In the 1970’s, agriculture in the United States seemed to be booming. With an extra demand for crops, extra acres were taken on to increase production which was predicted to increase further with an ever-growing population. However, concerns were beginning to be raised over the adequacy of land for crops as potential croplands began to be converted into urban areas as well as the effects of soil erosion decreasing the quality of these croplands. Originally published in 1983, this study investigates the threats to crop productivity in the U.S. with a focus on human-made problems. This title will be of interest to students of environmental studies.

“Principles of Soil Management and Conservation” comprehensively reviews the state-of-knowledge on soil erosion and management. It discusses in detail soil conservation topics in relation to soil productivity, environment quality, and agronomic production. It addresses the implications of soil erosion with emphasis on global hotspots and synthesizes available from developed and developing countries. It also critically reviews information on no-till management, organic farming, crop residue management for industrial uses, conservation buffers (e.g., grass buffers, agroforestry systems), and the problem of hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico and in other regions. This book uniquely addresses the global issues including carbon sequestration, net emissions of CO2, and erosion as a sink or source of C under different scenarios of soil management. It also deliberates the implications of the projected global warming on soil erosion and vice versa. The concern about global food security in relation to soil erosion and strategies for confronting the remaining problems in soil management and conservation are specifically addressed. This volume is suitable for both undergraduate and graduate students interested in understanding the principles of soil conservation and management. The book is also useful for practitioners, extension agents, soil conservationists, and policymakers as an important reference material.

This new edition of Soil Erosion Research Methods retains the themes and layout of the first edition. However, most chapters have been revised and some additional chapters have been added. There are new chapters on modeling wind and water erosion. Extensive revisions and updating have been done in chapters dealing with assessment of erosivity and erodibility, erosion, crop productivity, measuring sediment yield from river basins and field plot techniques. There is extensive updating of current statistics on the global magnitude of soil erosion by water and wind and on denudation rates. Several new authors have made significant improvements in revising and updating available information.