Iowa Loses Years Of Topsoil in Days
Soil erosion has caused substantial damage to Iowa's farm fields hit hard by heavy rain and flooding this spring, Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey said after touring two areas of the state.
Heavy rains this spring came when the soil was most vulnerable to erosion - when the soil has been tilled for planting, but before plants' root systems grow to hold it in place, he said.
[...]
Richard Cruse, director of the Iowa Water Center at Iowa State University, said areas of the state lost 7 to 8 tons of topsoil an acre in a 24-hour period. Those areas also had multiple one-day periods when that amount of topsoil per acre was lost.
The Natural Resources Conservation Service defines "tolerable" soil erosion levels at 3 to 5 tons an acre annually, Cruse said, adding that he thinks that the "tolerable" level is too high.
- Des Moines Register, 2008-06-22 (full story)
posted 2008/06/24 14:11 [category: bitbashing / economy]
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