Aeolian dust

In addition to its contribution to soil erosion and loss of agricultural productivity, aeolian dust can transport biota, nutrients and toxins very rapidly over large distances, potentially affecting the health and productivity of terrestrial and ocean ecosystems and human populations alike.

• Dust entrainment and transport: climate change induced increases in drought will increase dust entrainment – aeolian dust can feedback upon climate by increasing or decreasing temperatures by directly affecting radiative forcing.
• Marine impacts of dust: deposition of dust into the oceans provides critical nutrients to marine plankton, which have potential to significantly reduce atmospheric carbon by sequestration and to produce climatically-significant bio-aerosols