Displacement of soil by water, wind, and lifeforms
An actively eroding rill on an intensively-farmed field in eastern GermanySoil erosion
Soil erosion is the denudation or wearing away of the upper layer of soil. It is a form of soil degradation. This natural process is caused by the dynamic activity of erosive agents, that is, water, ice (glaciers), snow, air (wind), plants, and animals (including humans). In accordance with these agents, erosion is sometimes divided into water erosion, glacial erosion, snow erosion, wind (aeolian) erosion, zoogenic erosion and anthropogenic erosion such as tillage erosion.[1]
Soil erosion may be a slow process that continues relatively unnoticed, or it may occur at an alarming rate causing a serious loss of topsoil. The loss of soil from farmland may be reflected in reduced crop production potential, lower surface water quality and damaged drainage networks. Soil erosion could also cause sinkholes.
Human activities have increased by 10–50 times the rate at which erosion is occurring world-wide.
Excessive (or accelerated) erosion causes both "on-site" and "off-site" problems. On-site impacts include decreases in agricultural productivity and (on natural landscapes) ecological collapse, both because of loss of the nutrient-rich upper soil layers. In some cases, the eventual result is desertification. Off-site effects include sedimentation of waterways and eutrophication of water bodies, as well as sediment-related damage to roads and houses. Water and wind erosion are the two primary causes of land degradation; combined, they are responsible for about 84% of the global extent of degraded land, making excessive erosion one of the most significant environmental problems worldwide.[2][3][4]
Intensive agriculture, deforestation, roads, acid rains, anthropogenic climate change and urban sprawl are amongst the most significant human activities in regard to their effect on stimulating erosion.[5] However, there are many prevention and remediation practices that can curtail or limit erosion of vulnerable soils.
^Apollo, M., Andreychouk, V., Bhattarai, S.S. (2018-03-24). "Short-Term Impacts of Livestock Grazing on Vegetation & Track Formation in a High Mountain Environment". A Case Study from the Himalayan Miyar Valley (India). Sustainability. 10 (4): 951. doi:10.3390/su10040951. ISSN 2071-1050.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^Blanco, Humberto & Lal, Rattan (2010). "Soil and water conservation". Principles of Soil Conservation & Management. Springer. p. 2. ISBN 978-90-481-8529-0.
^Cite error: The named reference toy-2002-p1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Pimentel, David (2006-02-01). "Soil Erosion: A Food and Environmental Threat". Environment, Development and Sustainability. 8 (1): 119–137. doi:10.1007/s10668-005-1262-8. ISSN 1573-2975. S2CID 6152411.
^Julien, Pierre Y. (2010). Erosion and Sedimentation. Cambridge University. (Press. p. 1. ISBN 978-0-521-53737-7.
water erosion, glacial erosion, snow erosion, wind (aeolian) erosion, zoogenic erosion and anthropogenic erosion such as tillage erosion. Soilerosion may...
Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's...
Soil conservation is the prevention of loss of the topmost layer of the soil from erosion or prevention of reduced fertility caused by over usage, acidification...
construction. Effective erosion controls handle surface runoff and are important techniques in preventing water pollution, soil loss, wildlife habitat...
with associated erosion. Given its complexity and strong internal connectedness, soil ecologists regard soil as an ecosystem. Most soils have a dry bulk...
becomes affected once the soil is dehydrated. Dehydrated topsoil volume substantially decreases and may suffer wind erosion. Topsoil is naturally produced...
of soilerosion shown in many water erosion handbooks and pamphlets, the eroded hilltops, is actually caused by tillage erosion as water erosion mainly...
is a major component of the water cycle. It is the primary agent of soilerosion by water. The land area producing runoff that drains to a common point...
detrimental effects of soilerosion and the impacts on U.S lands that led to the Dust Bowl in the 1930s. On September 13, 1933, the SoilErosion Service was formed...
upstream) erosion at a knick point. This erosion can result from interflow and soil piping (internal erosion) as well as surface runoff. Gully erosion may also...
suffer from other environmental problems such as desertification and soilerosion. Another problem is that deforestation reduces the uptake of carbon dioxide...
loss of equilibrium of a stable soil. Retrogression is primarily due to soilerosion and corresponds to a phenomenon where succession reverts the land to...
for use. Soil faces many threats, including compaction, contamination, organic material loss, biodiversity loss, slope stability issues, erosion, salinization...
crops. Additionally, crop rotations can improve soil structure and organic matter, which reduces erosion and increases farm system resilience. Farmers have...
reduces soilerosion. Soilerosion prevention practices such as this can drastically decrease negative effects associated with soilerosion such as reduced...
land area is subject to human-induced degradation (medium confidence). Soilerosion from agricultural fields is estimated to be currently 11 to 20 times...
maintenance of soil fertility typically requires the use of soil conservation practices. This is because soilerosion and other forms of soil degradation...
"Modeling of SoilErosion and Its Implication to Forest Management", Research on SoilErosion, InTech, doi:10.5772/53741, ISBN 978-953-51-0839-9 "Soil degradation...
Environmental issues in Russia include pollution and erosion, and have impacts on people, wildlife and ecosystems. Many of the issues have been attributed...
deforestation. Deforestation in the DRC leads to biodiversity loss, soilerosion and contributes to climate change. The DRC is one of 17 megadiverse countries...
Illegal mining causes soilerosion and degradation which leads to barren lands where nothing can survive. Soilerosion reduces soil fertility which affects...
Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) is a widely used mathematical model that describes soilerosion processes. Erosion models play critical roles in soil and...
shallow channel (no more than a few inches/decimeters deep) cut into soil by the erosive action of flowing surface water. Similar but smaller incised channels...
accelerated soilerosion and denudation, the change to less desirable vegetation, or the loss of crop yield due to reversible salinization or irrigated soils. Where...
change in the level of ground water before the construction had enabled soilerosion, which led to high concentration of salts in the water table. After the...
toposequences or soil catenas. These patterns emerge from topographic differences in erosion, deposition, fertility, soil moisture, plant cover, soil biology,...
destruction of houses and roads. Soilerosion is the most common geo-environmental hazard in Imo State, with over 360 erosion sites, out of which 57 are confirmed...
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