Soil erosion

Definition
The removal and thinning of the soil layer due to climatic and physical processes, such as high
rainfall, which is greatly accelerated by certain human activities, such as deforestation. Soil
erosion can lead to a loss of agricultural land and if unchecked, eventually results in
desertification.
Causes
 Land use:

Humans play a major role in soil erosion through their use and abuse of natural resources, for
example deforestation, grazing, arable land use, faulty farming systems, high crop intensity,
housing construction, mining etc.

 Climate:

The two most important climatic factors having a direct effect on erosion are precipitation and
wind velocity. Other climatic factors have an indirect effect on soil erosion, such as water balance,
evapotranspiration, temperature and relative humidity. Indirect factors affect the erosivity of
rainfall by altering the soil moisture regime and the proportion of rainfall that may become surface
runoff. For erosion control it is necessary to investigate physical characteristics of rainfall,
including the amount, distribution, intensity, energy load, seasonality and variability of rainfall and
the formation and course of surface runoff.

 Soil:

The susceptibility of a soil to erosion is influenced by its physical, hydrological, chemical and
mineralogical properties as well as its soil profile characteristics. Important soil physical and
hydrological properties that affect the resistance of a soil to erosion include texture, structure,
water retention and transmission properties.

 Hydrology:

Infiltration, surface detention, overland flow velocity, and subsurface water flow are important soil
erosion components of the hydrological cycle. The different types of flow and their velocities may
be turbulent or laminar, steady or unsteady, uniform or non-uniform and influence the extent of
erosion

 Landforms:

Slope gradient, slope length and shape of slope are the important variables of landform that affect
erosion processes for all types of soil erosion, e.g., splash, sheet, rill, and gully erosion.

 Roads
 Cause increased rates of erosion because, in addition to removing ground cover, they can
significantly change drainage patterns, especially if an embankment has been made to
support the road. A road that has a lot of rock and one that is "hydrologically invisible"
(that gets the water off the road as quickly as possible, mimicking natural drainage
patterns) has the best chance of not causing increased erosion.

 Human activities
Remove vegetation from an area, making the soil easily eroded. Logging can cause
increased erosion rates due to soil compaction, exposure of mineral soil, for example
roads and landings. However it is the removal of or compromise to the forest floor not the
removal of the canopy that can lead to erosion. This is because rain drops striking tree
leaves coalesce with other rain drops creating larger drops. When these larger drops fall
(called through fall) they again may reach terminal velocity and strike the ground with
more energy then had they fallen in the open. Terminal velocity of rain drops is reached
in about 8 meters. Because forest canopies are usually higher than this, leaf drop can
regain terminal velocity. However, the intact forest floor, with its layers of leaf litter and
organic matter, absorbs the impact of the rainfall.

 Heavy grazing

can reduce vegetation enough to increase erosion. Changes in the kind of vegetation in an
area can also affect erosion rates. Different kinds of vegetation lead to different
infiltration rates of rain into the soil. Forested areas have higher infiltration rates, so
precipitation will result in less surface runoff, which erodes. Instead much of the water
will go in subsurface flows, which are generally less erosive. Leaf litter and low shrubs
are an important part of the high infiltration rates of forested systems, the removal of
which can increase erosion rates. Leaf litter also shelters the soil from the impact of
falling raindrops, which is a significant agent of erosion. Vegetation can also change the
speed of surface runoff flows, so grasses and shrubs can also be instrumental in this
aspect.

 Slash and burn treatment of tropical forest.

When the total ground surface is stripped of vegetation and then seared of all living
organisms, the upper soils are vulnerable to both wind and water erosion. In a number of
regions of the earth, entire sectors of a country have been rendered unproductive. For
example, on the Madagascar high central plateau, comprising approximately ten percent
of that country's land area, virtually the entire landscape is sterile of vegetation, with
gully erosive furrows typically in excess of 50 meters deep and one kilometer wide.
Shifting cultivation is a farming system which sometimes incorporates the slash and burn
method in some regions of the world. This degrades the soil and causes the soil to
become less and less fertile.

Effects
  When land is overused by animal activities (including humans), there can be mechanical
erosion and also removal of vegetation leading to erosion. In the case of the animal
kingdom, this effect would become material primarily with very large animal herds
stampeding such as the Blue Wildebeest on the Serengeti plain. Even in this case there
are broader material benefits to the ecosystem, such as continuing the survival of
grasslands, that are indigenous to this region. This effect may be viewed as anomalous or
a problem only when there is a significant imbalance or overpopulation of one species.

 In the case of human use, the effects are also generally linked to overpopulation. When
large number of hikers use trails or extensive off road vehicle use occurs, erosive effects
often follow, arising from vegetation removal and furrowing of foot traffic and off road
vehicle tires. These effects can also accumulate from a variety of outdoor human
activities, again simply arising from too many people using a finite land resource.
 One of the effects of erosion is the changing of the landscape. 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. Much of the carving up of the landscape is done by water particularly
rivers. A river is formed when rainwater collects in a high place such as mountain or a
plateau. The water makes its own way by breaking and eroding the rocks and soil. It may
branch out into different directions as it matures. Or it may be joined by other smaller
stream called tributaries. A river carries much sediment. This consists of clay, sand,
gravel and organic materials. The sediment may be deposited along the banks of the river.
There it forms a long and narrow plain called a floodplain. The soil in a floodplain is
fertile and is ideal for planting vegetables. The sediment, when deposited at the river's
mouth, forms a plain in the shape of a triangle. This is called delta. A delta has fertile soil
and is a good agricultural area.
Observe some rocks at the seashore. They are continuously pounded by waves. They are
broken into pieces, which are scattered on the shore. In some places, isolated pillars of
rocks are formed. Each pillar of rock is called a stack. In the desert, strong winds blow
away the sand. The sand in turn scrapes the rocks. It may take a long time, but the
remaining rock may turn into a shape that looks like a mushroom. People also change the
landscape. They dig the ground to get iron, silver, gold, coal, oil and other resources.
They construct irrigation systems; build artificial hills, waterfalls and streams. They
move gravel and sand to be used for building purposes.
Other related explanation

Measures taken to overcome the problems

  When the topsoil on your land washes away, it takes with it nutrients that your plants
need to grow well. It can cause gullies in your garden or field, which makes it harder to
create a level planting area. The soil that is left will crust over more easily, which makes
it hard for seeds to break through, and hard for rainwater to be absorbed. Soil erosion can
also be damaging to marine life. When excess soil is washed into rivers and streams, it
can disturb the delicate balance that is needed for the aquatic ecosystem to thrive. The
soil may also contain herbicides and pesticides, which can be very harmful to fish and
animals that may drink out of the stream.
 The amount of soil erosion that occurs in an area depends upon two factors: the speed
with which water and wind travel across it, and the abundance of plant life that is
growing there. Since you have no control over the speed of the wind, how heavily it
rains, or the currents of the river, you need to concentrate on the factor you can control--
plant life.
 Plant life protects your topsoil in many ways, allowing for soil conservation. It prevents
heavy rains from beating down on your land and knocking the topsoil loose. It prevents
the soil from drying out as quickly, thereby protecting it from being blown away by
strong winds. The roots of the plants hold the soil in place, so it's not washed away as
easily.
Conclusion

Soils that exist at the Weber Farm Site today began forming at the end of the Ice Age,
about 13,000 years ago.  They formed in loess-derived silty parent material and sandy
material derived from the underlying weathered sandstone bedrock.  Climatic conditions
and native vegetation, when considered as soil-forming factors, are essentially constant
across the site except as a function of slope steepness and slope aspect.  South and
west facing portions of the study area receive somewhat more direct sunlight and north-
facing portions of the study area receive somewhat less direct sunlight.  The affect of
this difference was not addressed in this study.  However, it is likely that soils on south
and west facing slopes in the study area exhibit higher soil temperatures, a longer frost-
free season, and reduced soil moisture during the growing season, and soils on north
facing slopes in the study area exhibit lower soil temperatures, a shorter frost-free
season, and increased soil moisture during the growing season.  

Land use of the entire study area is cultivated row crops and forage crops.  Although
cultivation practices have changed over time, the study area has been in more-or-less
continuous production since it was originally homesteaded and first plowed, probably
sometime during the 1860s.  Several lines of evidence suggest the severe soil erosion
characteristic of much of the study area occurred recently, perhaps since the
introduction of Euro American agricultural practices.  The presence of strongly
developed Bt-horizons at depth in some upland settings indicate a substantial period of
landscape stability, and soil formation, occurred during post-glacial time.  The weakly
expressed horizonation above these horizons, and across the entire study area
suggests this extended period of landscape stability and soil formation has only recently
been interrupted.   
The most significant consideration with regard to land use in the study area is slope. 
The sandy and silty texture soils in the study area are extremely susceptible to wind and
water erosion when the stabilizing protection of vegetation cover is removed .  This is
especially true in steeply sloping portions of the study area.  Soils on upland and
adjacent steeply sloping portions of the study area already exhibit characteristics that
are the direct result of soil erosion.  They are thin and sandy (due to the incorporation of
sandy material derived from sandstone bedrock below them).   Much of the rich, fertile
loess-derived parent material has been removed from this portion of the study area. 
Soils in lower positions in the study area are thickened suggesting material eroded off
adjacent uplands is, at least in part, being stored lower on the landscape.  In at least
one case, redeposition of salty and sandy material eroded from upslope was rapid
enough to bury a preexisting soil.  

We recommend that future land use of the study area mitigate for soil erosion.  Soils in
the study area, though already affected by soil erosion, remain moderately fertile and
suitable for cultivation.  Though thin, they can support some construction and can be
used for a variety of earthen fill.  However, great care during any land use activity that
removes or inhibits the establishment of vegetation should be taken.   Soil erosion
control practices such as zero-tillage and contour plowing should be implemented if
cultivation is to continue (at least sustainably).  Silt fences and soil berms should be in
place during any construction.  Room for vegetated buffer strips should be left if the
study area is to be used as a building site.  Soils at the site are best suited to "low
impact" activities such as pasture or recreation areas.  Even if used for these purposes,
care must be taken to control foot, animal, and vehicle traffic, especially on the steeper
portions of the study area.  Any such activity that removes stabilizing vegetation will
result in soil erosion.  Both soil erosion by wind (blowing and deflation) and soil erosion
by water (sheet wash and gulling) is to be expected if the protection of stabilizing
vegetation is removed and these soils are exposed.    

http://civcal.media.hku.hk/soilerosion/causes/default.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erosion#Causes