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One of Mother Nature’s most incredible gifts is topsoil. It is easy however to forget the importance of topsoil. It is safe to say that without topsoil the world would be in trouble because it would do irreversible damage to ecosystems and to all living creatures. In much the same way that the scientists predict that nuclear war would block out the sun for many years putting an end to live as we know it on Earth, if topsoil disappeared, we could expect the same fate.
It is a scary fact then that topsoil is eroding at an incredibly fast rate. Some scientific reports have estimated that topsoil on Earth could be completely eradicated within 60 years time without massive changes to help prevent this from happening.
farming practices that are intensive have been accused of being the primary reason for global topsoil erosion. The over use of ploughing and topsoil turning have been the main contributory factors associated with topsoil erosion. This practice can encourage the breakdown of the organic matter within the topsoil that holds it together. If the topsoil no longer contains the required amount of organic content then it’s likely to be washed away with the rains and blown away with the winds.
Large industrial sized farms have been proved to be the main culprit of topsoil erosion by scientific studies. However, for the industry to change it must still take into account the requirements for farming to provide enough food to feed the world. Experts on the world of farming methods are recommending the uptake of ‘No Till’ farming which avoids the heavy use of ploughing and topsoil turning.
‘No Till’ prevents excessive topsoil agitation at all times. by leaving in stubble from previous harvests, the topsoil is allowed to benefit from the additional organic matter that this practice provides. This additional organic matter and more gentle handling of the soil then helps to prevent the erosion of the topsoil from wind and rain.
One worry however with the ‘No Till’ method of farming is the lower yield from crops. A balance needs to be found quickly however, otherwise we may be ruing the day that as a world population, we did nothing to protect one of our most essential resources.
Related articles
- What is Soil Erosion? (brighthub.com)
- Researchers discover potential solutions to New England roadside erosion (scienceblog.com)
- What is the concept of sustainable farming? (greenanswers.com)
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