Water and wind erosion are the two primary causes of land degradation. Causes, effects and types of erosion water, wind, glacier. Soil erosion is the loss of soil from land due to the effects of wind and water currents. Factors and causes of soil erosion and the interaction between them. Soil erosion is the wearing away of the land surface by physical forces such as rainfall, flowing water, wind, ice, temperature change, gravity or other natural or anthropogenic agents that abrade, detach and remove soil or geological material from one point on the earths surface to be deposited elsewhere. It results in loss of the finest soil particles that contain most of the available nutrients and organic matter in the soil. Sheet erosion sheet erosion is the removal of soil in thin layers by raindrop impact and shallow surface flow. Erosion causes infertile soils that are subject to erosion. Other soil conservation practicessuch as contour banks, filter strips and controlled trafficare important, but secondary to the maintenance of cover. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading soil erosion.
The topsoil is lost by erosion which is the most fertile section, having evolved over centuries of soilforming processes. The top soil is loaded with nutrients and organic matter critical for crop growth. In agriculture, soil erosion refers to the wearing away of a fields topsoil by the natural physical. So, rational use of water resources, erosion control and socialeconomic development for local farmers are most important things we must to do. Rainfall energy is the prime cause of erosion from tilled or bare. To combine the benefits of conservation tillage soil conservation with the.
After reading, partners switched papers and found a new partner. The process involves the loosening of the soil particles, blowing or washing away of the soil particles, and either ends up in the valley and faraway lands or washed away to the oceans by rivers and streams. Where millions of years ago there was a wide field, now there may be only a narrow one for the river has carried off much of its soil. These impacts include compaction, loss of soil structure, nutrient degradation, and soil salinity. Deforestation causes a change in the rain cycle and this is a contributing factor to global warming and loss of ecosystems. Sheet erosion soil erosion is characterised by the downslope removal of. Soil erosion during construction is often a serious problem. Causes of erosion erosion occurs when soil is left exposed to rain or wind energy. Environment agency thinksoils factors that influence erosion and runoff soil surface roughness factors that influence erosion and runoff soil surface roughness 3 ploughed land provides surface storage of rainwater soil surface roughness soil surface roughness rough surfaces e. Students met with a partner and read a sentence about soil erosion. It is a naturally occurring process soil always shifts from one location to another and, under normal conditions, this shifting takes place in a slow and gradual manner. In this study, the diverse factors that cause soil erosion are evaluated. Due to uprooting of trees the shortage of timber and fuel wood results.
Pdf soil is the most fundamental and basic natural resource for all life to survive. In earth science, erosion is the action of surface processes that removes soil, rock, or dissolved. It is the fairly uniform removal of soil in thin layers from the land surface, often scarcely perceptible, especially when caused by wind. Break up of soil clodsaggregates and dispersion of soil particles by the kinetic. Soil erosion is a grave environmental hazard that has both natural and human causes. After a couple rounds, i realized that students werent matching the correct causes to the corresponding effects. While there are many different factors that can cause soil erosion, most can be broken down into two main categories. Many erosion control practices are available in local soil and water conservation district offices. The key to controlling soil erosion by water is maintenance of a protective cover e. Soil erosion is a process that involves the wearing away of the topsoil.
Offsite environmental effects are increasing and becoming more unacceptable to those affected as well as the public at large. According to fao food and agriculture organisation, it is 57 million hectars per year. Elements of soil erosion soil erosion by water is the detachment of soil particles by the direct action of raindrops and runoff water, and the transport of these particles by splash and very shallow flowing. Water and wind are the two main mechanisms by which soil is eroded and transported.
Erosion control measures and techniques have made a great progress on erosion control and promoted socialeconomic. Much of the carving up of the landscape is done by water particularly rivers. Dregne soil erosion is the main reason why desertification is irreversible. Switching papers allowed students to practice different sentence frames. There are several serious effects of soil erosion which are as follows. This natural process is caused by the dynamic activity of erosive agents, that is, water, ice glaciers, snow, air wind, plants, animals, and humans.
Causes, processes and effects soil erosion is a growing problem and constitutes a threat to soil quality and to the ability of soils to. In addition to erosion, soil quality is affected by other aspects of agriculture. As indicated by the classification in table 121, the texture of these soils is similar to fayette soils, but these soils differ by having a fragipan. It results in a continuous loss of topsoil, ecological degradation, soil collapse, etc. Agdex 572751 october 2012 replaces omafra factsheet, soil erosion causes and effects, order no. However, under human impact, soil erosion is often drastically.
Value 1 this form of erosion is no longer visible after cultivation ploughing, hoeing etc. The impact of raindrops will break up the soil and water buildup will create runoff, taking sediment with it. However, the effects of erosion on construction sites continue to menace society both from onsite and offsite damages. Effects of soil erosion on the environment soil erosion is an ongoing process that affects each site in a slightly different way. Soil erosion and water shortage are main problems on loess plateau. Its effects can be seen directly in the location where erosion takes place, known as onsite effects, and at the site where the eroded soil deposits offsite. In the dry regions, the obvious solution is to combine soil conservation with water conservation. Raindrops hit exposed soil with great energy and easily dislodge the soil particles from the surface. However, current erosion models emphasize the temporal, and less the spatial, variability of relevant parameters so that the effects of changes in landscape structure have hitherto not been studied in detail. Erosion preceded by the destruction of the crumb structure due to the impact of falling raindrop on the surface of soil is termed as splash erosion. Flowing water, rainwater, and the wind are the prime agents which cause a significant amount of soil loss each year.
Repeated erosion reduces the fertility of the soil by. An onsite loss of agricultural potential an offsite effect of downstream movement of sediment, causing flooding and the silting up of reservoirs. Due to formation of gullies and ravines, valuable agricultural lands are lost. This is a cheap and easy method especially suited to ledc 10. Effects of erosion control practices on nutrient loss george f. It has been recognized as a major problem since the 1930s and, although there has been some 70 years of research into the causes and processes, it is still increasing and of. Effects of erosion include siltation of rivers, crop failure at low lying areas due to flooding, pollution of waterbodies due to the various chemicals brought by the runoff from different areas. Soil erosion and control measures on the loess plateau. The top soil is lost by erosion which is the most fertile section, having evolved over centuries of soil forming processes. Soil loss is so gradual that the erosion usually goes unnoticed, but the cumulative. Soil erosion is a naturally occurring process that affects all landforms. Processes, prediction, measurement, and control kindle edition by toy, terrence j. Water erosion water erosion causes two sets of problems.
Repeated erosion reduces water infiltration into the soil, which may result to withering of crops. Bullock, in encyclopedia of soils in the environment, 2005. With the rapid growth of human population, we need all the food we can get. Soil erosion is one of the most significant issues the living beings are encountering now and probably. Summary causes of soil erosion deforestation ploughing monoculture removal of hedges overgrazing. Too much of soil erosion causes serious loss of topsoil and also reduces crop production potential, lower surface water quality, and damaged. For this reason, some navigable waters become useless. Soil erosion is a continuous process that occurs either slowly or at an alarming rate.
Stone lines magic stones these are put in place following contour lines meaning run off is reduced and soil can be collected and redistributed. Soil erosion is the movement and transport of soil by various agents, particularly water, wind, and mass movement. These conditions combine to increase runoff and influence lo cal erosion. Soil erosion is the wearing away of the land surface by physical. Landscape structure, or the spatial organization of different land units, has an impact on erosion and sedimentation on agricultural land. Offsite effects include sedimentation of waterways and eutrophication of. Erosion has longterm consequences for soil quality and shortterm consequences on individual crops. Erosion causes filling of dams, reservoirs, waterways. According to the iowa state university extension, soil erosion results in a lessened soil water capacity, as well as loss of nutrients and carbon, which all have negative effects on crop productivity. Workshop on common criteria for risk area identification. Chemicals used on soils reduce soil fertility so food production drops. Causes of soil erosion soil erosion occurs when natural forces, such as wind and water, act on the soil. Soil erosion is a natural process which has increasingly been.
For maximum erosion control, the best cover would be a vigorous permanent sod figure 6. Vegeta tion can regenerate from a degraded state as long as the seed stock remains viable and there is soil for seeds to germinate and grow in. Soil erosion can be a slow process that continues relatively unnoticed or can occur at an alarming rate, causing serious loss of topsoil. Since rapid soil erosion results in a loss of topsoil, it can have a detrimental effect on plants. One of the effects of erosion is the changing of the landscape. In agriculture, soil erosion refers to the wearing away of a fields topsoil by the natural physical forces of water and. Half of the topsoil on the planet has been lost in the last 150 years. Soil erosion is a major land degradation problem in south africa sa that has economic, social and environmental implications due to both onsite and offsite effects. Let us have a detailed look at the causes, effects and prevention of soil erosion. It hurts the land and people where it takes place, so also the land and people where it gets deposited. Man can also cause soil erosion by such practices as tilling a farmers field or the.
This factsheet looks at the causes and effects of water, wind and tillage erosion on agricultural land. Soil erosion is the displacement of the upper layer of soil, it is one form of soil degradation. Effects of soil erosion on soil properties as related to. Recommendations based on the research affirm the necessity to undertake largescale natural. Read this article to learn about the meaning, factors, effects, types, causes and prevention of soil erosion. Extensive erosion also minimizes the depth of soil available for water storage and rooting.
Practices such as terracing and minimum tillage provide such a. Evaluating the effects of changes in landscape structure. Brandenborg as legal notice the contents of this report do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of. Is it possible to estimate the amount of global loss of fertile land annually due to erosion. Soil compaction, low organic matter, loss of soil structure, poor internal drainage, salinisation and soil acidity problems are other serious soil degradation conditions that can accelerate the soil erosion. Effects of erosion control practices on nutrient loss. Global warming will get worse as agricultural methods accelerate the rate of soil erosion, which depletes the amount of carbon the soil is able to store, a united nations environment programme. Although soil erosion is a natural occurrence on all land, there are certain factors that call accelerate erosion making it more noticeable and problematic. Development of management strategies to control soil erosion in. Magnitude and the impacts of soil erosion on productivity depend on soil profile and horizonation, terrain, soil management. Since, water is viewed as an indispensable natural resource for. T value tolerable erosion equilibrium between soil gains and losses. What are the causes, consequences, and solutions of soil. Causes of soil erosion water and wind erosion causes.
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