F.

LKQ4: What are the major causes of soil deterioration and erosion and how they can
be prevented?

1. Soil formation and characteristics including:

a) Texture: Soil texture is the relative proportions of sand, silt, or clay in the soil. There are
different soils such as loam, sandy, peaty, and silty. Soils with the finest texture are
called clay soils, while soils with the coarsest texture are called sand soils. Finer soils
contribute to the healthy growth of plants and trees. Dry soils cause deforestation due to
lack of nutrients being transported. Soil erosion is caused by farming and agriculture and
it wears away the field’s topsoil by the natural physical forces of water through farming
activities such as tillage.
b) Biotic and abiotic components: The biotic components such as the living organisms in
an environment can contribute negatively to the soil growth due to their own survival
needs. Humans impact the soil greatly due to agriculture and urbanization. The
disruption of the soil causes deterioration and erosion when it is messed with. The
abiotic factors that affect growth includes topography, soil, and climatic factors. All of
these abiotic components affect the soil which causes deterioration and erosion because
of the harm and strain it puts on it depending on how nutritious the soil is. Without the
contribution of negative impacts to soil from biotic and abiotic components, the quality of
the soil would be richer and more nutrient filled. (Katelyn)

c) Idealised soil profiles characteristic of moist and arid conditions in temperate and
tropical areas. (soil profiles to include: temperate podzols and brown earths,
tropical laterites and rain forest soils.) (Kelsey)
Brown Earths: Brown earths are typically a type of reddish/brown soil that occurs in
areas like woodlands with high biota occurrences (like earthworm activity). Plentiful Humus in/on
soil. Brown Earths largely occur in more low-lying areas and dryer climates.
Podzols: Podzols are soils that are usually characterized with nutrient rich soil and
humus in the top layer, then is followed by a more reddish-brown layer. After this, the soil
becomes gradually lighter in color as the amount of nutrients decrease as the depth of soil
increases.
Temperate Forest Soil Profile: The humus content in the soil in these areas give the dirt
a rich brown color on the A and B horizons of the soil profile.This usually occurs due to the high
amount of forest litter, which is caused by large trees in massive numbers.
Rainforest Soil Profile: Even though the NPP of Rainforests are some of the highest in all
the biomes, the soil quality of the rainforest tends to be poorer and more acidic. This is because
the most environment leaches the nutrients from the topsoil through raining before the nutrients
can actually be absorbed. Below the massive amounts of humus lies more acidic and lighter
colored soil. Below this is a large layer of clay with organic compounds that are naturally formed
by the parent material (in this case, rock).
Tropical Laterite Soil Profile: Laterite is a type of soil that is rich in both Iron and
aluminum, and are mostly formed in tropical regions (see Rainforest Soil Profile). Ex: Rainforest
in Brazil.
 Desert Soil: Desert soils usually have an extremely thin layer of humus for topsoil, and
below that are various compositions of salt, clay, and calcium carbonate.
Coniferous soil Profile: A thick layer of humus on the topsoil followed by a more acidic
layer that is darkened in color. After this, more humus with a mixture of aluminum.
Grassland Soil: Most of the grassland soil consists of more basic, richer soil with high
amounts of humus, below that is a much thinner layer of clay.

d) Soil erosion and deterioration through: (Rocio/Barut)

1. Agriculture: Increased demand for agricultural commodities generates incentives to
convert forests and grasslands to farm fields and pastures. The transition to
agriculture from natural vegetation often cannot hold onto the soil and many of these
plants, such as coffee, cotton, palm oil, soybean and wheat, can actually increase
soil erosion beyond the soil’s ability to maintain itself. Half of the topsoil on the planet
has been lost in the last 150 years. In addition to erosion, soil quality is affected by
other aspects of agriculture. These impacts include compaction, loss of soil
 structure, nutrient degradation, and soil salinity. These are very real and at times
severe issues.
2. Deforestation: The loss of trees, which anchor the soil with their roots, causes
widespread erosion throughout the tropics. Only a minority of areas have good
soils, which after clearing are quickly washed away by the heavy rains. Thus crop
yields decline and the people must spend income to import foreign fertilizers or
clear additional forest. After heavy tropical rains fall on cleared forest lands, the
runoff carries soil into local creeks and rivers. The rivers carry the eroded soils
downstream, causing significant problems.
3. Grazing: It reduces the usefulness, productivity, and biodiversity of the land and
is one cause of desertification and erosion. Overgrazing is also seen as a cause
of the spread of invasive species of non-native plants and of weeds.
4. Salinization: Irrigation can cause Salinization as this increases surface water and in
some cases the land may be flooded, which in turn leads to extra water evaporating and
a higher deposit of Salt.This can be caused when High Temperatures cause surface
water to evaporate which in turn leaves behind salt deposits as the water evaporates. A
continuous high temperature results in the water table rising to the surface resulting in a
larger salt deposition on the land. Where salinization occurs this makes the land unable
to grow sufficient crops as the land is now infertile.
5. Compaction: Soil compaction occurs when soil particles are pressed together, reducing
pore space between them (Figure 1). Heavily compacted soils contain few large pores
and have a reduced rate of both water infiltration and drainage from the compacted
layer. Excessive soil compaction impedes root growth and therefore limits the amount of
soil explored by roots. This, in turn, can decrease the plant's ability to take up nutrients
and water.

e) Management strategies involving the sustainable use of soils for agriculture.

(Gisselle)

Erosion can be significantly reduced through sustainable agricultural practices. The most
effective way to prevent erosion is to protect soil from rain and wind by covering it with plants
and/or decaying organic matter.
While industrial farms lose tons of soil because of intensive tillage, sustainable farmers have
successfully reduced erosion by adopting conservation tillage techniques. No-till, mulch-till, and
ridge-till systems minimize soil disturbance and leave “crop residue” (plant parts that remain
after harvest) covering the soil. No-till systems are most effective; in no-till fields, all plant
residue is left on the soil surface, and less than 10% of the soil is disturbed during planting.
In addition to reducing erosion, conservation tillage enables soil to retain more moisture,
reduces soil crusting, and allows organic materials such as leaves and plant parts to
accumulate over time, helping to restore nutrients to the soil. This technique also requires less
labor, equipment and fossil fuel. According to the Conservation Technology Information Center,
conservation tillage enables US farmers to save 306 million gallons of fuel each year, reducing
annual greenhouse gas emissions by over one billion pounds of carbon dioxide.
Sustainable farmers also reduce erosion by creating buffer strips within fields. Wind erosion can
be limited by planting strips of trees or vegetation at the edges of fields. Farmers can also
create buffer strips consisting of grasses or shrubs alongside drainage ditches and streams in
order to help prevent water erosion.

f) Studies should use examples from MEDCs and LEDCs. (case studies where
possible should be local or text derived; e.g. Southern England, Himalayan foothills, USA
Dustbowl.)
Zimbabwe has soil erosion problems. The rates of soil formation in Zimbabwe are very slow
somewhere around 400 tonnes/year, whereas rates of soil erosion are very much greater;
estimates for average soil losses on crop lands and grazing areas on commercial farms are 5
tonnes/year and 3 tonnes/year respectively; the equivalent average for communal lands are 50
and 75 tonnes/year.

The Dust Bowl, also known as the Dirty Thirties, was a period of severe dust storms that greatly
damaged the ecology and agriculture of the US and Canadian prairies during the 1930s; severe
drought and a failure to apply dryland farming methods to prevent wind erosion. Insufficient
understanding of the ecology of the plains, farmers had conducted extensive deep plowing of
the virgin topsoil of the Great Plains. This had displaced the native, deep-rooted grasses that
normally trapped soil and moisture even during periods of drought and high winds. The use of
farm equipment such as small gasoline tractors, and the widespread use of the combine
harvester contributed to farmers' decisions to convert arid grassland (much of which received no
more than 10 inches (250 mm) of precipitation per year) to cultivated cropland.The drought and
erosion of the Dust Bowl affected 100,000,000 acres (400,000 km2) that centered on the
panhandles of Texas and Oklahoma and touched adjacent sections of New Mexico, Colorado,
and Kansas. The Dust Bowl forced tens of thousands of families to abandon their farms.

Wide scale land degradation of catchments in terms of land, soil and vegetation has been
observed in the foothill Himalayas of Jammu region. An attempt was made to identify and relate
the factors involved in land degradation. It was found that there exists a continuous cycle of
events, involving both natural and anthropogenic factors, promoting land degradation. The weak
lithology of the lower Shiwaliks consisting of rocks like sandstone, conglomerate, shale, silt
stone and limestone are relatively easily weatherable and therefore prone to quick erosion.
Sloping relief pattern results in accelerated erosion causing removal of surface material. Surface
runoff is higher on sloping lands resulting in lesser percolation of water which is essential for
profile development. The high intensity rainfall during monsoon disturbs the top soil, and in turn
loosens it, resulting in sheet and rill erosion. Increased population coupled with poverty is
putting pressure on land maintenance.
(Cameron)