What Natural Events Cause Erosion?
Erosion literally means “eating away.” Erosion is the wearing away of the soil and rock caused by both man-made and natural conditions. This results in loss of soil structure, low organic matter, soil acidity, silanization and loss of productive farmland. While humans do play a major role in causing soil erosion directly or indirectly, this can also happen due to natural events.
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Rain
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Water, in its many forms, causes soil erosion. By splashing soil into the air and detaching it from the ground, rain causes erosion. When the slope of the field is steeper, the soil loss is more, and the loose soil gets eroded with the rain. Rivers and streams also cause soil erosion.
Wind
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When the soil is without vegetation and has exposure to high-speed winds, it results in soil getting displaced and transported to distant places. Seasonally strong winds remove fine particles including organic matter, loam and clay. This causes the soil structure to dry, deteriorate and become less fertile. Wind also causes weathering of rocks. This happens due to friction between the rock and abrasive agents carried by the wind. When rocks get frequent exposure to strong winds, the rock surface wears away and changes shape.
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Gravitical Erosion
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Natural events such as landslides, slips and earthquakes cause gravitical erosion. These mass movements cause soil and rock to be eroded by means of gravitation. Removing vegetation from the soil and subsequently decreased water usage results in reducing the soil strength and ultimately impacts the stability of the slope. When the slope loses its stability, it becomes more prone to the complex sliding movements.
Frost Wedging
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A tiny crack on a rock can cause frost wedging to happen. When water trickles into the crack, it undergoes repeated freeze-thaw cycles. Upon freezing, the water expands and pushes outward with an enormous force, and this causes the rock to splinter in several places. These splinters gradually cause the rock to break apart and results in formation of steep cliffs over time.
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