This handbook has been written by experienced soil conservators drawing on their own and their colleagues practical experience, underpinned by the science undertaken on the subject for the last 50 years. Technical guides used in each field office are localized so that they apply specifically to the geographic area for which they are prepared. Soil conservation practices include minimum and notillage, which maintain high levels of crop residues on the soil surface and reduce heavy machinery traffic. The only tillage is the soil disturbance in a narrow band created by a row. These practices can be used to prevent erosion and even restore damaged soil and encourage plant growth. This can happen when practices like notill farming, crop rotation, cover crops and contour farming are used. In the last 40 years, nearly one third of the world arable land was lost by soil erosion and continues to be lost at the rate of more than 10 million hectares per year assefa, 2007, molden et al.
This volume is suitable for both undergraduate and graduate students interested in understanding the principles of soil conservation and management. Soil conservation contour plowing soil conservation and sustainable agriculture 5. Soil conservation can be defined as the combination of the appropriate land use and management practices that promotes the productive and sustainable use of. When farmers put in windbreaks and stream buffers, not only does this preserve soil but it improves nearby waterways. Investigating the impacts of conservation agriculture practices on soil health as key to sustainable dry land maize production systems on semiarid sandy soils with water tables in the north western free state. Water and soil conservation is a critical issue in areas facing water and soil resource constraints. The actual art of soil conservation is based on certain basic principles which include. Soil conservation service along witha system of soil and water conservation districts. Effect of the annual crop type on soil losses by erosion. Soil management is the application of operations, practices, and treatments to protect soil and enhance its performance such as soil fertility or soil mechanics. To do this it is necessary to study the land carefully, so as to be able to fit conservation practices and structures to the various kinds of land. Iowas farmers use a variety of conservation practices to ensure the best use of soil and water resources to reduce nutrients in water and ensure their longterm ability to farm. Soil conservation farming a mixture of farming methods intending the mimic the biology of virgin land. A recent survey of farmers in monroe county, missouri, provides an opportunity to determine the influence of selected physical, social, economic, and institutional factors upon variations in soil conservation efforts.
The worksheet that is on the server reflects the best estimate of the effects, either. Soil and water conservation engineering, seventh edition. Sustainable land management project has been a long time partner of ethiopia government in its fight against. Soil health measurements can be used to better understand the capability of soil to provide essential nutrients for growing crops. Principles of soil conservation and management springerlink. The conservation practice physical effects cppe document provides guidance on how the application of that practice will affect the resources soil, water, air, plants, animals and human and the resource concerns associated with each of those resources. Soil conservation is an important part of sustainable agriculture and food production, since it entails keeping soil from becoming a pollutant in the surface waters, and its ability to sieve and filter pollutants that would otherwise end up in drinking water. It discusses in detail soil conservation topics in relation to soil productivity, environment quality, and agronomic production. Soil conservation practices control wind or water erosion by limiting soil particle detachment and transportation. Such farming methods attempt to mimic the biology of barren lands. Revisit public policy surrounding subsidies for soil conservation practices. Soil conservation practices can play a significant role in sustaining soil quality as climate change imposes additional stress on natural resources, including soil. The material presented is limited to the types of conservation. A sequel to the deforestation is typically large scale erosion.
Soil and water conservation practices on crop productivity. In agriculture, some amount of soil management is needed both in nonorganic and organic types to prevent agricultural land from becoming poorly productive over. Including a soilconserving crop in the rotation reduces the risk of soil erosion and runoff to nearby waters. Crop rotation and periodic use of clover or alfalfa hay crops increase soil organic matter and lead to improved soil structure and fewer compaction problems. Soil erosion is the most dangerous ecological process observed in ethiopia, degrading. Over 80 percent of iowas landscape is in agriculture production activities, such as row crops, pasture and forestry. Soil conservation terraced crop fields rangeland soil conservation soil protection for cropland erosion barriers help in soil conservation 2. Soil conservation measures should aim at preventing or at least minimising the soils loss.
Soil conservation wisconsin initiative on climate change impacts. Other conservation practices or structures may also be required. In uganda, this has been attributed to poor land use practices with inadequate swc measures and persistent nutrient mining of the soils with little or no replenishment. Some of the conservation tillage systems are described here. The oregon forest practices act journal of soil and. Soil conservation practices and erosion control in india. Impact of physical soil and water conservation structure on. Lessons learned were described as one part of implementing and maintaining conservation practices, controlling sediment, controlling nutrients, and the human dimension.
Notill with notill, the soil is left undisturbed from harvest to seeding and from seeding to harvest. Factors affecting adoption of soil and water conservation. Oregons forest practices act, passed by the state legislature in 1971, recognizes the vital contributions forests make to oregon by providing jobs, a tax base, and other social and economic benefits. Overgrazing, and deforestation are the major biotic agents, cause soil erosion. The current project builds on previous projects funded by the maize trust, where the main objective had been the implementation and. Program rural agrarian productive development agrorural through former national program watershed management and soil conservation pronamachcs has developed over time a large number of practices adapted to different combinations of agroecological. Impact of physical soil and water conservation structure. Design of soil and water conservation structures for. Impacts of soil and water conservation practices on. Learn more about infield and edgeoffield conservation practices. Impacts of soil and water conservation practices on livelihood.
Soil erosion, use of chemical pesticides and herbicides, unsustainable agricultural practices, excessive farming, water pollution and land pollution are some of the aspects upsetting the natural functions of the soil. Conservation choices, your guide to 32 conservation and environmental farming practices natural resources conservation service. The act establishes public policy aimed at maintaining productive forests, as well as soil, air, and water resources, and providing habitat for wildlife, including aquatic species. Guidelines for development agents on soil and water conservation in ethiopia this introductory chapter describes the aim of this book and how it can be used in the field when you carry out soil and water conservation. In order to do this proper land utilisation coupled with agricultural practices should be adopted. Soil conservation practices are tools the farmer can use to prevent soil degradation and build organic matter. Soil conservation is the practice of protecting the soil against erosion or deterioration. Soil conservation practices and stakeholders participation. The objectives of soil conservation under the forest practices code code are.
Soil conservation farming involves notill farming, green manures and other soil enhancing practices. What is soil conservation and what are various ways to. Manual on integrated soil management and conservation practices. Observations of soil conservation practices in australia and overseas suggest that inappropriate solutions are commonly applied, often achieving only a partial. Pdf soil conservation practices on slopes in peru luis. By reducing runoff, and increasing water infiltration, contouring promotes better water quality. It contributes to environmental conservation as well as to enhanced and sustained agricultural production. The oregon forest practices act journal of soil and water. Soil erosion by wind is caused by lack of vegetation cover, dry pulverized soils, strong wind speeds, and poor land management practices such as continuous tillage and overgrazing. Soil degradation is one of the crucial issues in mountainous areas of ethiopia which needs efforts to reduce it. Soil and water conservation 265 life on this planet, as the so il is an essential resource to suppor t plants for producing food, and to provide shelter to insects and animals.
Manual on integrated soil management and conservation. Thus, soil and water conservation practices are becoming increasingly important in the arid and semiarid. Assessment of the effects of conservation practices on. Good soil conservation practices help put nutrients back into the soil. Climate and the need to retain or discharge the runoff. Engineering field manual for conservation practices preface l the objective of this manual is to provide guidance in the use of basic engineering principles, techniques, and procedures for the planning, design, installation, and maintenance of soil and water conservation prac tices. In tradition method, the land is ploughed and soil is broken up and levelled to make a planting surface. Contouring can reduce soil erosion by as much as 50% from up and down hill farming.
Including a soil conserving crop in the rotation reduces the risk of soil. The use of agroforestry practices in soil conservation. Another important area of land management, namely riparian management, is not. Soil conservation is the prevention of loss of the top most layer of the soil from erosion or prevention of reduced fertility caused by over usage, acidification, salinization or other chemical soil contamination slashandburn and other unsustainable methods of subsistence farming are practiced in some lesser developed areas. For effective conservation of soil and water, we must treat and use the various kinds of land according to their capability and need. The concern about global food security in relation to soil erosion and strategies for confronting the remaining problems in soil management and conservation are specifically addressed. Crop rotation and periodic use of clover or alfalfa hay crops increase soil organic matter and lead to improved soil. Including a soil conserving crop in the rotation reduces the risk of soil erosion and runoff to nearby waters. They can revive damaged soil, minimize erosion, encourage plant growth, eliminate the use of nitrogen fertilizer or fungicide, produce aboveaverage yields and protect crops. Most soil and water conservation efforts focused on highly degraded areas with limited production potential. Broadly categorizing there are two methods of soil conservation.
It is only in recent years that soil erosion problems have received attention of engineers. The function of soil and water conservation is not only to protect the soil but to sustain its productive capacity while using it in a proper condition 1, 4, 5. Appraisal on soil and water conservation and its implication on food security are crucial. Manual on integrated soil management and conservation practices ix page 19. Eliminating the use of nitrogen fertilizer and fungicides can increase yields and protect crops from drought and flooding. Crop rotation is a tool that enables farmers to increase soil organic matter content, soil structure and rooting depth. At the core of soil conservation in wisconsin and the united states is voluntary adoption of. In addition to improving soil fertility, water harvesting, enhancing the soil water retention capacity and reducing soil erosion are measures that could significantly improve agricultural productivity in rainfed marginal environments. In the last two decades, various soil and water conservation interventions had been introduced in to different parts of ethiopia. Land degradation is a major concern in ethiopia since it leads to declining agricultural productivity, poverty and food insecurity. Physical soil conservation measures physical soil conservation structures are permanent features made of earth, stones or masonry, designed to protect the soil from uncontrolled runoff and erosion and retain water where needed. The mechanical practices of soil conservation include various engineering techniques and structures which are adopted to supplement the biological methods when the latter alone are not sufficiently effective. The case of watershed in gambela region, ethiopia gatbel chot1, awdenegest moges2 and amanuel shewa3 1department of natural resources management, college of agricultural sciences, arba minch university, ethiopia.
The chief agents of soil erosion are water and wind. Pdf adoption of water and soil conservation practices. The purpose of these entities, now as then, is to work with farmers and ranchers and help them plan, select, and apply conservation practices to enable their operations to produce. Conservation practices conservation crop rotation is a system for growing several different crops in planned succession on the same field, including at least one soil conserving crop such as perennial hay. What is best for a particular farm depends on many factors, so a variety of practices are used to maximize results. As the soil is managed with conservation practices, such as cover crops or reduced tillage, the soil health changes that these practices create in the soil can be measured and compared clark, 2007. The paper highlights how different agroforestry practices can be used to conserve soil and discusses the major concern of each and every practice used by farmers. Soil conservation and management in developing countries. It is the method of ploughing across the contour lines of a slope. Evaluation of the effect of increasing the quantity of maize residues in the soil cover on the runoff flow, the runoff velocity and the total soil losses 88 20. Soil erosion is a major environmental and agricultural problem facing human beings blanco and lal, 2008, hurni, 1988, world economic forum, 2010. Technical guides are the primary scientific references for nrcs. It includes soil conservation, soil amendment, and optimal soil health. Adoption of soil conservation practices is promoted by increased engagement between researchers and stakeholders.
Pdf the primary source to meet global food and fiber demands is production agriculture, but accelerated soil erosion threatens its. The clean water act of 1972 public law 92500, as amended in 1977 public law 95217 and 1987 public law 100. To limit the extent of soil disturbance, caused by harvesting and silviculture activities that negatively affect the physical, chemical, and biological properties of the soil. Soil conservation an overview sciencedirect topics. They contain technical information about the conservation of soil, water, air, and related plant and animal resources. This disturbs the soil and makes it susceptible to erosion.
Conservation practices save soil and sustain agriculture. This practice of farming across the slopes takes into account the slope gradient and the elevation of soil across the slope. Soil conservation is the prevention of soil loss from erosion or reduced fertility caused by over usage, acidification, salinization or other chemical soil contamination. Conservation practices in broader context soil and water. The fact sheet focuses on how conservation practice selection, timing, location, and relationships to other conservation practices influence water quality outcomes. Soil health key points natural resources conservation service, february 2016 iowa department of agriculture and land stewardship. Reduce or prevent soil erosion by best management practices such as terracing, cover cropping, strip cropping, no till planting, sodding waterways, diversion. Agricultural production requires two main resources. Determinants of soil water conservation and nutrient flow. Open access asian journal of agricultural research issn 18191894 doi. The use of agroforestry practices in soil conservation zambrut.
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