Causes of Erosion
1. Deforestation
To cultivate the land and feed the world’s expanding population as well as to construct homes, industries, and other structures, humans have taken land from the forest. Deforestation refers to the removal of trees for these uses that are mentioned. The earth is kept together by the roots of trees, which prevents uprooting. The topsoil is damaged by wind and running water when extensive tracts of forest are destroyed.
2. Construction
The soil is at risk of erosion due to the development of buildings and roadways. For building purposes, the woods and grassland are destroyed due to which soil gets removed and makes it susceptible to erosion.
3. Recreational Activities
Ecosystems are frequently harmed by tourism and recreational activities, especially when there are more tourists than the ecosystem can handle in a particular place. At the most popular locations, visitors destroy the vegetation along trails, gradually resulting in wider sections of a surface free of vegetation. Trails that are used often get compacted, which results in less permeable soil and more surface runoff and causes erosion.
4. Logging and Mining
Several trees are chopped down to complete the logging process. Trees strongly retain the soil. The soil is shielded from heavy rains by the forest cover. During logging, the leaf litter that shields the soil from erosion is also removed. Mining is one of the industries that enabled the expansion of our economy, has severely terrified the world, and brutally destroyed several unique ecosystems. As a result of mining operations, the soil is additionally disturbed and more prone to erosion.
5. Overgrazing
When cattle are let to graze on the same field again, they consume every blade of grass, even the roots. This increases the topsoil’s susceptibility to wind and water movement, which causes soil erosion. Moreover, while grazing the cattle also remove plants from the roots due to which the soil becomes more prone to erosion as a result of this loosening.
Difference Between Erosion And Weathering
Weathering and erosion are both related, but they are distinct processes. Rocks are broken down and moved away from their original location by two processes called weathering and erosion. Erosion is the natural process that occurs on the Earth’s crust’s surface and Weathering is the process of degrading rocks, soils, and all other minerals, including synthetic minerals and wood.