Land Resources

Module 1- Resources

Chapter 6-Land resources

21. Importance of land resources

The land fulfils the basic needs of the human being i.e. shelter, food and cloth. The space for our houses and the vegetation over it and gives us food and clothing, minerals and fossil fuels.

Land protects us from high temperature of the earth's core.

It is a habitat for most of the flora and fauna.

Its act as a dumping ground for solid and liquid wastes
and decomposes the solid waste

Land act as a store point for the basics resources like ground water

It act as a foundation for the building

It filter the water and store it underground

Such a way we can list out a number of benefits by the land. So the land is considered as an important resource.

22. Causes/effects of land degradation

The fertility of the land supports the growth and productivity of the plants on earth and because of any man-made or natural calamities if the fertility of the land is reduced we can say that the land degradation is happening.
Causes of land degradation

There are natural factors and man-made factors for land degradation

The natural causes are: 

-Heavy rain

-High-speed wind, storm

-Soil erosion

-Natural disasters like earthquake, flood, prolonged drought,     volcanoes etc.

The man-made causes are: 

-Mining

-Urbanization

-Deforestation

-Excessive use of fertilizers and pesticides in agriculture

-Chemical discharges & industrial discharges

-Construction of dam, road and canal

23. Soil erosion-Causes, effects and control measures

Causes of soil erosion

One of the main cause of land degradation or reducing of the fertility of the land is soil erosion. Soil erosion is the removal of the top soil by the high-speed wind, heavy rain or heavy water flow

Effect of soil erosion

-Deforestation

-Industrialization

-Pollution

-Flood

-Overgrazing of cattle

-Agricultural mismanagement like poor crop rotation, excessive     use of fertilizers and pesticides or use of heavy machinery for     tillage etc.

-As the top soil is eroded it will decrease the agricultural production or reduce the productivity of the land and the desertification of the land is happened.

Prevention of Soil erosion

In agricultural lands, depending upon its slope, various agricultural practices can be adapted to reduce the soil erosion.

In agricultural lands with mild slopes

Reduce the tillage

Actually tillage is required to improve the infiltration and to improve the permeability of the soil. But excess tillage exposes the soil to erosion.

Mulching

Adopting farming practices like mulching protect the soil from the heavy rain drops and reduce the soil erosion

In agricultural lands with gentle slopes

Make vegetative bunts or contour buntings to reduce the soil erosion or adopt agricultural practices like strip cropping and contour farming.

In agricultural land with bigger slopes

Adopt agricultural practice called terracing.

To reduce the soil erosion on the lands other than agricultural lands 

Control of overgrazing of the cattle

Afforestation- plantation of more and more trees in the barren lands