Know Your Watershed

     Did you know…soil erosion contributes to degradation of our water quality and water quantity in several ways?

    Although soil erosion is a naturally occurring process, human activity can greatly increase the speed and amount of erosion. Removal of plant cover for any number of human activities from gardening to plowing large fields for agriculture to clearing land for development and highways etc. exposes soil to the eroding agents of wind and water and causes a disruption of the water cycle.

    The water cycle, basically stated, is precipitation, infiltration, runoff, water storage (oceans, ice caps, rivers etc.), evaporation, transpiration, and condensation. Plants are a very important component in this process as they aid in the recharge of the groundwater by slowing the stormwaters so they can be infiltrated. They release water back into the atmosphere (transpiration) through their leaves.

     Plant roots help hold soil and nutrients in place. When plant cover is removed, infiltration is interrupted and erosion occurs as soil and nutrients are carried away with stormwater. The resulting sedimentation in our streams and lakes can impair drainage, increase water treatment costs, increase flooding severity and, along with the excess nutrients, severely degrade aquatic habitat and water quality and quantity.

    Erosion is very costly to everybody and we all need to take measures to control it whenever we can. This can be done by disturbing the smallest area possible for whatever activity we are engaged in such as a garden, construction area, etc., and then by establishing plant cover as quickly as possible on the disturbed site. The use and maintenance of erosion controls —mulch, straw bales, and/or silt fences— are essential practices if erosion is to be minimized when plant cover is removed. It is important to remember that, for any disturbance involving one acre or more, a permit must be obtained from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.

     Learn more about protecting water quality at www.southgrandwatershed.com