Agriculture’s enemy is soil erosion: a significant environmental challenge to health and

production with knock-on impacts on the climate crisis and food security. Soil erodes faster than it is
developed, causing land to become unsuitable for agriculture – an especially serious problem in a world
where by mid-century the population is projected to exceed 9 billion. Intelligent land management is a
must (Sulaeman and Westhoff, 2020, para. 1).

The most successful way to mitigate erosion is to ensure a permanent surface layer on the
surface of the land, such as trees, pasture or meadow. However, soils in pasture fields and croplands
have less potential to hold up and are more vulnerable to erosion relative to original forest soils. These
soils are also less able to absorb water, which causes flooding (and its economic, social, and
environmental impacts). Duncan Cameron (2020) provides causes of soil erosion (para. 5).

Causes of Soil Erosion:

1. Deforestation for Agriculture

 The ever-increasing demand for commodities such as coffee, soybean, palm oil or wheat
from a rising population is clearing land for agriculture. Unfortunately, clearing and
replacing autochthonous trees with new tree crops that don't necessarily hold onto the
land increases the risk of soil erosion. As topsoil (the most nutrient-rich component of
the soil) is lost over time, agriculture is put in place.
2. Agrochemicals Cause Soil Erosion and Degradation
 A very popular way of helping farmers to increase their yields is to use chemicals in the
form of pesticides and fertilizers (often) on monocultural crops. But improper use of
phosphoric chemicals ends up creating an imbalance in soil moisture of microorganisms,
promoting the development of harmful bacteria. As the soil gets degraded, the risk of
erosion increases and the sediments sweep (via the actions of water and wind) into
rivers and nearby regions, possibly contaminating nearby ecosystems.
3. Soil Erosion is Also Caused by Overgrazing, Which Causes Floods too
 Intensive cattle raising triggers overgrazing. Since plants do not have the time of
recovery they need, they end up being crushed and compacted by the cattle. In this
phase, sediments from the topsoil are transported elsewhere. As for the remaining soil,
 its penetration potential can be lost, which means that more water is lost from the
environment and it is more difficult for new plants to grow.
4. Construction and Recreational Activities
 It is also their duty to set up buildings and roads when it comes to soil erosion, as they
do not enable natural water movement. Rather, it runs off to flood surrounding areas,
accelerating erosion in these areas. In addition, motor-based activities such as
motocross also have the potential for habitat disruption and soil erosion.

5. Climate Change
 According to Moore, climate change is also a significant contributor to the loss of land.
Growing global temperatures cause more vigorous hydrological cycles, resulting in
increased rainfall and more severe, frequent storms. The result is that increased rainfall
events wash away more topsoil.

Soil erosion, since it can contribute to water contamination, is a big environmental problem. But
did you know soil erosion can also seriously affect crop productivity? The potential for soil erosion is
increased by most farming activities, especially on sloping landscapes. When soil erosion is severe, soil
erodes faster than it can be renewed.

The loss of 1 inch per acre of topsoil for most areas of Iowa represents approximately 167 tons
per acre, and it takes approximately 30 years to grow 1 inch of soil with properties typical of topsoil.
Therefore, most Iowa soils (those with deep rooting potential, formed from permeable parent materials
with favorable soil characteristics) will experience soil removal rates of 2 to 5 tons per acre per year.

Even the minimal soil erosion in other soils can be detrimental to productivity. Erosion certainly
affects soils with low rooting depth capacity, slowly permeable subsoils, and weak soil structure, or
those that are shallow to rocky or coarse sands and gravels. No amount of management will make up for
the lack of adequate soil content.

How can I help farmers save their money from using fertilizers?

I can share to them about some research, ideas, and information about the alternative fertilizers
that they can use which costs cheaper. It will be a big help to have better fertilizer use by farmers saves
money and the environment. Also, reduce, reuse and recycle is important, this is a very effective way to
save money. For three main ingredients — phosphorus, potassium, and nitrogen — farmers use
fertilizers. Farms in this region are rarely devoid of these two nutrients because phosphorus and
potassium stick to Long Island soil. However, nitrogen is an aspect that local farmers have to worry
about, and many ends up spending time and money to ensure there is no shortage of their crops. There
are alternative that we can use for fertilizers that cost cheaper price which will help the farmers to save
money. Research is just beginning to emerge that suggests farmers can use less fertilizer if they use
enhanced products. If they are widely adopted, the higher-priced enhanced quality fertilizers already on
the market can minimize nitrous oxide emissions from the agricultural community. These include slow-
release urea fertilizers that have a protective coating to regulate the release of nitrogen, allowing the
plant more time for absorption. The subsequent conversion to gas also helps to resist nitrification and
urease inhibitors. And other so-called "smart fertilizers," largely still under development, have a coating
that reacts to plant signals, only releasing nitrogen when the plant needs it. There are also homemade
fertilizers are made from recycled, organic materials that will help farmers save money like the banana
peel fertilizer. Instead of getting shipped off to a landfill or dumped down the drain, these materials are
prepared in a way that makes their nutrients available to plants quickly and easily. These are the
important things that we need to share to our farmers and we also need to help our farmers because
the food we eat every day comes from them.

References:

Dede Sulaeman and Thomas Westhoff. (2020, February 7). The Causes and Effects of Soil Erosion, and
How to Prevent It [Blog post]. Retrieved from
https://www.wri.org/blog/2020/01/causes-effects-how-to-prevent-soil-erosion

Duncan Cameron. (2020, July 21). Soil Erosion and Degradation: Simple Definition, Causes,
Consequences. Retrieved from
https://youmatter.world/en/definition/soil-erosion-degradation-definition/

Moore. (2020, April 7). What Causes Soil Erosion? Retrieved from
https://www.azolifesciences.com/article/What-Causes-Soil-Erosion.aspx

Mahdi Al-Kaisi. (2002, August 19). Soil erosion: effect on soil productivity. Retrieved from
https://crops.extension.iastate.edu/encyclopedia/soil-erosion-effect-soil-productivity

Boonie Allen. (2019, July 30). 'Win-win': Better fertilizer use by farmers saves money and the
environment. Retrieved from
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/green-farms-fertilizer-environment-crops-farming-
1.5224089