If I remember right, there were three great environmental tragedies in the making in the late 20th century. The ozone hole, which was going to fry us all; the relentless advance of the deserts, which would bake us; and the population explosion, which would leave us fighting over fixed food supplies.
   Catastrophic news for environmental doomsayers. More people have adequate diets than ever before in human history, and a couple of recent articles have punctured a couple of other tenets.
   Atmospheric scientists are now forecasting the ozone hole will close in the next 50 years. And the New Scientist reports that the Sahara is -- wait for it -- retreating. The desert has been shrinking for the last 20 years, but the UN Environment Programme didn't notice. The UNEP reported to the World Summit in Johannesburg that over 45 per cent of Africa is in the grip of desertification. And you still wonder why environmentalist warnings aren't taken seriously?
Africa's deserts in spectacular retreat [New Scientist]
Ozone hole to close by 2050 [Reuters]