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Human Impact. Humans are constantly changing the world around them. This and other environmental processes have lead to land degradation Humans have altered many characteristics of the soil through agriculture, deforestation, and construction humans.
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Humans are constantly changing the world around them. • This and other environmental processes have lead to land degradation • Humans have altered many characteristics of the soil through agriculture, deforestation, and construction humans
It is very common for farmers to plant a single crop (monoculture). When there is only one type of plant or the plants are not rotated (strip cropping) the soil will lose nutrients. The soil can lose so much nutrients that it can decrease in plant production. • Today we need 60 servings of broccoli to equal the same nutritional value of one serving on broccoli in the 1950’s.
Our poor faming techniques have required us to start adding nutrients to the soil (fertilizer). Some areas have suffered from nutrient loading because of the amount of nutrients that have been added and remained in the soil • The excess nutrients can remain in the soil for several years. These chemicals can be absorbed by our crops and be transferred to our water. • This can cause eutrification of the ocean, which may cause increased algal blooms and the introduction of non-native species
Our practices have added to the destabilization of soil. This makes the soil more susceptible to erosion and mass movements such as landslides.