How Can a Community Help to Conserve Soil & Water?
Conservation begins with an understanding of the natural environment in and around the community. Communities with high precipitation and fresh water sources, for example, need a different plan than arid brush country. Your area extension service will have a summary of your community's needs and resources. Does this Spark an idea?
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Soil Conservation
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Soil erosion by wind and water can be reduced in any area by soil-covering policies. Request that residents and businesses keep soil reserve piles covered. Start a tree planting project to disrupt wind tunnels that cause wind erosion, according to Servicemagic.com. Encourage gardeners and farmers to use cover crops between plantings to prevent wind erosion in croplands.
Water Conservation
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Left unchecked, stormwater carries soil, pollutants and valuable rainwater together into sewage systems. Start a rainwater harvest project to help the community adapt gutters with rain barrels onto structures. Promote a community cistern to water public parks and lands. Encourage the adoption of green roofs on buildings, which reduce stormwater runoff and improve the quality of excess runoff. Promote permeable hardscapes in parks, parking lots, sidewalks and other such areas to allow water to return to the water table instead of gutters.
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Multiple Benefit Solutions
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Community composting projects reduce the need for water-polluting fertilizers, according to the Soil & Water Conservation District of Cumberland County, North Carolina. Compost also encourages healthier growth of plant life used to prevent soil erosion. Provide a list of native plants and ground covers that can be planted to prevent erosion. Native plants also reduce community watering demands and the need for fertilizers and pesticides that pollute water supplies you're trying to conserve.
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