Why do we need erosion

Erosion control blankets reduce the likelihood that erosion from land development will cause pollution and displace native species. In conservation work, erosion control also has particular benefits for shoreline preservation and stream restoration. Homeowners, businesses and municipal governments along a bank or coast often want to preserve the shoreline, both to protect the rich aquatic environment and to secure property and infrastructure against encroaching waters.

Many properties near shorelines install rip-rap — large rocks intended to hold soil in place. However, rip-rap has a few disadvantages. It is more expensive than vegetated alternatives, it is often less aesthetically appealing and it does not provide the habitat enhancements of vegetated solutions. Erosion control blankets are often much more practical and cost-effective.

Conservation efforts aimed at stream restoration often find erosion control blankets to be appealing options.

The blankets blend into the natural environment much more convincingly than other solutions like rip-rap. They also hold their shape much better than straw, which can blow away in heavy winds and pollute the streams it was designed to protect. To see the benefits of soil erosion control at your site, partner with East Coast Erosion Control. We offer a range of biodegradable and photodegradable erosion control blankets made of natural materials that will minimize erosion for a time — short-term , extended-term or with accelerated degradation — and then degrade naturally into the soil.

We can provide permanent blankets as well. Contact us today to learn more. When shoreline erosion occurs, significant problems arise for the environment and surrounding waterfront properties. In many applications like construction, vegetation removal leaves the landscape vulnerable to erosion, which washes…. Why Are We Essential Erosion control products are designed to protect drinking water nationwide.

Environmental Benefits of Erosion Control. What Is Erosion Control? Erosion control is helpful in all these areas. LEED principles and goals include green materials and resources, regional priority, sustainable sites and water efficiency. Effective erosion control helps companies meet these goals and gain LEED certification credits.

Why Is Erosion Control Important? They preserve the integrity of local ecosystems and maintain biodiversity. Regulatory compliance: For many projects and applications, local or federal regulations require erosion control. Compile a list of a few notable examples with your class. Then, ask your students how they believe each landscape was formed.

With younger students, look up the answers as a class. Here are key ways to prevent soil erosion to share with your learners:. Land is much stronger when plants add roots, nutrients, and coverage to protect it from rainfall and wind. If revegetating, consider choosing trees, shrubs, grasses, or other plants that are native to your area, that develop extensive roots, and cover the ground for the longest amount of time in a year.

Exercise — Geology, Science, Critical Thinking:. What kind of vegetation might be suitable to help control erosion in your community? What are methods that can help encourage the growth of new vegetation, especially along slopes?

If you have ever seen a sign advising you to stick to a trail, what did you think at the time compared to what you think about it now? Exercise — Civics, Science, Critical Thinking :. Are there any organizations you might support in your community, country, or nationwide that work to prevent or fix damage caused by erosion or deforestation? Do you know of any organizations working to vegetate critical areas? Are there any companies you could contact to ask them to take steps to lessen their contribution to soil erosion?

For inspiration, discover how these young environmentalists advocated for environmental improvements. Sustainable agriculture works in greater harmony with the environment. Generally, it values:. Exercise — Agriculture, Science, Critical Thinking :. Check out this great resource from the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future: Foodspan for lesson plans for high schoolers that cover important sustainable agriculture topics.

Lesson 6 is a particularly great resource and that can be adapted for younger learners. Discover what it looks like when farming nourishes natural ecosystems. Support sustainable farming by incorporating a few simple steps as you see fit:. Continued maintenance of these structures is critical. Something so small as a crack in a concrete drain can cause water to rush through it and cause a landslide. Some notable water containment or drainage structures include:.

Next time you see a parking lot, try predicting where water will drain during the next storm, or will it just pool? What are some other notable examples of human-made methods that minimize the impact of soil erosion in communities or farming? In some cases, human activities, especially farming and land clearing, leave soil vulnerable to erosion.

For example, when farmers till plow the soil before or after growing a season of crops, they may leave it exposed to the elements for weeks or months. The overgrazing of farm animals like cattle and sheep can also leave large areas of land devoid of ground-covering plants that would otherwise hold the soil in place. Another practice that has devastating consequences for soil health is deforestation, particularly clearcutting , a widespread practice of the industrial logging industry.

When trees are cleared away, the land is left exposed to wind and rain without the security of roots to prevent the soil from being swept away. Climate is also a major driver of erosion. Changes in rainfall and water levels can shift soil, extreme fluctuations in temperature can make topsoil more vulnerable to erosion, and prolonged droughts can prevent plants from growing, leaving soil further exposed. Soil erosion reduces the quantity and the quality of soil ecosystems and arable land land that can be used to grow crops.

Unmitigated, severe soil erosion can result in the loss of food crops, negatively impact community resiliency and livelihoods, and even alter ecosystems by reducing biodiversity above, within, and below the topsoil. Where does the soil go? According to agriculture researchers , about 60 percent of soil that is washed away ends up in rivers, streams and lakes, along with whatever has been applied to that soil, including agrochemicals and other pollutants that can contribute to harmful algal blooms and polluted waterways.

Dirt that enters water bodies can also clog their natural flow and increase flooding along the waterways. Water erosion occurs when rain or snowmelt displaces the soil on the ground. The more water flowing over the land, the more soil particles are moved or transported away. Land that has no vegetation—including farm fields that are left barren after crop harvest—are especially vulnerable to water erosion. Intense weather events heavy rains, flash floods, and rapid snowmelt can lead to more rapid soil erosion.

In the Midwest saw weeks of intense spring rainstorms that left large parts of the region under water and eroded the famously fertile landscape. A lot of farms are really badly impacted. For water to cause erosion and harm to farm fields, several factors come into play.

Damage is more likely to occur if a great deal of rainfall and water runoff flows over the land during storms. Other factors are the length and slope of a piece of land, which can affect the speed and strength of water runoff.

Vegetation—typical cropping as well as the strategic use of cover crops—can buffer the impact water has on a farm field. Land managers may also mitigate soil erosion through selective tillage practices. Typically, farmers till their soils to prepare fields for seed planting, control weeds, and retain moisture.

But decades of agricultural research has revealed that a less-is-more approach may be the best way to minimize soil erosion. In other words, reducing mechanical disturbance to farm fields may help preserve soil.

Water, though vital for life and agriculture, can be incredibly corrosive. Every raindrop splash has the potential to impact the structure of soil. Below are four common types of water erosion. Sheet erosion —the removal of soil in thin, uniform layers sheets by raindrop impact and shallow surface water flow. Sheet erosion can sometimes be difficult to detect unless the soil is deposited nearby or if the damage is already severe.

This erosion process removes the fine soil particles that contain most of the important nutrients and organic matter. Rill erosion —a type of erosion that results in small yet well-defined channels—typically smaller than gully erosion channels. After some time, rill erosion may fade away or, in more serious cases, be smoothed over with tilling.

Gully erosion —the washing away of soil through deep grooves or channels across unprotected land. Gully erosion can refer to soil being washed away through human-made drainage lines or describe the process of soil traveling through grooves created by hard rains. Farmers will typically fill these grooves back in with fresh soil as a temporary solution. As seen across the Midwest in , gully erosion can hinder the ability to plow fields and grow crops.

Bank erosion —the progressive undercutting, scouring, and slumping of natural rivers and streams as well as man-made drainage channels by the intense movement of water. When land managers remove vegetation or ranchers allow their livestock to overgraze the land near streams and riverbanks, it can exacerbate the problem. Bank erosion represents a serious threat to lands around the globe.

For example, the claylike soil of southwestern Bangladesh is particularly vulnerable to erosion during the rainy season.