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    Erosion Essay

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    Nicky Lewis
    Soil erosion is a significant environmental and economic problem. As topsoil is lost due to farming practices, deforestation, and other causes, agricultural productivity declines due to reduced fertility and water retention in soil. This leads to increased costs for farmers and consumers. Soil erosion also harms water quality through sedimentation and pollution, and air quality when dust blows and causes respiratory issues. Preventing further soil erosion through conservation practices is important to address these economic and environmental impacts.

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    Erosion Essay

    Uploaded by

    Nicky Lewis
    134 views3 pages
    Soil erosion is a significant environmental and economic problem. As topsoil is lost due to farming practices, deforestation, and other causes, agricultural productivity declines due to reduced fertility and water retention in soil. This leads to increased costs for farmers and consumers. Soil erosion also harms water quality through sedimentation and pollution, and air quality when dust blows and causes respiratory issues. Preventing further soil erosion through conservation practices is important to address these economic and environmental impacts.

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    Soil erosion is a significant environmental and economic problem. As topsoil is lost due to farming practices, deforestation, and other causes, agricultural productivity declines due to reduced fertility and water retention in soil. This leads to increased costs for farmers and consumers. Soil erosion also harms water quality through sedimentation and pollution, and air quality when dust blows and causes respiratory issues. Preventing further soil erosion through conservation practices is important to address these economic and environmental impacts.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as doc, pdf, or txt
    134 views3 pages

    Erosion Essay

    Uploaded by

    Nicky Lewis
    Soil erosion is a significant environmental and economic problem. As topsoil is lost due to farming practices, deforestation, and other causes, agricultural productivity declines due to reduced fertility and water retention in soil. This leads to increased costs for farmers and consumers. Soil erosion also harms water quality through sedimentation and pollution, and air quality when dust blows and causes respiratory issues. Preventing further soil erosion through conservation practices is important to address these economic and environmental impacts.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    Dominique Lewis

    Soil Erosion Essay


    Skillman -1st Period

    One of the most important resources in the world today for maintaining the human race is soil.

    soil is necessary for growing the world's food, shelter, and supporting life throughout the planet.

    Unfortunately, due to farming practices, deforestation, and other means, this precious resource is

    slowly eroding away, resulting in less available soil for agriculture every year. This is not only an

    environmental problem, but an economic one as well, one that affects every consumer and every person

    who relies upon the soil to survive.

    The global reduction of soil has a ride range of negative effects. Agriculturally, over-tilling can

    cause the soil to lose its fertility over time. As seen in many locations around Kentucky, such as in

    Owen County, is has been shown that over-tillage has caused more clay to mix into the top soil. This,

    as a result, causes the soil to have “less organic matter, lower available water-holding capacity” as

    well as being “coarser and less stable” (ces3.) In the short-term, the lost of fertile soil can cause the

    death of seeds and seedlings as well as the need for an increase in fertilizers and pesticides to prolong

    plant life (adlib.) Convin, such actions as additional water and fertilizers do not appear to be working.

    According to the Food ans Agriculture Organization, the world's production of grains have “been

    declining since 1984.” (sciecemag.) Conversely, there are many effects that occur outside agriculture as

    well. Soil erosion that caused by water impacts the water sources in an area. For example, the soil, and

    the pesticides that get washed away with it, can damage lake or river habitats by polluting the water

    and decrease water quality (omfra). Soil that is eroded through wind can cause damage to human and

    animal health, leading to lung damage or bronchitis, and aggravating asthma. (ccohs.)

    These effects of soil erosion have very real costs to them. According to Murdock and Frye,

    agricultural sceients as the Universit yof Kentucky, the cost of additional planting and ferlizing due to

    soil erosion would about $70 extra per acre per year over the next 50 years. (ces3) Since 41% , ot
    938.38 million acres of US land is farmland, this would cost the US billions in extra costs (agday). This

    would lead to increases in food costs for the public over time. The infiltration of sediments and

    pesticides into water sources can cost millions to rehabilitate damaged habitats and time to replace lost

    organisms. The effects to human health has many costs as well. Including health costs, there are costs

    for potential time lost and loss in prodctivity, which may be meniscule for now, but may increase over

    time if this problem is not controled.

    There are many ways to combat this problem. Proper tilliage of land, covering susebible topsoil

    with grasses for anchorage, and crop rotation are viable options to control soil erosion. But, to make

    sure that this issue does not continue to grow, the entire state of Kentucky and the world needs to

    realize how we're affect the world around us and making it harder for us to survive.

    "Economic and Environmental Effects of Erosion." Soil Erosion: An Advisory Booklet for the Management of

    Agricultural Land (PB3280). Agricultural Document Library, n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2015.

    <http://adlib.everysite.co.uk/adlib/defra/content.aspx?id=000HK277ZX.0B81HOEGUC2DZV>.

    Website

    Parenthetical Edit Delete 
    More 
     Murdock, Lloyd, and Wilbur Frye. "Erosion - Its Effect on Soil Properties, Productivity & Profit." N.p., n.d. Web.
    12 Feb. 2015. <http://ces3.ca.uky.edu/owen/anr/Water%20Quality/erosion.htm>.

    Website

    Parenthetical Edit Delete 
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     Pimentel, David. "Enviromental and Economic Costs of Erosion and Conservation Benefits." Science 24 Feb.
    1995: 1117-123.Sciencemag.org. American Association for the Advancement of Science. Web. 11 Feb. 2014.
    <https://www.sciencemag.org/content/suppl/2003/11/19/302.5649.1356.DC1/267-5201-1117.pdf>.

    Magazine Article

    Parenthetical Edit Delete 
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     Ritter, Jim. "Soil Erosion – Causes and Effects." N.p., Oct. 2012. Web. 12 Feb. 2015.
    <http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/engineer/facts/12-053.htm#3>.
    Website

    Parenthetical Edit Delete 
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     "What Are the Effects of Dust on the Lungs? : OSH Answers." What Are the Effects of Dust on the Lungs? : OSH
    Answers. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2015. <http://www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/chemicals/lungs_dust.html>.

    Website

    http://www.agday.org/media/factsheet.php

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