Do you think we could run out of soil one day, explain?
Answers
Explanation:
The world grows 95% of its food in the uppermost layer of soil, making topsoil one of the most important components of our food system. But thanks to conventional farming practices, nearly half of the most productive soil has disappeared in the world in the last 150 years, threatening crop yields and contributing to nutrient pollution, dead zones and erosion. In the US alone, soil on cropland is eroding 10 times faster than it can be replenished.
If we continue to degrade the soil at the rate we are now, the world could run out of topsoil in about 60 years, according to Maria-Helena Semedo of the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization. Without topsoil, the earth’s ability to filter water, absorb carbon, and feed people plunges. Not only that, but the food we do grow will probably be lower in vital nutrients
We never want to see our soil unless we go looking for it,” says Keith Berns, a Nebraska farmer whose land hasn’t seen a plow in three decades.
He and his brother, Brian, began the practice of no-till on their 2,100-acre corn and soybean farm when they learned it could increase the carbon, nutrients and water available in the soil. Their farm is in a particularly dry area of the country, and keeping moisture on their land is a top priority. For every 1% increase of carbon, an acre of land can hold an additional 40,000 gallons of water.
Once they stopped tilling, the Berns family saw organic matter in the soil increase, which can have the added benefit of making foods grown in the soil more nutritious.
Organic matter, a section of soil that contains decomposing plant or animal tissue, serves as a reservoir of nutrients that microbes can feast upon while they provide nitrogen to growing plants and sequester carbon. The more organic matter, the more organisms the soil can support.
Answer:
The way in which the question is worded, the answer is no. There are major concerns that others have addressed, and so I can keep my answer brief. Here are the two biggest concerns:
1. Topsoil. The first few inches of soil is loaded with organic carbon compounds that do much to improve soil. Organic carbon helps retain moisture that is needed to keep crops hydrated for longer periods of time. Water is needed for microorganisms that contribute to nutrient availability, and help with soil structure. Water also helps to stabilize soil temperatures. Something true about soils: one good quality always leads to other good qualities. Better carbon leads to better water, which leads to better organisms, which leads to better nutrients, which leads to better crops, which leads to better carbon, and so on. Carbon is the sensitive part of the cycle, because once carbon is depleted, it doesn’t return to soil easily. Also, if the carbon ends up in the sky there are unpredictable consequences when extra methane and carbon dioxide are produced because these are greenhouse gases, and will surely lead to reflection of energy. Soil is the best place for carbon, every farmer will agree.
2. Erosion. There are two kinds of erosion - natural, and anthropogenic (or erosion caused by people) If you live on the Colorado Plateau you might notice overwhelmingly shallow soils that are not so productive for crops and difficult to keep water on, even where water is available. Colorado Plateau land is good for range, but because there is uplift due to plate tectonics, soil leaves the region through rivers anywhere it can. Eventually, rocks will weather to soil, so what is there will be replenished. Anthropogenic erosion is where mass wasting of soil occurs because vegetation is completely ripped out without any consideration for what will restrain soil in the next big rainfall, or if certain delicate soils are disturbed by people by driving over. Fires can remove soil cover when they are hot enough, and lead to mudslides. Most soils take vehicle tracks well, but some do not. Those soils may be marked, or fenced. Many occur in National parklands or grasslands. I could also add that soils may be polluted with unusual mine spoils, or become too salty if irrigated with salty water, or overfertilized. While we will not be running out of dirt for soil there are some situations that can be important to recognize. There is no need for worry, but best to be informed
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