" (DEP, 2008)
The lack of vegetation also does not act as a sieve to capture the soil. Muddy water also created an environment where the water temperature increases killing any micro organisms that feed at the river bed. Faster movement of water also creates deeper channels and creates wider rivers during storms. (Sotir, 1998) Excessive run off and soil are creating downstream flooding conditions that have been unprecedented when compared to the past. Homes and businesses have been significantly impacted by the new problem as insurance rates and the cost of maintaining a house or business is also on the rise.
Birds and animals that depend on the river's ecosystem are also impacted by the new stream flow and quality of water. Excessive silting of rivers might cause flooding in traditional nesting locations of migratory birds. Often, birds select these locations for life and then lose generations of chicks due to flooding. Contamination in the soil as a result of fertilization upstream also creates toxic levels higher than expected. Wildlife that survives on dependent organisms tends to get affected as well. Phosphorous which is used as a growth aid for land plants also does the same for aquatic plants. Algal blooms in lakes and rivers further deplete the oxygen levels in the water.
The unchecked soil is also creating havoc with ports. Most significant ports are located at or near the mouth of the rivers and the soil often get deposited at these locations. Dredging of ports is often a necessity to maintain the depth of the port to allow larger vessels to enter the port. It is observed that better engineering upstream of dams and reservoirs can help reduce the problems down stream. (ScienceDaily, 2008) Many tests have been undertaken to find out conditions that work the best. Amongst the most significant observations were the compacting of soil and controlling the gradient of the water flow.
Experts in the field, scientists and members of the local populations are all realizing the direct and the indirect impacts of soil erosion. Many costs can be directly measured as in the increase of insurance on home close to sea, along rivers and cliffs and the reduction of...
There are however, other effects that are more long-term and less quantifiable in the conventional sense. The cost of flooding, building dams and levies, dredging ports and rivers, excessive silting of flood planes, clogging of aircraft engines as a result of dust storms, loss of marine life in rivers, loss of birds and animals that use rivers as their source of food and water and the constant movement and change of the river course due to sand bank creation are but a few of the concerns that arise due to erosion.
There are many simple and low cost methods for maintaining the soil and avoiding erosion. For instance leaving crop residue until the next growing time can help roots keep the soil together. Growing ground cover and mulching exposed soil can also help percolation rather than run off. Allowing vegetation to decompose naturally and allow a cover to soil also helps. Finally using smart engineering concepts in construction and water management can also help reduce the effects of soil erosion.
Bibliography
Brown, L.R. (2007). Rebuilding Valuable Soil. USA Today, 136(2750), 15.
DEP. (2008). Soil Erosion. Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Land and Water Quality.
Kaiser, J. (2004). Wounding Earth's Fragile Skin. Science, 304(5677), 1616-1618.
Kumar, K., Pant, D., Panda, Y.S., & Satyal, G.S. (2002). Runoff and soil loss from steep slopes treated with low cost bioengineering measures. Environmentalist, 22(2), 133.
Monde, M.C., & Siegfried, R. (1998). Salvaging streams. Civil Engineering, 68(7), 54-57.
ScienceDaily. (2008). Better Dams, Levees, Embankments: Soil Type and Compaction Factors Can Make Soil 1,000 Times More Resistant to Erosion. Science Daily, April 9 (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080405095557.htm).
Sotir, R. (1998). Brushing up on erosion control. The American City & County, 113(2), 18-24.
Waswa, F., Gachene, C.K.K., & Eggers, H. (2002). Assessment of erosion damage in Ndome and Ghazi, Taita Taveta, Kenya: Towards an integrated erosion management approach. GeoJournal, 56(3), 171.
