MARY MATHIS

The Draa river, shown above, remains dry the majority of the year due to the Mansour Eddahbi dam, built in the city of Ouarzazate in 1972. While the hydraulic dam aims to regulate water distribution and improve farming irrigation, it prevents the water from reaching M’Hamid El Ghizlane, which lies further downstream. As a result, the river dried up, which caused the once fertile land to become barren. Worsening desertification and lack of rain, factors predicted to worsen with climate change, are aggravating the harsh environmental conditions brought by the dam.

The original adobe buildings of M’Hamid are mostly neglected, while the main road of the town is comprised of small buildings made from concrete blocks. The Sahara Desert begins at the end of the main road, and desert sands are slowly encroaching on both the city and the surrounding oasis.

Walking on his family’s once fertile land, Laghroumi Mohammed, 52, uses a forked stick to locate water underground. He grips the stick firmly in his hands and watches as it twists upwards towards his chest when he is standing above water that’s underground. Scientific communities dispute if this technique, known as dowsing, truly works, but it has been shown to produce consistent results.

Mohammed lived nomadically for three months of every year during peak date season until his early 20s. He says worsening drought and desertification have forced people to dig deeper and deeper to access water. The conditions make Mohammed recall a line of poetry he heard from his mother, “The only people who can live on the red snake are those used to living on water and dates.”

In addition to the worsening environmental conditions, education is a major factor driving nomadic groups to settle in M’Hamid.  El Garni Hamadi’s  father decided his family should settle in the early 1980s so that the kids could pursue school. Hamadi (center) now teaches French and Arabic at the primary school in M’Hamid, and his brothers have advanced degrees in human rights, social sciences, and economics. When he first started teaching, he worked with a government initiative focusing on integrating formerly nomadic students into the Moroccan public school system.

Many former nomads have found work in tourism as camel trekking guides. Most tourists arrive by bus from Marrakech or Ouarzazate, and hire a guide to lead a camel trek to camp in the desert or to to visit the famous Erg Chegaga sand dunes about 50 km west of M’Hamid. Given tourism is the main economic sector in the town, prices for camel treks vary drastically as many companies are competing for limited clientele and are willing to negotiate prices with tourists.