Soil Conservation

The goal of soil conservation is to stop the degradation of the soil’s topmost layer due to erosion or to stop the soil from becoming less fertile due to overuse, acidification, salinisation, or from other chemical soil pollution.

The topic has a very high chance of being asked as a UPSC Prelims Environment and Ecology Question or as a Current Affairs Question due to global efforts on conserving soil.

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Soil Conservation UPSC Notes PDF –Download PDF Here

About Soil Conservation

Some of the less developed parts of the world employ slash-and-burn agriculture as well as other unsustainable subsistence farming techniques. Massive erosion, depletion of soil nutrients, and occasionally complete desertification are common effects of deforestation. Crop rotation, cover crops, conservation tillage, and installed windbreaks are methods for better soil conservation that have an impact on both erosions as well as fertility. Plants that die decompose and mix with the soil. For thousands of years, farmers have conserved their soil. In order to adequately address soil conservation in Europe, programmes like the Common Agricultural Policy focus on the adoption of best management practices including reduced tillage, winter cover crops, plant residues, as well as grass margins. To address the erosion issue, additional political and economic action is necessary. The way we value the land is a straightforward governance obstacle that can be overcome by cultural adaptation. As a carbon sink, soil carbon helps to slow down global warming.

Various Soil Conservation Methods

Contour Ploughing

With contour ploughing, furrows are oriented to follow the contour lines of the farmland. Runoff is decreased because furrows shift to the left and right to keep a steady altitude. For slopes from two to ten per cent, the ancient Phoenicians used contour ploughing. Crop yields can rise by 10% to 50% with contour ploughing, in part due to better soil retention.

Terrace Farming

Creating almost level spaces on a hillside is a procedure known as terracing. The terraces are like a succession of steps, each one taller than the one before it. Other soil barriers shield terraces from erosion. Small farms tend to use terraced farming more frequently.

Keyline Design

The improvement of contour farming known as keyline design involves creating contour lines while taking into account all of the characteristics of the watershed.

Perimeter Runoff Control

By obstructing surface flows, ground cover, trees, and shrubs are efficient perimeter treatments for preventing soil erosion. The usage of a “grass path,” which both channels and scatters runoff via surface friction, delaying surface runoff and enabling penetration of the sluggish surface water, is a unique kind of this perimeter or inter-row remedy.

Windbreaks

On the windward side of a field of agriculture vulnerable to wind erosion, windbreaks are adequately thick rows of trees. Although, as long as leaves are present throughout the months of bare ground surfaces, the impact of deciduous trees may also be sufficient. Evergreen species offer shelter all year round.

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Cover Crops/Crop Rotation

In order to cover the ground year round and serve as green manure to replace nitrogen as well as other essential nutrients cover crops including legume plants, white turnips, radishes, and many other species are cycled alongside cash crops. In addition, cover crops aid in weed control.

Soil Conservation Farming

No-till farming, “green manures,” and other soil-improving techniques are used in soil conservation agriculture, making it difficult to balance the soils. These farming techniques aim to replicate the biology of arid environments. They can restore depleted soil, reduce erosion, promote plant growth, do away with the need for nitrogen fertiliser and fungicides, yield yields that are above normal, and safeguard crops from drought and flooding. Less labour is required as a result, which lowers expenses and boosts farmers’ earnings. Cover crops and no-till farming serve as nutrient sinks for nitrogen and other elements. Soil organic matter is increased as a result. Repeated tilling and ploughs destroy the soil’s beneficial fungus and earthworms. Even under ideal conditions, it may take several seasons for soil to make a full recovery once it has been harmed.

Salinity Management

Irrigating using salty water contributes to the salinity of the soil. The salt is then left behind as the water is evaporated from the soil. Infertility and stunted growth result from salt’s destruction of the soil’s structure.

Below is the list of ions that cause the salinisation of soil:

• Sodium (Na+)
• Potassium (K+)
• Calcium (Ca2+)
• Magnesium (Mg2+)
• and Chlorine (Cl)

One-third of the world’s arable land is said to be affected by salinity. Crop metabolism is negatively impacted by salinity in the soil, and erosion frequently follows. Drylands become salinized as a result of excessive irrigation and in locations with low saline water levels. Over-irrigation accelerates the pace at which salts are deposited in the upper soil layers as a consequence of soil infiltration. Given the extensive irrigation, the use of humic acids might avoid oversalination. Both anions and cations can be fixed by humic acids, which then remove them from root zones. Lowering water tables can be utilised to slow the capillary and evaporative accumulation of surface salts by planting species that can withstand salty environments. Saltbush is a plant that can withstand salt and is widespread in Europe’s Mediterranean regions as well as much of North America.
After the Aswan Dam was built in 1970, Egypt experienced the most well-known instance of shallow saline water table capillary activity. High salt contents in the water table were caused by the change in the groundwater level. Salinization of the soil was caused by the water table’s persistently high level.

Soil Organisms

A healthy variety of minerals and plant nutrients are transformed into forms that roots can absorb when worms excrete their waste as casts. In comparison to the surrounding top 150 millimetres (5.9 in) of soil, earthworm excretes are 5 times higher in available nitrogen, 7 times higher in available phosphates, and 11 times higher in available potash. More than 4.5 kg of castings per worm could be produced annually. The earthworm increases soil porosity by burrowing, forming channels that help the aeration as well as drainage processes. To achieve high yields on degraded soil, synthetic fertiliser is needed. Lack of structure accelerates erosion and causes the pollution of rivers and streams with nitrogen. Every 1% increase in organic matter increases the capacity of the soil to hold 20,000.

Nematodes, mycorrhiza, and bacteria are further significant soil creatures. Of all animal species, approximately 25 per cent live underground. There are significant information gaps regarding soil biodiversity, as per the 2020 Food and Agriculture Organization’s report, “State of knowledge of soil biodiversity – Status, challenges and potentialities”.

Mineralisation

Active soil mineralisation is occasionally done in order to assist plants to reach their maximum phytonutrient ability. Broken rock or chemical soil additives may be added in this situation. Combating mineral depletion is the goal in both scenarios. A wide variety of minerals, from more familiar ones like zinc and selenium to less common ones like phosphorus, can be employed. The stage transformations of minerals within soil under aqueous contact have been extensively studied. An alluvial plain may get large sedimentation from flooding. While adding to a floodplain is a natural process that can revitalise soil chemistry with mineralisation, this impact may not be desired if floods endanger lives or if the silt comes from productive land.

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