A Closer Look and Water and Soil Degradation Part III

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A Closer Look and Water and Soil DegradationPart
III
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Soil Erosion Facts

• Soil is a potentially renewable resource a
  resource that can be renewed in days to several
  decades, but when the resource is used faster
  than it is replenished it becomes a non-renewable
  resource.
• 1992 Study by the World Resource Institute found
  that
• 15 of global lands are too eroded to grow crops
  on due to overgrazing, deforestation, and
  unsustainable farming practices.
• 2/3 of these lands exist in Africa and Asia.
• 40 of the worlds lands (75 in Central America)
  used for agriculture are seriously degraded by
  erosion, salt build-up, and waterlogging.
• Soil erosion has reduced food production on 16
  of the worlds arable (crop) lands.
• Worldwide soil erosion causes at least 375
  billion per year (42 million per hour!) in
• 1. direct damage to agricultural lands
• 2. indirect damage to waterways,
  infrastructure, and human health.
• Soil erosion cost 30 billion dollars in 1997
  (3.4 million per hour!)
• Desertification causes plant productivity to fall
  by 10 each year (a process whereby arid and
  semiarid lands change to desert-like conditions
  due to human activities and climate changes).

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Agents of Erosion

• Wind
• Water
• Ice
• Gravity
• (mass wasting)

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Types of Soil Erosion

• 1. Sheet Erosion occurs when surface water
  flows down hill and peels off top soil in a
  sheet-like pattern.
• 2. Rill Erosion is from fast moving surface
  water that gouges out rivulets that cut small
  channels into the soil.
• 3. Gully Erosion when rivulets join together
  to make a larger gully.

Sheet erosion
Rivulets
Gully Erosion
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Dust Bowl
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Causes of the Dust Bowl

1. Poor cultivation practices on fertile, arable
   lands where plowing tore up the roots of native
   prairie grasses (extensive root systems) which
   were replaced by agricultural crops (less
   extensive root systems).
2. After each harvest, the land was plowed and left
   bare for several months, exposing it to high
   winds.

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Causes of the Dust Bowl

1. Overgrazing destroyed large expanses of grass,
   denuding the ground.
2. Drought occurred between 1926 and 1934.

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Journalists Name the Dirty Thirties the Dust
Bowl

• During May, 1934, a cloud of topsoil blown off
  the Great Plains (1,500 miles away) blanketed
  most of the eastern United States (Washington
  D.C. and New York City).
• The same day, Hugh Bennett of the U.S. Department
  of Agriculture (USDA) was in Washington as the
  dust arrived pleading for new programs to protect
  the countrys topsoil and farmers.

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Washington D.C./Hugh Bennett
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Did We Learn Our Lesson From the Dust Bowl?

• 1935 USA passed the Soil Conservation Act which
  established the Soil Conservation Service (SCS),
  now called the Natural Resources Conservation
  Service (NRCS), and began promoting sound
  conservation practices, initially in the Great
  Plains States and then in each County in every
  state! Soil Surveys were developed.
• Farmers who migrated to California began using
  the land more sustainably and invited assistance
  from USDA and Soil Conservation Service. No till
  farming was introduced where the soil is
  disturbed slightly by making slits in rows in
  which seeds are planted.

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Soil Protection Regulations

• 1973 Sediment Pollution Control Act requires
  that no land-disturbing activity during periods
  of construction or improvement to land shall be
  permitted in proximity to a lake or natural
  watercourse unless a buffer zone is provided
  along the margin of the watercourse AND the angle
  for graded slopes and fills cannot be greater
  than the angle which natural vegetation can be
  established and retained for soil anchorage
  (slope stabilization).
• A Sediment and Erosion Control Plan MUST be
  submitted and approved by the regulatory agency
  overseeing the project.

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Sediment Pollution Control Act - 1973
Coir Fiber matting
Silt Curtain
Tack
Hay Bales
Biologs
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Farmland Preservation Act

• State agencies must establish agricultural land
  preservation policies and working agreements with
  the USDA.
• The goal is to minimize farmland conversions from
  agricultural zoning to residential and
  industrial zoning.
• For approved conversions and Utility projects,
  the USDA reviews and ensures that Plans contain
  construction and restoration standards that leave
  affected areas in good condition after projects
  are completed.

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Farmland Preservation on Long Island

• Town of Southhold Leads the Way!
• Work with Long Island Farm Bureau, Peconic Land
  Trust, and Southold Town Farmers to Preserve
  Farmland from ever being developed.
• If a farmer has to raise cash from his land he
  has two options 1. Subdivide the land and
  pursue a maximum-intensity subdivision at the
  current zoning (2-acre).
• 2. Look into the benefits of the farmland
  preservation program.
• Recent experience shows that if a farmer wants to
  build 1 or 2 houses on his farm parcel, and sell
  the development rights to the remainder of his
  land, his net return is nearly the same as a
  full-intensity subdivision.
• The advantage of selling the development rights
  to the Land Trust is that he can continue to own
  and farm the preserved land making additional
  money AFTER fair compensation received
  (25,000/acre) for selling the development
  rights.
• This achieves the Town's preservation goals and
  has become an increasingly popular preservation
  tool, known as a Conservation Opportunity
  Subdivision (COS).

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Town of Southold

• Presently, 1 house for every 5 acres of land may
  built in the Town of Southold 2 acre zoning in
  developments.
• Over 3,500 acres of farmland have been preserved
  in Southold due to the Development Rights Program
  (begun in Suffolk County in 1974).
• In actuality 1 house is developed for every 18
  acres preserved in Southold!
• The Town can pay fair compensation to farms for
  transfer through a 2 Transfer Tax for real
  estate sales on all other properties in the Town!
  Fair compensation is considered to be
  25,000/acre.
• To maintain the success of the DRP and COS is to
  ensure that fair compensation remains consistent
  with full-intensity development costs.

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Farm Act - 1985

• Farmers are given subsidies for highly erodible
  land.
• They MUST take the land out of production for 10
  years.
• The land may NOT be farmed, grazed of cut for hay
  OR farmer must pay back subsidy!
• This has cut erosion by 60 in the USA since
  1985.
• Swampbusters is part of the Farm Act denies
  federal funding to farmers who drain or destroy
  wetlands on their property.

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A Look at Hydroponic and Aeroponic Crop Production

• Hydroponics based on the idea that plants will
  grow as long as they have air, water, nutrients,
  and energy, but not necessarily soil.
• Two Types
• a. Water culture where roots of plants are in
  water instead of soil, air is pumped in, and
  nutrients are added.
• b. Aggregate Culture where plants are placed
  in sand, gravel, or peat which supports the plant
  and lets air get to the roots like soil does.
  Nutrients are added.

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Aeroponics
Drip Irrigation Technique

• Aeroponics is a hydroponic technique involving
  the use of sprayers, nebulizers, foggers, or
  other devices to create a fine mist of solution
  to deliver nutrients to plant roots.

Root Mist Technique
Fog Feed Technique
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Disadvantage of Hydroponic Systems

• High cost of construction, equipment, fuel, and
  skilled workers.
• Large-scale operations dont exist.
• It is suitable for places where land or water is
  too scarce or too valuable to use for farming
  such as in cities (roof-top community gardens),
  not useful for large-scale operations.

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Soil-less Solutions
Hydroponics
Aeroponics
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Ground Water Resources

• Freshwater on/below Earths surface 3
• Saltwater 97

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Groundwater

• Precipitation infiltrates and percolates downward
  through soil pore spaces and rock crevices and is
  stored below ground.
• Groundwater surplus higher than normal water
  table.
• Groundwater deficit lower than normal water
  table.

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Water Budget
Water Surplus Inputgtoutput
Average WT
Water Deficit Inputltoutput
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Aquifers

• Aquifer porous soils allow for water to
  accumulated in layers of sand and gravel confined
  by clay layers (confining layers)

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Long Island Sole Source Aquifer
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Groundwater Recharge Areas

• Recharge Areas any area of land where water
  passes downward or laterally into an aquifer.
  Example Long Island Pine Barrens or Development
  Recharge Basins sumps.

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Long Islands Groundwater Recharge
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Freshwater Uses

• Irrigation 16
• Energy Production Cooling 25
• Domestic/Municipal use 10
• (mostly developed nations)
• Agriculture and Industrial Processing 50
• Eastern USA plenty of water
• Western USA arid region water shortages
• Long Island Sole Source Aquifer

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Causes of Water Shortages

• Dry Climate
• Drought Precipitation (low), Evapotranspiration
  and evaporation (high)
• Dessication (drying out)
• Water stress as population increases (Las Vegas)
• Precipitation 10cm/yr 64 water usage by
  homeowners for lawns and gardens!
• Result water diversion from Colorado River to
  meet water consumption needs.

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Water Rights in the USA
West First Come-First Serve basis -legal
rights to usage groundwater belongs to the owner
of the land above it! They can use as much as
they want, divert it or sell it to make a
profit! Garrett Hardins Tragedy of the
Commons (FBL)

• East
• Riparian Rights
• -As per needed basis as long as there is enough
  water left for downstream areas.

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Ogallala Aquifer
Wyoming S. Dakota Nebraska Colorado Kansas New
Mexico Oklahoma Texas
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Ogallala Aquifer

• Worlds largest aquifer
• Water is 15,000 30,000 years old (nonrenewable)
• VERY SLOW recharge rate
• Used for irrigation (20) and farming (40)

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Ogallala Aquifer Problems

• Water is diverted into arid lands which are
  normally NOT arable.
• Subsidies provided to farmers to divert water in
  an effort to decrease government crop disaster
  payments to farmers who lose their crop due to
  drought.
• The government encourages groundwater mining by
  giving tax breaks FBL
• 3. Water experts expect the Ogallala to be
  economically depleted by 2020 at current
  consumption rate.
• 4. Native Americans lost rights to water on what
  was originally their land due to settlers
  Appropriation Rights!

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Colorado River
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Colorado River Diversion

• 1,400 miles long
• Headwaters glacial in Colorado Rocky Mountains
• Mouth Gulf of California, Mexico
• Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and
  US Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) licensed 17
  major hydropower dams and 100 minor dams.
• Water is diverted to farmers to grow water
  thirsty crops such as alfalfa and ranchers (80)
  as far away as Californias Imperial Valley and
  to cities including Las Vegas.

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Hydropower Dams Along the Colorado River
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Subsidies

• Water is subsidized by taxpayers for construction
  of dams.
• This presents a false, low cost of water to
  consumers in this extremely arid region.
• Native Americans have lost rights because of
  settlers Appropriation Rights.
• Water allotments in USA have been exceeded,
  leaving a trickle of water for Mexicans.
• Water quality is compromised and biodiversity
  decreases.

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Gulf of California, Mexico
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Should Water Be Privatized?

• Pros to privitization of water when a resource
  is an investment better care is taken of the
  resource.
• Cons to privitization of water water is a
  common resource for all people to use. Is it
  fair to allow corporations to control common
  resources?
• Tragedy of the commons overuse and depletion of
  common resources.
• Mind-set is If I dont use it, someone else
  will
• (Video)

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Water Wars in the Middle East
Turkey
Jordan River Jordan Syria Israel Tigris-Euphrate
s Turkey Syria Iraq
Nile River Ethiopia Sudan Egypt
Syria
Iraq
Jordan
Jordan River
Israel
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Jordan River

• Israel irrigates 2/3 of its croplands, but uses
  water more efficiently than any other country in
  the world.
• Jordan 75 of water from Jordan River basin.
  With population on the rise, water shortages
  could cause Jordan to declare war on Israel for
  water useage.
• Syria gets water from Jordan and the
  Euphrates-Tigris rivers. Syria is closest to
  headwaters for Jordan River. They plan to build
  many dams for water diversion. This will limit
  water going to Jordan and Israel.
• Israel threatens to destroy dams in Syria.

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Tigris-Euphrates River

• Turkey is situated at the headwater and they
  plan to build 22 dams along the upper Tigris and
  Euphrates for hydroelectric plants and for
  irrigation.
• Turkey plans on diverting water from dams via
  pipelines to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and possibly
  Syria, Israel and Jordan.
• Syria gets 90 of its water from the Euphrates.
• Iraq will be left with very little water.

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Nile River

• Ethiopia control 85 of the headwaters.
• Sudan uses approximately 10 .
• Egypt the last to get water along the Nile
  (5). Egypt has a thin area of irrigated
  cropland, the rest of Egypt is desert.
• PROBLEM Egyptian population grows by 1 million
  every 9 months!

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What Can Egypt Do?

• Declare war on Sudan and Ethiopia
• Decrease population growth
• Save water by improving irrigation efficiency and
  drought resistant crops
• Spend 2 billion dollars and pump water from Lake
  Nasser (reservoir at the Aswan High Dam)
• Import more grain to feed population
• Work out water-sharing agreements with other
  countries.
• Suffer human and economic losses.

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How Can Water Problems Be Resolved?

• 1. Decrease population!
• 1.2 billion lack access to clean drinking water
• 2.2 billion live without Sewage Treatment Plants
  (STPs)
• 2/3 of the world households do NOT have running
  water.
• Must be a global commitment to sharing this rare
  and valuable resource sustainably!
• Build dams to store water in (reservoirs)
• Transfer water from other places.
• Build desalination plants (USA engineers)
• Improve efficiency in water usage
• Conserve water.

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Why Is Water Wasted In the USA?

• Artificially low prices of water resulting from
  government subsidies (externalities not including
  in your water bill).
• Promotion of growing water thirsty crops such as
  alfalfa in California and Arizona! The
  government makes water SO cheap and easily
  accessible through water transfer from Colorado
  River that farmers grow these crops.
• The US Bureau of Reclamation supplies ¼ of all
  water used to irrigate lands to the western USA
  under Long-Term Contracts at greatly subsidized
  prices from our taxes!
• Watershed Management is divided between state and
  local governments in the western USA, there is
  not 1 Authority in control. Long Island has a
  Regional Water Authority (Suffolk County Water
  Authority) and we are in much better shape, but
  water is still ridiculously cheap.

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Suffolk County Water Authority

• Annual Reports on the Quality of Your Drinking
  Water are mailed out each spring to each resident
  in Suffolk County.
• You can view them online as well.
• www.scwa.com/residential/yourdrinkingwater.cfm

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How Can We Conserve Water in the USA?

• Efficiency improvement
• Flood irrigation through gravity flow
• Center-pivot sprinklers (low to ground less
  evaporation. (costs are high initially farmers
  dont use them)
• Drip Systems release trickle of water near
  plant roots. High initial costs.
• Computer controlled systems monitor soil
  moisture and turn on irrigation systems as needed
  (high initial costs)
• Switch to xerophytic crops (little water needed)
  xeroscaping.
• Consumer should pay true cost of water (include
  externalities)
• Provide subsidies for conservation methods that
  have high initial start-up costs!
• Treat wastewater to irrigate non-edible crops.

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What You Can Do

• Turn faucet off when brushing teeth (saves 9
  gallons of water)
• Fill up sink when shaving (saves 14 gallons of
  water)
• Fill kitchen sink with water to wash pots and
  pans (saves 25 gallons of water)
• When washing car, do not leave hose running
  (saves 150 gallons of water)
• Self service car wash uses only 10 gallons of
  water
• Sponge and bucket uses only 15 gallon of water.
• Flushing a toilet uses 5-7 gallons of water put
  a displacement device in tank and reduce it to
  2-3 gallons of water per flush.

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What Can You Do?

• Install low flow shower head. Decreases water
  use by 35 gallons for every 5 minutes you are in
  the shower.
• Reduce the time spent in the shower!
• Install low flow aerator faucet heads (4.00 at
  Home Depot or Hardware Store). Reduces water use
  by 50.
• Use Phosphate-free detergents (Mandatory in
  Nassau and Suffolk) to decrease cultural
  eutrophication.
• To Prevent Groundwater Contamination DO NOT
  dispose of paint, paint thinner, oil, grease or
  any other material labeled as hazardous or toxic
  into the environment or down the drain.
• Town of Islip has special pick ups through WRAP
  program (1 in fall, 1 in spring) OR you can bring
  these materials to the Islip Town recycling
  centers.

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Groundwater Contamination

• Groundwater is the primary source of drinking
  water and irrigation.
• Contamination Sources
• a. Livestock waste
• b. Underground storage tanks (leak fuel and
  MTBs)
• c. Landfills (leach materials breaking down
  (metals, hdyrocarbons, etc.)
• d. Abandoned hazardous waste sites leach heavy
  metals and solvents into groundwater.

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Sanitary Landfill
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Groundwater Protection in USA

• Clean up is VERY expensive and technically not
  feasible.
• PREVENTION IS BEST!
• US Safe Drinking Water Act, 1974 EPA
  established national drinking water standards e.
  0 coliform bacteria colonies per 100mL of water.
• (Recall Clean Water Act does not protect
  groundwater)

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EPA MANDATES

• 1992 survey showed that 40 of the US drinking
  water contained parasitic organisms of
  Cryptosporidium sp., but not Giardia sp.
• 1996 EPA mandated that ALL Public Water
  Suppliers (Suffolk County Water Authority) test
  for Cryptosporidium sp., but not Giardia sp.
• There are 255 chemicals and compounds that the
  government requires we monitor in our drinking
  water

Cryptosporidium sp.
Giardia sp.
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Who Has Too Much Water?

• When there is too much water or soils are
  persistently saturated, rain events can cause
  disastrous flooding.
• Humans have contributing to increased flooding
  from
• a. deforestation
• b. Mining
• c. Overgrazing
• d. urbanization (hard surface increase leads to
  infiltration decrease)

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Bangladesh
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Bangladesh

• 123 million people in one of the poorest
  countries in the world and 80 of the population
  live along the shoreline where there are rich,
  fertile soils.
• Average per capita GNP 260.00 71 cents/day!
• Monsoon season brings continuous flooding during
  the summer months. It appears to be cyclic and
  that every four years there are significant
  monsoonal events since the 1970s (historically
  it was about every 50 years!)

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Why Does Bangladesh Flood So Frequently?

• Rapid population increase has changed the natural
  character of the land by
• Deforestation which has promoted significant soil
  erosion.
• Overgrazing
• Unsuitable farming (steep slopes) and unsound
  farming practices on these slopes.
• Cleared coastal mangrove forests to provide land
  to grow rice. They have removed the wetland
  structures and decreased or removed the functions
  they need to survive along the coastlines.
• No money to restore mangrove swamps!
• RESULT Millions of homes are destroyed each
  year, thousands of people drown. 30 million
  people become environmental refugees each year.

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How Do We Reduce Flood Risks?

• Channelization to divert water away from
  communities can have both positive and negative
  effects. (Florida Everglades are destroyed from
  ACE water diversion)
• Build levees and dams when they break
  disaster (Hurricane Katrina)
• Restore wetland systems (never achieve 100
  replacement of structure and functions)
• Establish Flood Plain Management Plans How
  about dont build in the flood plain?!!
• PREVENTION IS BEST!

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FEMA

• Federal Emergency Management Agency
• Provide Flood Plain Maps for every County in the
  USA. Designed for Insurance Companies.
• Delineate 500 year storm flood elevation
• Delineate 100 year storm flood elevation
• Delineates entire flood plain area.

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