Question

A large human population, both globally and within individual countries, has been a concern since the time of Thomas Malthus. Country X is 95% desert. The government of Country X is concerned about not having enough arable land (land capable of being used to grow crops) in the country to produce the food needed to feed its population without increasing food imports. One government official proposes a project to irrigate large areas of the desert to convert these areas of desert to agricultural fields.

Required:
Describe one potential benefit of this proposed project.

Answer 1

Answer:

The most obvious potential benefit is turning desert land into arable land. As total arable land increases, the country will be able to grow more crops. As more crops are grown and harvested, the country will be able to feed larger populations without having to import large amounts of food. E.g. in many Arab nations, food and water are scarce and they are forced to import most of their food. If they didn't have oil exports, they wouldn't be able to pay for these imports.