Soil Erosion

What is soil erosion?

1. The wearing away of the land surface by
running water, wind, ice or other geological
agents, including such processes as
gravitational creep.
2. Detachment and movement of soil or rock
fragments by water, wind, ice or gravity.

Different types of water

erosion

Accelerated erosion
Geological or natural erosion
Donga or gully erosion
Normal erosion
Rill erosion
Sheet erosion
Splash erosion
Tunnel erosion or piping

Effects of erosion
On site:

Loss of fertile topsoil

Selective removal of organic matter and fine material

Loss of seeds and seedlings

Change in slope topography (unsafe conditions, more
difficult remediation, high expense)
Change in soil characteristics like permeability,
infiltration rate, etc.

Off site:

Buildup of sediment and water elsewhere in the system

The mechanics of soil

erosion
Detachment
Transportation
Deposition

 The effects of raindrops:

Detach soil
Destroy granulation
Can lead to crusting
Transport of particles in some cases

 Transport

Rainsplash
Running water
NB

Infiltration capacity

Sheetwash
Gully erosion

Deposition

Can occur over long distances or short

distances
Amount of soil delivered to stream divided by
the amount eroded = delivery ratio

Prediction and modelling of

soil erosion
Why would we want to predict soil erosion?

Optimal resource management

Evaluation of consequences of different land use
Compliance with environmental requirements
Development of sediment control plans
(particularly for construction projects)
Prediction of dam infiltration rates

What do we need to understand

before we can predict erosion?
What factors affect soils susceptibility to
erosion?

Erosivity of erosion agents.

Erodibility of soils.
Length of slope.
Gradient of slope.
Land cover and management.
NB

vegetation, plant residues, soil tillage

Erosion control practices.

Erosivity
Total rainfall
Intensity and seasonal distribution of the rain
Why is intensity important?

Intense rains have large drop size

Higher rate of rainfall = more runoff

Erodibility
Indicates a soils inherent susceptibility to erosion
Infiltration capacity
Structural stability

Properties that tend to result in high erodibility

High fine sand and silt content
Expansive clay minerals
Impervious soil layers
Blocky, platy or massive soil structure

 Properties that lead to low erodibility

High

organic matter content

Nonexpansive clays
Strong granular structure

Some important principles in

erosion control

Some important principles in

erosion control
Keeping disturbed soil covered
Controlling runoff
Trapping sediment
Altering soil properties (more difficult)