSO, BRAZILDeforestation may be reaching a tipping point

By 2010, the clearing that occurred only along roads in the mid 1980s had spread throughout the entire area leaving only patches of forest

UNEP Global Environmental Alert Service

1989: Oil sands mining in the Fort McMurray area when the Canadian Govt. began to encourage expansion. The bright areas cut into the boreal forest and muskeg wetlands are mining pits, tailings ponds, production facilities and roads

2009: the footprint had grown dramatically, with active operations spanning over 55 km from north to south

ATHABASCA OIL SANDS, CANADA