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Photos: Mauritanians dig deeper wells to cope with climate change

Droughts have long been an issue in Mauritania but in recent years, rains have been erratic and inconsistent there.

A herder fills a trough with water
A herder fills a trough with water collected from a hand-dug well for his herd of cattle near Lemghaysse village. [Guy Peterson/Al Jazeera]
By Nick Roll
Published On 27 Jul 202227 Jul 2022
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Lemghaysse, Mauritania – Growing up in this arid corner of southeast Mauritania, on the edge of the Sahara desert, Ahmed Brahim remembers how seasonal rains would transform the landscape each year.

Watering holes served local livestock, fruit ripened on trees, and animals would graze on the surrounding vegetation.

“With drought, with climate change, everything has changed,”  Brahim, founder of the local nonprofit SOS Desert, which works on water access and climate adaptation efforts, told Al Jazeera. “Each year the groundwater levels diminish, each year we see dead zones, we see erosion, we see the advance of the desert, we see areas that were for agriculture yesterday, but today aren’t any more.”

Lemghaysse has seen better days, Sidi Maytigue, the village chief told Al Jazeera, standing in a dried-out seasonal lake bed.

Droughts have long been an issue in Mauritania, but since the 1980s, he said, they seem to be getting worse than farmers and herders remember in the past – less of a part of nature’s cyclical, if sometimes cruel, rhythms, and more of an ever-present menace.

In recent years, rains have been erratic and inconsistent, sometimes too light, other times overwhelmingly strong – as evidenced by a collapsed well nearby, brought about when a torrential rain soaked the landscape.

The words “climate change” are on everyone’s lips.

Each year of bad rains, more people leave, hoping to make a living in one of Mauritania’s cities, Maytigue said.

Those who stay behind are doing their best to adapt to the changing climate to preserve their way of life, steeped in agriculture and raising livestock. Wells are dug deeper, as water that was once just a metre below the surface is now five to eight metres down.

A series of dams were built last year, with help from the United Nations refugee office, bisecting the lake bed. Even though the last rainy season was weak, they helped trap rains to recharge the groundwater and retain surface water for livestock. That was crucial not just for herds owned by local Mauritanians, but for the sheep and cows owned by a growing refugee population fleeing conflict in Mali.

A good rain, one of these days, will bring back a solid body of water, residents hope.

Life is tougher now, but it goes on. Camels, cows and sheep still graze the scrubland and drink from water brought up from the wells, even if it takes more effort from their human minders these days.

In some instances, men have to untie the scarves around their heads to add another few metres to the length of the rope they use to send buckets down a well. It might be harder to get, but amid temperatures creeping past 45 degrees Celsius, the water is still cool and refreshing, a thirst-quenching drop of consistency among the hot, dry winds of change.

Si collects water from a hand dug well on a dried river bed
Si collects water from a hand-dug well on a dried river bed near Lemghaysse village in southeast Mauritania. As the rainy season gets shorter and temperatures increase, many in rural communities or living as nomads struggle to find water for themselves and for their livestock. [Guy Peterson/Al Jazeera]
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Herders wash and drink with water from a hand dug well
Herders wash and drink with water from a hand-dug well on a dried river bed near Lemghaysse village. Residents are doing their best to adapt. Wells that take the form of square or triangular holes dug directly in the ground are dug deeper these days. Water that was once a metre below the surface is now five to eight metres down. [Guy Peterson/Al Jazeera]
A herd of camels sit on a dried river bed
A herd of camels sits on a dried river bed near Lemghaysse village. [Guy Peterson/Al Jazeera]
Two Malian refugees stand looking over their flock of cattle
Two Malian refugees stand looking over their flock of cattle next to a water trough on the outskirts of Mbera refugee camp. Refugees fleeing violence in Mali have brought an estimated 800,000 head of livestock. With already limited resources around this area of Mauritania, the UNHCR has stepped in to provide some access to drinking water for the livestock to lift the pressure from the local water supplies of Mauritanian herders. [Guy Peterson/Al Jazeera]
A herder stands pulling a bucket up from a hand dug well
A herder pulls a bucket from a hand-dug well to fill a trough for his herd of cattle. This river bed provides one of the few access points to water for many miles around. [Guy Peterson/Al Jazeera]
A villager from Lemghaysse village drinks from a bucket lifted from one of the wells
A man from Lemghaysse village drinks from a bucket lifted from one of the wells. It might be harder to get, but amid temperatures creeping past 45 degrees Celsius, the water is still cool and refreshing. [Guy Peterson/Al Jazeera]
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Brahim, founder of the local nonprofit SOS Desert
Ahmed Brahim, founder of the local nonprofit SOS Desert, which works on water access and climate adaptation efforts, stands beside one of the two dams built last year, with help from the United Nations refugee office, bisecting the lake bed. [Guy Peterson/Al Jazeera]
A herder moves his flock of cattle across a dry river bed near Lemghaysse village
A herder moves his flock of cattle across a dry river bed near Lemghaysse village. Herding provides subsistence for up to 70 percent of Mauritanians. As droughts become more frequent, pressures on herding patterns and land where water is available can become a source of conflict. [Guy Peterson/Al Jazeera]
A herder from Lemghaysse village
A herder from Lemghaysse village stands on a dried river bed. [Guy Peterson/Al Jazeera]
Sidi Maytigue, the village chief,
Each year of bad rains, Sidi Maytigue, the village chief, says more people leave, hoping to make a living in one of Mauritania’s cities. [Guy Peterson/Al Jazeera]
A herd of camels sit on a dried river bed
A herd of camels sits on a dried river bed. [Guy Peterson/Al Jazeera]
Villagers from Lemghaysse
Villagers from Lemghaysse stand on a dried seasonal lake bed not far from the village, with almost no vegetation left on the ground after a long dry season. [Guy Peterson/Al Jazeera]


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