Soil creation & conservation Created by Lynne Fenley for Indian Creek Elementary

Rock Formation to Soil Creation New rock (basalt) forming in Hawaii. Wave action from the ocean breaks down this cliff into smaller and smaller rocks, eventually creating over hundreds of years….black sand!

Rock Formation to Soil Creation Granite mountains in the Sierra Nevada are eroded by wind and rain and rivers, breaking stone down smaller and smaller and changing chemical composition to create…tan sand at the beach in Los Angeles! This process can take thousands and millions of years.

Life Cycle of a Sand Particle Rock (granite) is formed by mountain building (plate convergence) and eroded by wind, rain, snow melt Water (river) erodes granite and carries sediment toward the coast River slows down, depositing large to small cobbles, but sand gets carried further toward the coast River slows down more, depositing smaller particles (sand and clay) in the flood plain and at the coast

Soil – What is it? Sand Soil What is the difference?

Soil – Degraded rock + organic matter Plants break down into organic matter and mix with degraded rock (sand) forming rich soil in which we can grow food!

Conservation of Soil Soil contains nutrients from the broken down rock and plant matter that allow food to grow Soil can run out of these nutrients…and no longer be able to support food production Soil takes thousands of years to create and is a finite resource How many years does it take to create soil? Thousands of years So if we use it all up, how long would it take to replace it? Thousands of years So that is a problem!

What can you do? Conserve water! Our rivers and streams break down rock and help create soil When we use water at home, we are using water from streams and rivers Does water play a key role in creating soil? And if the rivers and streams dry up, then how will soil be created?