Discuss the importance of integrating soil conservation practices into land-use planning and development policies for long-term soil quality protection.
Soil conservation farming practices stop the ground from washing away, which keeps water bodies clean from pollution and sedimentation. Conservation also keeps bare surfaces from cracking and eroding because of water, wind, and too much heat. Soil conservation mitigates the concentration of pollutants and sediments. In its turn, water is the basic condition for dissolving nutrients for plants. Soil carbon sequestration and reduced chemical applications contribute to air purity, too provides food and shelter for wildlife. Soil conservation is key to environmental sustainability: It helps protect natural resources and watersheds, restores habitats for plants and wildlife, improves water quality, and makes soil healthier. It refers to the methods involved in preventing soil erosion, denudation, degradation, and pollution. It involves multiple methods that are mainly involved in agricultural techniques due to the close relation of the plants with soil. Soil conservation is important because soil is crucial for many aspects of human life as it provides food by agriculture filters air and water and helps to decompose biological waste into nutrients for new plant life. Crop rotation, cover crops, conservation tillage, and installed windbreaks are methods for better soil conservation that have an impact on both erosions as well as fertility. Plants that die decompose and mix with the soil. For thousands of years, farmers have conserved their soil. The thrust area is to protect the loss of topsoil, improving soil fertility, enhancing crop production, land and water productivity of watershed areas comprising of wastelands, river valleys and the eco-system as a whole. Various schemes launched by the Centre Govt of India such as Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), Soil Health Card Scheme, Soil Health Management Scheme, Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojna (PKSY) and 'Per Drop More Crop', and said these were aimed at reducing land degradation. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change is implementing National River Conservation Programme, sub-schemes of Conservation of Natural Resources and Eco-Systems, National Afforestation Programme & Green India Mission, National Coastal Management Programme. The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 authorizes the central government to protect and improve environmental quality, control and reduce pollution from all sources, and prohibit or restrict the setting and /or operation of any industrial facility on environmental grounds.
Agricultural soils are essential resources for food production and play a vital role in global food security. This makes the application of soil conservation agricultural practices extremely important. These practices aim to reduce soil erosion, increase the amount of organic matter, improve soil structure and promote water retention in the soil. It is important to highlight the importance of public policies that legislate on these practices to ensure the maintenance of these soils.
The ground is conserved by planting trees in an accessible area, thus resulting in a reduction of soil erosion. Afforestation aids in keeping soil particles bound together, thus making it difficult to be washed away by overflowing water and heavy rains. Soil conservation is key to environmental sustainability: It helps protect natural resources and watersheds, restores habitats for plants and wildlife, improves water quality, and makes soil healthier. Soil conservation also creates economic opportunity. Soil conservation farming practices stop the ground from washing away, which keeps water bodies clean from pollution and sedimentation. Conservation also keeps bare surfaces from cracking and eroding because of water, wind, and too much heat. The roots of trees firmly hold the topmost layer of the soil. They do not allow natural forces like wind, water, etc., to carry away the top most fertile layer of the soil easily. Afforestation refers to the planting of trees in an area, which will prevent soil erosion. Soil is an important component of forest and woodland ecosystems as it helps regulate important ecosystem processes, such as nutrient uptake, decomposition, and water availability. Soils provide trees with anchorage, water and nutrients. Soils that are properly managed for soil quality produce healthier, higher-yielding crops. Managing soil organic matter is extremely important because organic matter plays a role in almost all aspects of soil quality. Proper soil management protects and enhances soil performance. It also reduces input costs, prevents pollution, and improves crop quality. Before planting, the soil should be in the best physical condition for the crop, to encourage rapid and successful root growth.
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