1. Soil Erosion

2. What is soil erosion? A natural process of soil moving from one place to another.

3. Why is erosion a problem? Removes valuable resource. Pollutes water and waterways.

4. Types of soil erosion Splash –Raindrops dislodging and detaching soil. –Destroys granulation.

5. Types of soil erosion Sheet –The removal of soil from the surface of an area in thin layers. –Occurs on smooth surfaces. –Slow (often goes unnoticed).

6. Types of soil erosion Rill –The formation of many shallow trenches by the movement of water.

7. Types of soil erosion Gully –A process where water accumulates in narrow channels and removes the soil from these narrow areas (leaving gullies).

8. What can we do to prevent soil erosion? There are 6 major practices to prevent soil erosion: –No-Till –Contour Strip Cropping –Terraces –Field Windbreak –Cover Crop –Grass Waterway

9. No-Till A planting method which the field is left almost undisturbed. Plant materials are left on top of the soil, rather than tilled in.

10. Contour Strip Cropping Growing crops that require different types of tillage in alternating strips along a contour. Slows water runoff. Used to conserve soil and water. Can reduce soil erosion by as much as 50%.

11. Terraces Earth structure built across the slope to hold water.

12. Field Windbreak A strip of trees or shrubs planted to reduce wind erosion and trap blowing snow.

13. Cover Crop Green plants plowed under for the purpose of building soil (AKA green manure).

14. Grass Waterway Strips of land permanently seeded to grass. Controls water runoff from sloping land. Best results when used with strip cropping.

15. Diversion