Mauritania
Sand Origin
Soukouk dunes, Trarza region within Nouakchott
Random Sand Fact
In Mauritania, mobile sand dunes cover around two thirds of the country’s land area.
When wind sets the sand in motion, dunes can move across roads, farmland and settlements. People have therefore developed ways to control where the sand ends up.
Along roads, woven branch fences have been used to slow the sand, together with trees planted to hold it in place.
On some stretches, engineers have gone further and built an artificial dune in front of the road. It acts as a counter-dune, collecting moving sand before it reaches the road.
