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Science
First Semester
Give ways of conserving and
protecting the soil for future use
(S11ES-1h-18)

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wikihow.com%2FConserve-
Soil&psig=AOvVaw1jf90I7p_QvllUaGpDQl50&ust=1594805481102000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAMQjB1qFwoTCLib9Mq3zOoCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

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Science– Grade 11
1st Semester – Module: Give ways of conserving and protecting the soil for
future use

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Regional Director: Gilbert T. Sadsad

Assistant Regional Director: Jessie L. Amin

Development Team of the Module

Writer: Elmo Q. Aramburo, Jr.

Editors: Manuel F. Teodoro, Emily Esmabe, Helen Cornelio, Andres J. Villasis, Jr.

Reviewers: Chozara P. Duroy, Manuel F. Teodoro, Emily Esmabe, Helen Cornelio

Illustrator:

Layout Artist:

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 Give ways of conserving and
protecting the soil for future use
(S11ES-1h-18)

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 Supplementary Learning Module for Senior High School Learners

LESSON
Ways of conserving and protecting soil for future use.

Soil is especially vulnerable to erosion if it is bare

or exposed. Plants therefore serve a tremendous
role in preventing soil erosion. If the soil is covered with
plants, erosion is slowed down. But when
soil is bare, the rate of erosion speeds up tremendously.
Here are some ways of conserving and protecting soil for
future use.
.

Getting to know the different ways of conserving

and protecting soil for future use? Do you want to
acquire this knowledge? Read on and perform the
activities prepared for you in this module.
At the end of the module, you should be able to:

 Give ways of conserving and

protecting the soil for future use
.

Directions: Identify which source of erosion matches

the prevention and strategies given in each situation;
choose your answer in the box provided.

Agricultural Depletion Overgrazing animals

Deforestation and Mining
Development and Expansion Recreational activities

_____________1. Plant tall trees around fields to buffer the effects of wind.
_____________2. Reduce the amount of lands that we log and mine

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_____________ 3. Keep fields as flat as possible to avoid soil eroding downhill.
_____________4. Avoid building on steep hills
_____________5. Drive tractors as little as possible
_____________6. Keep animals away from stream banks, where hills are especially
prone to erosion
_____________7. Leave leaf litter on the ground
_____________8. Avoid of off-road vehicles on hilly lands
_____________9. Keep as much “green space” in cities possible, such as strips of
trees where plants can grow.
_____________ 10. Stay on designated trails

Hi! How did you find the test?

Please check your answers at the answer key section and
see how you did. Don’t worry if you got a low score, this
just means that there are more things that you can learn
from this module. So, hop on!

List down all human activities that may affect the quality
and quantity of soil and suggest ways how to conserve it.

1. _____________________ ___________________________

2. _____________________ ___________________________

3. _____________________ ___________________________

4. _____________________ ___________________________

5. _____________________ ___________________________

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Can we conserve and protect soil?

What are the ways of conserving and protecting the soil for future use?

Activity 1
“Earth Keeper”

Fill in the blanks. Hand out the table below and suggest or give ways of conserving and
protecting soil, matches the human activities given on the left column.

Human Activities Strategies on Prevention

Agricultural Depletion
1.

2.

Overgrazing animal 1.

2.

Deforestation and Mining

1.

2.

1.
Development and Expansion
2.

1.
Recreational activities
2.

Guide Questions:

1. How soil can be conserved and protected for future generations?

_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
______

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 Soil is especially vulnerable to erosion if it is bare or exposed. Plants therefore serve
a tremendous role in preventing soil erosion. If the soil is covered with plants, erosion is
slowed down. But when soil is bare, the rate of erosion speeds up tremendously. Here are
some human activities that leave the soil exposed and speed up erosion. We speed up
erosion through the following actions.

1. Agricultural Depletion - Farming can degrade the topsoil and lead to an increase in
erosion. To plant a field, a farmer must first till the soil, breaking it up and loosening it so the
new plants can take root. Once the plants are harvested, the loose soil remains and wind or
rain can easily wash it away. In the 1930s, much of the American plains suffered greatly
from erosion due to non-sustainable farming practices, creating the Dust Bowl and leading to
widespread poverty and migration to the west coast. Planting cover crops in the fall can help

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maintain the soil through the winter months, reducing the amount of erosion. In addition,
rotating the crops planted can help return nutrients to the soil to prevent its degradation.

2. Overgrazing Animals - Grazing animals are animals that live on large areas of
grassland. They wander over the area and eat grasses and shrubs. They can remove large
amounts of the plant cover for an area. If too many animals graze the same land area, once
the tips of grasses and shrubs have been eaten, they will use their hooves to pull plants out
by their roots.

3. Deforestation - Deforestation is another practice that can greatly increase the rate of
erosion in a region. One of the most important barriers to erosion is plant life, as long-lived
trees and other species put down roots that literally help hold the soil together. Logging kills
these plants, and even if the operation plants new trees to replace the old ones, the younger
plants require years to put down the kind of root system that once protected the soil. Timber
companies utilize a variety of different techniques, such as partial clearing and replanting, to
prevent soil degradation and erosion in their work zones.

4. Mining- Mining operations are major contributors to erosion, especially on a local level.
Many mining techniques involve shifting large amounts of earth, such as strip mining or
mountaintop removal. These operations leave large amounts of loose soil exposed to the
elements, and they often require large amounts of water, which can exacerbate the erosion
process. Even once the mining operation is completed and the company replaces the earth,
it lacks the established vegetation that helped it maintain its coherency before removal, and
until plants can re-establish themselves, erosion will continue to be a problem.

5. Development and Expansion - Urban and suburban development can also exacerbate
erosion, especially if the developers ignore the natural state of the land. Construction of a
building often begins by clearing the area of any plants or other natural defenses against soil
erosion. In addition, some landscapers replace natural ground cover with plant species
unsuited to the climate, and these plants may not be as effective at preventing erosion.

6. Recreational activities- like driving vehicles off-road or hiking - Humans also cause
erosion through recreational activities, like hiking and riding off-road vehicles. An even
greater amount of erosion occurs when people drive off-road vehicles over an area. The
area eventually develops bare spots where no plants can grow. Erosion becomes a serious
problem in these areas.

Make a plan that the community may use to conserve and protect its resources for future
generations.

OBJECTIVE ACTIVITIES TIME FRAME PERSONS RESOURCES

INVOLVED NEEDED

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 Congratulations on finishing the supplementary
learning module! You have just had an amazing
learning journey and for sure, you will have the same in
the succeeding modules.
This time, share to the class your final insights
by completing the following sentence prompts.
,

To strengthen what you have learned in this module, perform the following additional
tasks.
1. Make a collage, slogan or poster on the ways of conserving and protecting soil for
future use.

The following terms used in this module are defined as

follows:

1. Conservation- prevention of wasteful use of a resources

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2. Protect- aim to preserve

Directions: Fill in the blanks. Hand out the table below and
suggest or give ways of conserving and protecting soil,
matches the human activities given on the left column.

Human Activities Strategies on Prevention

Agricultural Depletion

Overgrazing animal

Deforestation and Mining

Development and Expansion

Recreational activities

TRY THIS
1. Agricultural depletion
2. Deforestation and Mining
3. Agricultural depletion
4. Development and Expansion
5. Agricultural depletion
6.Overgrazing Animals
7. Agricultural depletion
8. Recreational Activities
9. Development and Expansion
10. Recreational Activities

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ASSESS WHAT YOU HAVE LEARNED
Refer to this table

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wikihow.com%2FConse
rve-
Soil&psig=AOvVaw1jf90I7p_QvllUaGpDQl50&ust=1594805481102000&source=images
&cd=vfe&ved=0CAMQjB1qFwoTCLib9Mq3zOoCFQAAAAAdAAAAABA
Textbook:
(1) Carlson, D.H., Carlson, Plummer, C.C., and Hammersley, L., 2011.

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Physical Geology: Earth Revealed. McGraw-Hill. 645 p.
(2) Desonie, D., 2015. CK-12 Earth Science High School . http://
www.ck12.org/earth-science/
(3) Junine, J.I., 2013. Earth Evolution of a Habitable World. Second
Edition. Cambridge University Press. 304 p.
(4) Kirkland, K. 2010. Earth Science: notable research and discoveries.
Facts on File, Inc., 212 p.
(5) Lutgens, F.K., Tarbuck, E.J. and Tassa, D., 2013. Essentials of Geology.
11th Edition. Pearson Prentice Hall, 554 p.
(6) Tarbuck, E.J. and Lutgens, F.K., 2008. Earth – An Introduction to
Physical Geology. 9th Edition Pearson Prentice Hall, 703 p.

Internet resource:
(1) http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/main/soils/edu/

Video Link
(1) http://study.com/academy/lesson/soil-erosion-effects-prevention.html

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