Drought Threatens Morocco’s Ancient Argan Forests, Risking Ecological Disaster

"We must take care of this tree (the argan tree) and protect it because if we lose it, we will lose everything that defines us and what we have now," said Hafida El Hantati, owner of the Ajddigue cooperative based in Essaouira, which harvests the fruit and presses it to extract argan oil, an oil with a thousand virtues. The argan tree, which is resistant to high temperatures and requires little water, is now suffering from the prolonged lack of water. The reason is that Morocco has been facing a terrible drought for seven years. As a result, the forest has thinned out. The trees bear fewer fruits, their branches are knotty due to thirst.

In many places, cultivated lands have replaced them. Citrus and tomato fields, often for export, have expanded. In the past, communities collectively managed the forests, setting grazing and harvesting rules. Today, this system is crumbling, with regular reports of theft. A forest that covered about 14,000 km² at the turn of the century has decreased by 40%, according to The Star. All of this leads scientists to warn that the argan trees are not invincible. "Because the argan trees have acted as a green curtain protecting much of southern Morocco against the advance of the Sahara, their slow disappearance is considered an ecological disaster," said Zoubida Charrouf, a chemist who studies the argan tree at the Mohammed V University of Rabat.

The forests are also threatened by camels raised by the wealthy in the region. They plunge their necks into the trees and graze on entire branches, causing lasting damage, Zoubida explained.