Lulc maps of 19732015 were used to evaluate the impact of land use change on soil loss and sediment yield. In addition to erosion, soil quality is affected by other aspects of agriculture. With a high rate of population growth, subsistencebased rural economy, and increasingly intense rainfall. It encompasses physical soil erosion, chemical salinity and alkalinity, pollution and biological deterioration pollution and. Land degradation and livestock production in zimbabwes. This study aimed to estimate total amount of soil loss and sediment yield using rusle model within gis environment.
The literal translation of arable land is able to be ploughed. Farmers observations of land degradation processes support the quantitative data. Soil erosion is a common term that is often confused with soil degradation as a whole, but in fact refers only to absolute soil losses in terms of topsoil and nutrients. Land degradation and sustainable land management practices. Land degradation indicators and management options in the. In mexico land degradation is an important factor in mexicos national economy impacting 65% of the national land area. Land degradation, particularly soil erosion, is currently a major challenge for nepal. Projections 2020 indicate a significant increase in built up area, agricultural land and bareland and a decrease of grassland. But, in the field, further variables are used as indicators of the occurrence of soil degradation. The older agricultural areas of the northeast have long been particularly affected, but the highest soil erosion rates are currently being observed in the western parts of the high lands. Agricultural development and improvement plays a major role in the overall economic development of iran. Nearly 10 million hectares of arable land are lost to erosion and other forms of soil degradation every year 1 countries all over the world are battling with worrisome sight of deepening gullies crisscrossing the landscape and barren fields stripped of the fertile topsoil. Impact of soil conservation measures on erosion control.
Peat erosion the uk has around 15% of the worlds blanket peat, a unique ecosystem that covers around 8% of the uk land area, mainly in upland britain. The effects of soil erosion go beyond the loss of fertile land. First, the authors argue that past estimates have overestmated the impact of soil erosion and that new data and more reasonable assumptions suggest that tlis problem is more mangeable. Ethiopia is known for its historic agriculture, but also for the associated, widespread, and ongoing land degradation. Desertification has been defined as land degradation in arid, semiarid, and dry subhumid areas resulting from various factors, including climatic variations and human activities11. This publication summarises the lessons learnt from a faoiaea coordinated research project on the impact of soil conservation measures on erosion control and soil quality over a fiveyear period across a wide geographic area and range of environments. Onsite effects of accelerated soil erosion include decline in soil physical properties, loss of soil organic carbon and loss of plant nutrients and subsequently low crop productivity. An apparent contradiction emerges between the high observed levels of soil erosion and the lack of impact on livestock production, as measured by population density trends, cattle production parameters, cumulative stocking levels and extraction rates. These impacts include compaction, loss of soil structure, nutrient degradation, and soil salinity.
It is an insidious process removing the most productive soil layer first and able to cause decreasing productivity at hardly perceptible transport rates over longer periods of time. Soil physical damage is an increasingly serious problem for agriculture. An assessment of the global impact of 21st century land. Soil erosion, land degradation, tea productivity doi. According to global assessment of soil degradation glasod, deforestation is the main cause of soil erosion by wind in about 98% of the area. Soil erosion is a natural process in mountainous areas, but is often made much worse by poor management practices. Saharan africa ssa is of concern mainly because of its consequences for subsistence agriculture, from which about 75% of the population derives their livelihoods erkossa et al. Leaving unploughed land strips between ploughed ones, known as strip cropping, also help reduce erosion. This natural process is caused by the dynamic activity of erosive agents, that is, water, ice glaciers, snow, air wind, plants, animals, and humans. The present rate of land degradation is estimated at 5 to 7 million hectares per year, suggesting that 0. It has been estimated that due to desertification and. Because soil degradation contributes to land degradation, it also means that it creates a significant loss of arable land.
Land degradation, soil erosion and soil conservation pmf ias. The decline in quantity and quality of soil it includes erosion by wind and water biological degradation loss of humus physical degradation loss of structure, permeability, compaction chemical degradation reduced fertility, salinisation, changing ph, toxicity if degradation is so severe that land becomes unusable it is termed desertification. The impact of land use and land cover lulc dynamics on. Land degradation is a broader term referring to the decline of the entire ecosystems ability to provide goods and services.
Wind erosion can be caused by a light wind that rolls soil particles along the surface through to a strong wind that lifts a large volume of soil particles into the air to create dust storms. The central highlands of ethiopia are characterized as a region of high rates of land degradation and soil erosion. The most effective method to prevent erosion is to increase the vegetation cover on soil, thus preventing wind and water erosion. Chapter 7 economic consequences of land degradation. Two common factorssoil erosion and depletion of soil organic matter. Land degradation and ecosystem services uzh department of. Pdf land degradation, particularly soil erosion, is currently a major challenge for nepal. The contribution from the agricultural sector towards the gross national product and supply of food and fiber is substantial. Deforestation and inappropriate agricultural practices especially on sloping lands often lead to soil erosion, a key process leading to land degradation. Deforestation causes fast degradation when the soil is steep sloppy or easily erodible. In lieu of an abstract, this is an excerpt from the first page. While data is not precise, it is estimated that losses of nutrients and productivity in agricultural and grazing areas costs over. This is indeed the most visible effect of soil degradation, but does not cover all of its aspects.
Assessment of land degradation by erosion soil loss by water, e. In the case of soil erosion, some of the effects may appear to be reversible, through checking further erosion by soil conservation programmes and restoring lost nutrients and organic master. Soil degradation is a narrower term, and one form of land degradation, for declining soil quality, encompassing the deterioration in. Soil erosion is the displacement of the upper layer of soil, it is one form of soil degradation. Download product flyer is to download pdf in new tab. Prevention and remediation of soil erosion and degradation. Land degradation soil degradation is the decline in soil quality caused by its improper use, usually for agricultural, pastoral, industrial or urban purposes. Causes and impacts of land degradation and desertification. Land degradation is the major consequences of direct interference of human activities in the natural phenomenon. In turn, unsustainable land use is driving land degradation.
Soil erosion removes the most fertile soil layer pan and wen, 2014, which not only leads to the land degradation and fertility loss, but also influences the associated biogeochemical cycles, such as the siltation and eutrophication of water. The causes of land degradation in this category will require. Pdf on apr 9, 2014, velibor spalevic and others published land degradation, land use and soil erosion. Land degradation food and agriculture organization of the united. Land degradation by soil erosion is still one of the most severe environmental issues of our time.
Enhancement description implement a crop rotation management system on crop land acres that have recently converted from crp grasslegume conservation cover to annual planted crops. Soil erosion and land degradation have been a severe problem in the ethiopian highlands due to dense population, high livestock density and intensive crop production in. Ihe result is a dastic revision of previous land degrdation cost estimates in two respects. Just as soil erosion is a component of soil degradation, soil degradation is a component of land degradation. Overgrazing and poor farming techniques can also lead to soil erosion, but it is important to remember that not all causes are human. It is viewed as any change or disturbance to the land perceived to be deleterious or undesirable.
Accelerated waterrelated soil erosion has become a major threat to societys wellbeing, raising numerous environmental problems. In this report, land degradation is defined as a negative trend 4 in land condition, caused by direct or indirect humaninduced processes including anthropogenic. Category i erosion and sedimentation, salts and alkali, organic waste and infectious organiems. Desertification, land degradation and sustainability wiley. The soil integrates a variety of important processes involving vegetation growth, overland flow of water, infiltration, land use and land management. Soil degradation is, in itself, an indicator of land degradation. Soil degradation a major threat to humanity summary. Unlike previous studies that dealt with soil erosion as a static process, here we shed light on the impacts of 21st century global land use change on soil erosion. While wind erosion is most common in deserts and coastal sand dunes and beaches, certain land conditions will cause wind erosion in agricultural areas. View soil erosion and land degradation research papers on academia.
Land degradation is a process in which the value of the biophysical environment is affected by a combination of humaninduced processes acting upon the land. Free abstract download pdf soil surface texture and vegetative cover as a function of aeolian particulate matter generated in the jornada basin of new mexico authors. Destruction of natural vegetation cover is a major factor responsible for erosion of soils by water and wind. The world is losing 10 ha of arable land each minute5 ha to soil erosion, 3 ha from salinity, and 2 ha by. Preserving the worlds land from soil degradation ific. Soil degradation is a serious global environmental problem and may be exacerbated by climate change.
Sivakumaran sivaramanan at central environmental authority sri. Land degradation as the land use section earlier in this chapter shows, demands on the land for economic development and pressures from a burgeoning population are leading to unprecedented land use change. The result is a loss of land productivity with impacts on livelihoods and the. Soil degradation is the loss of land s production capacity in terms of loss of soil fertility, soil biodiversity, and degradation. Change pathway and intersection of rainfall, soil, and. Where land has been lost by gullying, or severe sheet erosion has removed the soil clown to a gravelly residue, degradation is clearly irreversible. Soil and land degradation are interrelated issues and often come up in the same context. Soil erosion and degradation in northern thai uplands. Soil degradation causes include agricultural, industrial, and commercial pollution. About 40% of the worlds agricultural land is lost on the account of soil quality depreciation caused by agrochemicals and soil erosion. More land is cleared and less left fallow, which can deplete the soil and increase water runoff. Peatlands are important repositories of carbon, biodiversity, and. The human dimension of land degradation and forest degradation.
Land use and cover change, soil erosion, remote sensing, gis, narok county. Soil erosion is one of the most serious environmental and public health problems facing. Glasod is a map of perceptions, not a measure, of land degradation. Pdf soil degradation is one of the major global threats. This erosion is the dominant form of soil degradation. Read this article to learn about the meaning, factors responsible, prevention and control measures of land degradation.
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