Did you know that on July 7 of each year the World Soil Conservation Day? In order to make the world population aware of the importance of soil conservation (both for humans, animals and plants), on this day different measures and techniques are disclosed to prevent soil degradation as well as , the importance of regenerating and conserving soils that have been too affected by phenomena such as erosion or the natural and artificial impoverishment of soils. Caring for and respecting nature is of vital importance to guarantee the survival of current and future generations of all living beings that populate any corner of the planet.
In this Green Ecologist article we tell you in detail what the soil conservation, its importance, techniques and practices.
What is soil conservation
The soil conservation includes all those techniques and practices focused on the sustainable use and maintenance of soils that are used as a natural resource, both in agriculture and in forestry and livestock.
Because it is currently a non-renewable resource and that the soil loss constitutes one of the main environmental problems worldwide, soil conservation is considered of vital importance to guarantee that the various ecological, climatological, hydrological, social, economic and cultural factors interact with each other, using soils in a sustainable way. You may also be interested in learning more about soils by reading this other Green Ecologist article about the different types of soils and their main characteristics.
In the next section we will be able to learn in more detail why soil conservation is so important within the global conservation of nature.
The importance of soil conservation
Promote the sustainable land use It has emerged in response to the many and diverse problems faced by the quality and quantity of soils suitable for growing food and trees around the world.
Various studies have estimated that nature alone may take about 200 years to produce 1 cm of fertile soil, so it is really important to protect and take care of them to ensure their conservation, since otherwise, they are capable of easily becoming impoverished. very little time.
Between the main problems that soils are suffering stand out:
- Soil erosion, as well as compaction, increased salinity and acidity of the soil.
- Inadequate management of farmland, creating an imbalance within the productive system, which is directly related to the shortage of food that we could suffer in the not too distant future.
- The world's population (around 8,000 million inhabitants), forces humanity to have at least one billion hectares of agricultural land to guarantee its food needs. This fact supposes the constant pressure on the productive potential of the soils, as well as of the natural resources in general.
For all these reasons, at present, numerous sectors are working to renew and condition the production techniques related to the soil preservation, trying that the practices adopted by farmers, foresters and ranchers are as appropriate as possible and always oriented to the conservation of this limited resource, which can never be wasted. Learn more in this other post about The importance of soils and also know the importance of the Conservation of natural resources in general in this other article.
Next, we will indicate different practices and techniques that allow the recovery, conservation and increased natural fertility of soils.
Soil conservation - techniques and practices
Between the different techniques and practices that allow proper land management, and that help to reverse the impoverishment and degradation of soils as a natural resource, we find:
- Take samples and carry out soil analysis in order to know its characteristics and physicochemical properties, thus being able to detect any type of deficiency.
- Perform rotation and association of crops, thus favoring the work and agricultural machinery that turn the soils to a minimum.
- Do the sowing directly, without applying any type of herbicides or chemical fertilizers.
- Conserve soil organisms, which guarantee the natural fertility (chemical, physical and biological) of the soils, as well as the good productivity of the crops.
- Application of natural fertilizers (decomposing cow or chicken manure, worm castings, compost compost or ashes, among others).
- Place live or dead mulch on the ground, thus allowing the soil to retain its moisture and nutrients characteristic of the upper layers of the soil.
These and many more are the main soil conservation techniques and practices that are carried out through "ecological soil management", one of the main projects carried out by agroecology programs.
If you want to read more articles similar to Soil conservation: importance, techniques and practices, we recommend that you enter our category of Other environment.
Bibliography- Paredes, M. (11/30/2005) Ecological soil management. Online Magazine ABC Rural. Recovered from https://www.abc.com
- Hudson, N. (2006) Soil conservation: land management and treatment. Editorial REVERTÉ S. A., pp: 149-200.
- Becerra, A. (1998) Soil conservation and sustainable development, utopia or possibility in Mexico? Terra Latinoamericana, Mexican Society of Soil Science, Volume 16 (2).
- Loredo, C. (2005) Practices for soil and water conservation in arid and semi-arid zones. National Institute of Forestry, Agricultural and Livestock Research, Mexico, pp: 1-10.
- Brechelt, A. (2004) Ecological soil management.Agriculture and Environment Foundation, Republic Dominican, pp: 4-27.
