1. What is water Erosion.

2. Definition:
Erosion is the action of exogenic processes (such as water flow or wind) which remove soil and rock from one location on the Earth's crust, then transport it to another location where it is deposited.

3. Information: Mass wasting can happen two ways:
Water erosion is the detachment and removal of the soil material. The process of water erosion can be natural or can be caused by human activity. The rate of erosion may be very slow but very rapid all depending on the soil of the local landscape and also the weather conditions of the local landscapes. Rocks or dirt don't just disappear. The masses of dirt and rock are moved from one place to another place and also change form. It is called mass wasting. The wasting is said to be the loss of matter in any place.
Mass wasting can happen two ways:
1) mechanical, similar to breaking a rock with a hammer; and
2) chemical, similar to pouring acid on a rock to dissolve it.

4. Why is erosion a concern?
The loss of the topsoil of land will cause a change of the capacity of the soil which helps it to function and it also restricts its ability to sustain future uses. Erosion removes or redistributes the topsoil, it is said to be the layer of soil with the greatest amount of organic matter, biological activity, and nutrients. The ability for a plants community to recover after the topsoil has been lost is said to be restricted. Erosion breaks down the soil structure which exposes the organic matter from within the soil and aggregates to decomposition and loss. Degraded soil structure reduces the rate of water infiltration. The erosion of nutrient-rich topsoil can cause a shift to less desirable plants, such as from grass to shrub species. In this process, soil organic matter and nutrients are eroded from one area and then contributed to the resource accumulation in another, such as the areas around shrubs.

5. What causes water erosion?
Erosion is caused by the impact of raindrops on the bare soil and it is also caused by the power of running water on the surface of the soil. Accelerated erosion occurs when the plant cover is depleted, the spaces between plants becomes larger, and the soil structure is degraded by excessive disturbance or reduced inputs of organic matter. Compaction increases the runoff and also the risk of accelerated erosion. Runoff concentrated by poorly designed or poorly maintained roads and trails can cause erosion to accelerate on the adjacent slopes and in roadbeds. Each specific soil has its own natural erosion rate. A sandy or clayey texture is generally less erodible than loam or silt loam. Sandy soils that are formed in material weathered from decomposed granitic rock however, are highly erodible. The amount of runoff and the power of water to erode and transport the soil are greater on long and steep slopes. Bare soil between plants is the most susceptible to erosion.

6. Visual indicators for past erosion are:
The visual indicators used to identify past erosion include:
Bare soil.
Pedestaled plants or rocks.
Exposed roots.
An increase in the number and connectivity of water flow.
Patterns between plants.
Soil deposition at slope changes.
Changes in the thickness of topsoil.
Exposure of subsoil at the surface.
Rills, head cutting, and/or down cutting in gullies.
Sediment in streams, lakes, and reservoirs.
Reduced plant growth.
The following indicators can be used to predict where the accelerated erosion is likely to occur in the area in the future:
an increase in the amount of bare ground or in the size or connectivity of bare patches,
reduced soil aggregate and soil surface stability, and
Reduced water infiltration.