An Investigating of HumanActivities Affecting the Desertification in Arid Rural Areas: A Case Study of Mortazeye Desert, Yazd Province

The First step in performing de-desertification and preventing desertification must be based on the recognition of phenomena that cause desertification. Desertification is a phenomenon affected by many factors such as natural, social, economic ones and reciprocally affecting these factors. This research was conducted to investigate the human factors (social, economic) that affect desertification in Mortazeye desert located in Taft Township, Yazd Province. The population consisted of all the inhabitants of the villages that benefit from this region (Kahdoeye, Disran, Sharif Abad and Erdan; N=1217). A sample of 100 was selected based on Cronbach's alpha through a proportionate stratified sampling technique. The questionnaire consisted of 22 questions developed to collect data. The data were analyzed by SPSS. 22 factors summarized to seven main factors by applying Factor Analysis Technique. These seven factors (natural resource management, agricultural slump, fuel provision, urban development, irrigation methods, level of farmer's technical knowledge and skill) totally accounted for 76.3 percent of variations of human factors that have an effect on desertification in Mortazeye desert.