Just as soil erosion is a component of soil degradation, soil degradation is a component of land degradation. Deforestation in paraguay is thought to have been reduced by 65 per cent within two years of the enactment of its 2004 zero deforestation. Ifpris 2020 project sought to place land degradation issues within the broader context ofrural development policy, and to emphasize the dynamics ofland. Deforestation and inappropriate agricultural practices especially on sloping lands often lead to soil. Restoring soil quality to mitigate soil degradation mdpi. Managing soil degradation the main thing is to allow for increased cover. Causes of soil degradation and methods for soil conservation. Soil surface loss or degradation water erosion, wind erosion plant community composition and distribution relative to infiltration and runoff. The depth of soil lost from treatment c from this one storm event may take hundreds of years to replace, provided no further erosion occurs.
The term land degradation involves both soil and vegetation degradation. Soil degradation is, in itself, an indicator of land degradation. Land degradation reduces land productivity and increases the workload of managing the 42 land, affecting women disproportionally in some regions. Specific soil management practices are needed to protect and conserve the soil resources. Impact of physical soil and water conservation structure. Among the agents, water is considered as the main cause of soil erosion. Within such a fiamework greater emphasis should be given to ecological approaches to managing soil erosion and land degradation pmblems.
In this guide, we look at what land degradation is including the sub land and soil issues it encompasses, along with the causes, the effectsimpacts, and the potential. Globally, soil erosion, chemical deterioration and physical degradation are the important parts amongst various types of soil degradation. Some agricultural practices such as continuous cropping with limited supply of organic amendments. Soil quality indicators are properties that change in response to management, climate, or both and reflect the current functional stamaintaining soil and site stability.
Environmental degradation and disaster management social science notes is the nonliving, known as abiotic which includes such items as sunlight, soil, air, water, land, climate etc. In the last two decades, various soil and water conservation interventions had been introduced in to different parts of ethiopia. Soil degradation refers to negative changes in the physical, chemical, and biological properties of the soil, whereas vegetation degradation is the reduction in the number of species and the vegetational composition. The main causes of degradation due to directindirect human intervention are deforestation and removal of natural vegetation, overgrazing, converting forests to. Soils are the base of life, thus a sustainable soil. Soil compaction can be a serious form of soil degradation. Identify sources of contamination and explain how they result in soil degradation. Enhancing crop yields in the developing countries through restoration of the soil organic carbon pool in agricultural lands r. Meanwhile, soil erosion was becoming recognized as a serious problem in many countries and largescale soil conservation programs were launched in africa and, a few years later, in australia. The change in the characteristic and quality of soil which adversely affect its fertility is called as degradation.
To improve the structure of the soil by better farming methods e. Principles of soil conservation and management is a welldesigned, practically oriented book addressing many of the contemporary soil resource issues facing land managers in the united states and throughout the world. Other significant causes are soil acidity, soil salinity and waterlogging. Erosion, compaction, and contamination hard ground makes too great resistance, as air makes too little resistance, to the surfaces of roots. Retrogression is primarily due to soil erosion and corresponds to a phenomenon where succession reverts the land to its natural physical state. Major cause of soil degradation is water erosion which affects 14% area of the state. Land degradation and sustainable land management practices. In particular, the authors suggest that emphasis in targeted public interventions should not be limited to highcost and laboritensive physical structures but should also include soil cover management and promoting altemative supplies of fuel and fodder. Augustine trinidad and tobago gaius eudoxie soil resources, degradation, conservation and management. The health of soil is a primary concern to farmers and the global community whose livelihoods depend on well managed agriculture that starts with the dirt beneath our feet. These filtering, buffering and transformation capacities are however limited and vary according to specific soil conditions. This study suggests management options for each land degradation type.
Explain how construction can result in soil degradation. Sustainable forest management efforts and reforestation schemes are key. Soil and land degradation are interrelated issues and often come up in the same context. The soil moisture neutron probe in conjunction with.
Read this article to learn about the meaning, factors responsible, prevention and control measures of land degradation. Soil degradation is a critical and growing global problem, with implications for a number of key policy areas, including food security, climate change, flood risk management, drought tolerance, drinking water quality, agricultural resilience in the face of new crop diseases, biodiversity and future genetic. Soil degradation, therefore, poses a threat to food security, as it reduces yield, forces farmers to use more inputs, and may eventually lead to soil abandonment. Preserving the worlds land from soil degradation ific. Pdf soil erosion and management strategies researchgate.
Mar 02, 2020 land degradation is the blanket term usually used to describe a number of land and soil degradation issues such as soil contamination, soil erosion, desertification, and more. The debate about land degradation has largely been framed by soil scientists and ecolo gists, and has emphasized biophysical processes and land management techniques. Pdf soil degradation in west bengal is estimated to be occurring in 21,40000 hectares of land, covering about 25% of the total geographic. However, the performance of s oil and water conservation structures has not been well studied. However, degradation has led to most arable soils having already lost 40 to 60% of their organic carbon. Land degradation is a major concern in ethiopia since it leads to declining agricultural productivity, poverty and food insecurity. Soil degradation needs to be recognised alongside climate change as one of the most. Soil degradation includes erosion, salinization due to freshwater removal, soil loss following erosion after deforestation or overgrazing, compaction and crusting of soils, which can be caused by cattle trampling, and waterlogging with impaired water movement oldeman et al. Explain soil erosion and how it results in soil degradation. Poor soil quality affects their income and way of life. Soil degradation in west bengal is estimated to be occurring in 21,40,000 hectares of land, covering about 25% of the total geographic area of the state. In africa, depletion of soil nutrients and poor water management are the major limiting factors, not the lack of improved crop varieties. Management of agroforestry systems for enhancing resource use.
Where onsite damage is evident and directly traceable to erosion, it will often but far from always be profitable to control the erosion by changing management. Soil scientist department of food production, uwi, st. Soil degradation, restoration and management in a global change context, volume four in the advances in chemical pollution, environmental management and protection series, explores a wide breadth of emerging and stateoftheart technologies and provides the best practices to manage soils affected by degradation. Among the major soil degradation processes are accelerated erosion, depletion of the soil organic carbon soc pool and loss in biodiversity, loss of soil fertility and elemental imbalance, acidification and salinization. Ega tries to overcome the deficiencies of neoclassical theory in explaining the uneven growth of many developing countries as well. Soil conservation encyclopedia of life support systems. Soil loss from conventionally tilled land exceeds the rate of soil formation by 15 2 orders of magnitude medium confidence. The soil loss from this one event was 22 tonnes per hectare.
Soil degradation due to salinization, erosion, water logging etc. Soil degradation causes include agricultural, industrial, and commercial pollution. Soil degradation is the loss of lands production capacity in terms of loss of soil fertility, soil biodiversity, and degradation. Soil degradation is a consequence of intensive land use management, which is assumed to be caused by human impact, poverty, and a response to economic opportunities at the global level lambin et al. Causes and impacts of land degradation and desertification. Soil retrogression and degradation are two regressive evolution processes associated with the loss of equilibrium of a stable soil. Soil degradation is a critical and growing global problem, with implications for a number of key policy areas, including food security, climate change, flood risk management, drought tolerance, drinking water quality, agricultural resilience in the face of new crop diseases, biodiversity and future genetic resources. Soil degradation resulting in high rates of surface runoff, soil erosion, and. Soil degradation, characterized by decline in quality and decrease in. Soil degradation ann verdoodt academic year 20112012 compilation of course notes by prof.
These residues derive almost entirely from long term accumulation after repeated use of pesticides, etc. Go to our library catalogue and search for land management field manuals to view manuals available in your region. Soil health, along with water supply, is the most valuable resource for humans, as human life depends on the soils generosity. Soil degradation trends can be reversed by conversion to a restorative land use and adoption of recommended management. Restoring soil quality to mitigate soil degradation. Soil degradation is one of the crucial issues in mountainous areas of ethiopia which needs efforts to reduce it. The erodible material is almost devoid of organic matter and lacks in mineral plant nutrients.
Degradation is an evolution, different from natural evolution, related to the local climate and vegetation. Main agents of soil erosion are 1 water, 2 wind, 3 waves and 4 glaciers. Treatments a and b with higher cover levels had much less runoff, soil and nutrient loss. Usually land degrad ation is described in terms of the loss. Deforestation and inappropriate agricultural practices especially on. Soil erosion also results in the loss of fertile topsoil and reduces cropland productivity. Box 100 a1400 vienna, austria management of agroforestry systems for enhancing resource use efficiency and crop productivity iaea, vienna, 2008 iaeatecdoc1606. Land degradation in many pacific island countries pics has become an emerging concern in recent years. Instead, manual crushing of soil samples was applied here, using. Land degradation is a broader term referring to the decline of the entire ecosystems ability to provide goods and services. Compaction of soil is the compression of soil particles into.
Specific soil management practices are needed to protect and conserve. October 2010 agdex 5101 agricultural soil compaction. The cycling of carbon from trees or crops to soil was studied using natural variations in the c signatures of the soils and the different species. The soil integrates a variety of important processes involving vegetation growth, overland flow of water, infiltration, land use and land management. A third of earths soil is acutely degraded due to agriculture. In contrast, management activities that disturb soil and leave it bare can result in a rapid decline in soil organic matter, biological activity, and aggregate stability. Impact of physical soil and water conservation structure on. Soil conservation is fundamentally a matter of determining a correct form of land use and. Soil erosion management in colorado best practices. Soil management is an integral part of land management and may focus on differences in soil types and soil characteristics to define specific interventions that are aimed to enhance the soil quality for the land use selected. The greatest challenge for sustainable soil management. Evaluations made through assessment and monitoring provide information about the functional status of soil and rangeland. Preventing and managing erosion environment, land and water. Iv soil conservation david sanders encyclopedia of life support systems eolss symptom of bad land use and management.
Must reduce overland flow and increase infiltration. Soil degradation introduction 7 soil stores not only water, plant nutrients and gases, but can also immobilize or break down a multitude of pollutants, for example from waste disposal. As the clay content increases, so does the cec, resulting in a greater ability to hold nutrients. As a natural process, soil degradation can be enhanced or dampened by a variety of human activities such as inappropriate agricultural management, overgrazing, deforestation, etc. Technical report on soil degradation european commission. Endogenous new growth approach ega offer alternative perspective to those of the neoclassical growth ng theories. Preventing and managing erosion environment, land and.
Soil and water management and crop nutrition section international atomic energy agency wagramer strasse 5 p. The creation of op15 in 2003 formally operationalized the designation of land degradation as a focal area. Unesco eolss sample chapters land use, land cover and soil sciences vol. Land degradation is, usually, the result of complex interrelationships between biophysical and socioeconomic issues which affect many people and their land, specially in the tropics and developing countries. Soil degradation, restoration and management in a global. Specific interventions also exist to enhance the carbon content in. Soil physical, chemical and biological properties are affected due to alteration in hydraulic conductivity, bulk density, osmoderegulation. It can take thousands of years to form an inch of soil. Land degradation indicators and management options in the desert environment of abu dhabi, united arab emirates mahmoud ali abdelfattah currently, soil resources dep. In order to strike a balance between agricultural output and conservation, soil erosion control becomes very essential component. Sustainable land use can help to reduce the impacts of agriculture and livestock, preventing soil degradation and erosion and the loss of valuable land to desertification.
Effects of soil degradation and management practices on the surface. Land degradation indicators and management options in the. Soil degradation, restoration and management in a global change context, volume four in the advances in chemical pollution, environmental management and protection series, explores a wide breadth of emerging and state of theart technologies and provides the best practices to manage soils affected by degradation. Land degradation and sustainable land management practices in. With limited resources and poor access to inputs, management of soil. Soil degradation refers to negative changes in the physical. Use the link below to share a fulltext version of this article with your friends and colleagues. But, in the field, further variables are used as indicators of the occurrence of soil degradation. Although not as large a problem as some of the other types of soil degradation, the presence of chemical residues can be quite a problem on a local scale. Principles of soil conservation and management humberto.
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