Heavy rainstorms can cause dramatic and excessive erosion events, however, most soil erosion happens gradually over time and often is very hard to notice without constant monitoring. Four types of soil erosion are caused by rainfall: The raindrops disperse the soil which is then washed away into the nearby streams and rivers. Planting new trees and plants is afforestation. Water is the main cause of erosion on Earth. Thus, whenever trees are cut down new trees should be planted. Since vegetation reduces erosion, we have another case of the result hinging on the net effects of “competing” processes. About 95% of soil is splashed by falling rain drops and runoff water erodes less than 5% of the soil. Increases in available moisture, also called effective precipitation, would tend to promote both runoff and soil erosion on the one hand, and vegetation cover on the other. The soil erosion can be prevented by the following ways: 1. The potential ability of rain to cause erosion is called erosivity of rainfall. As degraded soil becomes loose and weak, it loses the ability to absorb and retain water, which leads to soil erosion. Soil conservation. We live because plants live. Soil eroding and dirt loss, harmonizing to Lal ( 1990 ) have inauspicious effects on agribusiness because they deplete the dirt 's productiveness and decrease the resourse base.. 2.2 Soil Erosion Process Ellison (1944) defines soil erosion as the process of detachment and transport of soil particles by erosive agents. The three main forces that cause erosion are water, wind, and ice. Afforestation. Soil is a combination of weathered rock, decayed organic matter, mineral fragments, water, and air. The agents of soil erosion are the same as the agents of all types of erosion: water, wind, ice, or gravity.Running water is the leading cause of soil erosion, because water is abundant and has a lot of power.Wind is also a leading cause of soil erosion because wind can pick up soil and blow it far away. Rainfall - Rainfall can cause erosion both when the rain hits the surface of the Earth, called splash erosion, and when raindrops accumulate and flow like small streams. Erosivity is expressed by EI 30 index. It is now established that collision of rain drops on bare soil and resulting splash is the major cause of soil erosion by water. Erosivity: It is defined as the potential ability of rain to cause the erosion. Using rainfall and soil loss information from experimental plots Weischmeier et al. Soil Erosion is the most serious and least reversible signifier of land debasement ( Lal, 1977 ; El-Swaify, Dangler and Amstrong, 1982 ) . After reading this article you will learn about how rain drops cause soil erosion. Regions with very heavy and frequent rainfall face a large amount of soil loss For a given soil condition, the potential of […] The layer of soil which is composed of humus and leaf litter is called the _____ horizon. If the plants die, all living things will also die. Higher intensity of rainstorm is the main cause of soil erosion. desert soil Soil forms as a result of _______ and biological activity that breaks down and changes soil … Prevention of soil erosion is also called conservation of soil. ADVERTISEMENTS: In this article we will discuss about erosivity and soil erodibility. It is dependent on the physical char­acteristics of rainfall, which include raindrop size, drop size distribution, kinetic energy, terminal velocity etc. And resulting splash is the major cause of soil erosion by water of the soil:. 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