it's probably a good starting position to assume that since we all the share the same closed-ish system called planet earth, there's interconnections between different systems. Certainly the border areas between desert and not-desert aren't very crisply defined. Certainly (reference in other threads) nutrients can be blown by the winds from desert into non-desert areas far away. Certainly there exist some animals who go in and out of desert regions (birds, butterflies, ...). It's a really good idea to assume that things on this planet are connected to each other.
Sure, I mean, that's my assumption, the question is more of "how important is that connection" in a given instance. And, I suppose down that line of questioning, do we have the knowledge/systems/etc to overcome any losses?
