By: Althea Taylor

What is Soil erosion Soil erosion is defined as the removal of topsoil faster than the soil forming processes can replace it, due to natural, animal, and human activity.

Types of Soil Erosion Rain drop or splash erosion: Erosion preceded by the destruction of the crumb structure due to the impact of falling raindrop on the surface of soil is termed as splash erosion. Sheet erosion: It is the fairly uniform removal of soil in thin layers from the land surface, often scarcely perceptible, especially when caused by wind. Areas where loose, shallow topsoil overlies compact soil are most susceptible to sheet erosion.

Continues Rill erosion: A form of water erosion in which numerous very small and more or less straight channels are produced; the channels get obliterated by ordinary use. It can be removed by normal tillage operations. Stream bank erosion: Stream banks are eroded by water either flowing over the sides of a stream or scouring at the base. It is aggravated by removal of vegetation, over grazing or cultivation near the stream banks.

Causes of soil erosion Agricultural practices: Tilled farmland such as this is very susceptible to erosion from rainfall, due to the destruction of vegetative cover and the loosening of the soil during ploughing. Deforestation: In this clearcut, almost all of the vegetation has been stripped from surface of steep slopes, in an area with very heavy rains. Severe erosion occurs in cases such as this.

Causes Climate change: The warmer atmospheric temperatures observed over the past decades are expected to lead to a more vigorous hydrological cycle, including more extreme rainfall events. Urbanization: major effects on erosion processes, it denudes the land of vegetative cover, altering drainage patterns, and compacting the soil during construction in urban areas.

Effect of Soil Erosion Land degradation: Water and wind erosion are now the two primary causes of land degradation; combined, they are responsible for 84% of degraded acreage. Sedimentation of aquatic ecosystems Soil erosion (especially from agricultural activity) is considered to be the leading global cause of diffuse water pollution, due to the effects of the excess sediments flowing into the world's waterways.

Continue Airborne dust pollution. Soil particles picked up during wind erosion are a major source of air pollution, in the form of airborne particulates—"dust". These airborne soil particles are often contaminated with toxic chemicals such as pesticides or petroleum fuels.

Soil erosion in Jamaica

How to Reduce Soil Erosion Increase vegetative cover on the land, which helps prevent both wind and water erosion. Terracing an extremely effective means of erosion control, which has been practiced for thousands of years by people all over the world. Windbreaks these are rows of trees and shrubs that are planted along the edges of agricultural fields, to shield the fields against winds