Soil Issues in El Salvador

The loss of usable soil in El Salvador is an increasingly dire issue. Decades of overgrazing, overfarming, and years of destructive civil war have done serious damage to the soil in El Salvador. Government surveys from 1978 to 1982 showed that only 17 percent of El Salvador's total land area could be classified as high quality soil for intensive agricultural use, and that 29% of the land was considered usable for agrarian purposes. 35 percent was of poorer quality, more susceptible to erosion and best suitable for forest cover and some grazing lands, while another 13 percent was severely degraded, while the rest was urban areas or waterways. Despite this, half of the land considered suitable for intensive use was underutilized, while 75% of cultivation occurred on marginally degraded soil. The former is the land owned by wealthy families and individuals, where the latter is that of the substance farmer, which lead to substance farming becoming unable to support the livelihood of the rural population. Increasing tensions due to this severe inequality lead to civil war 1980. After efforts to defeat the insurgency we unsuccessful, the El Salvadorian government enacted a "scorched earth" strategy, in which they would bomb forests and countryside in order to destroy hiding places for the insurgent forces.

Courtesy of Google Images

 The 12 years of war were devastating. Widespread use of anitpersonnel bombs that explode just above ground level, whose horizontal force sheared entire forests and left charred stumps over already poor land, left entire sections of the country a desolate wasteland. Napalm and a white phosphorus, which cause near spontaneous infernos were used extensively, causing widespread irreparable fire damage to thousands of acres of forest and countryside. The good news is that in recent years, the country has adopted some conservation strategies to conserve and equalize the fertile land that is left.

Soil Issues in Mexico

Soil erosion in Mexico is becoming an increasingly severe issue. There are many factors to weigh into this equation.Mexico accumulates a significant amount of rainfall annually and it is common that these rainfalls arrive in short uncontrolled bursts. This can cause flooding and water erosion. In fact globally,20 million hectares of arable land is rendered infertile simply because of water-induced erosion. Because of this, Mexicans have little fertile soil to produce their country’s crop. The most obvious way around this is to use the land they have as efficiently as they can, growing as much as possible in a year. Also another way around this issue is to cut down trees and make more fields to grow on. Both of these ideas are being implemented heavily in Mexico. Both of these ideas are also the main causes for erosion due to overgrazing in Mexico.

An example of overgrazed land.

Whenever a plant is removed from the soil it carries some of the vital nutrients of the soil with it. Some of these nutrients lay dormant, until the plant dies and starts to decompose. Some of it is stored within and around the plants roots.Overgrazing has the same final result of desertification. Eliminating trees from an ecosystem is the

number one cause of desertification. Also, livestock can play a negative role in soil health as well. As livestock graze hilled terrain, they will trample and kill some sorts of plant life. As plants die and roots recede, the nutrient soil looses it’s grip to the slope. Making the soil much more vulnerable to water erosion. Because the soil is so loose it will start to feel the effects of gravity, exposing the non fertile, sandy horizons below. The proportion of fertile

land lost by flooding-induced gully erosion was estimated at 2% of the total fertile land in 2007.

These original measurements suggest that, in this northern area of Mexico, it is the soils of all the drainage slopes that lose several millimeters of top soil every year. Eventually, if patterns continue that would render Northern Mexico's soil completely unfertile in the near future. So, What we have learned from these studies and observation is that the amount of fertile soil in Mexico is slowly decreasing. We also know the two main concerns and the causes. Water erosion of land and overgrazing. working together, these two factors create a literal

The good news is, that the Mexican government is aware of the problems they face. The bad news is, they lack the money/ priorities to fund proper solutions to the problem. Since it is a rather new topic, scientists continue to research the possible effects of this disaster waiting to happen and they try to decipher the shear scope of the findings.

Sources :

-Actualite Scientifique. "Overgrazing accelerating soil erosion in northern

Mexico." IRD.edu. I.R.D, Nov. 2007. Web. 31 Oct. 2010. the-media-library/scientific-news-sheets/
overgrazing-accelerating-soil-erosion-in-northern-mexico>.

Chile

The country of Chile is undergoing very serious soil problems of their own. Erosion, desertification, and desert encroachment are all threats to the country. The soil problems surrounding Chile are not to be taken lightly; they grow more devastating every year. Soil erosion and desertification are favored by Chile's incredibly hilly geography (due to the Andes mountain range.) On top of poor geography, heavy mining is crucial to Chile's main exports but the process of mining has the power to obliterate soils.

These problems are being caused by a number of factors. Overgrazing, over-farming, and mining are the three main culprits. Chile overgrazing was a common practice until recently. Now the government has realized it is detrimental to the soil/land when people bring their animals to graze on the same patch of land over and over again; eventually it wears down the vegetation and then the soil, ultimately the fertile soil will be blown away by the wind. The same thing will happen when farmers continuously plow the same field, they may not realize it but they are waring down the soil until it becomes dust.
Mining is a major practice in the country of Chile, unfortunately mining is terrible for the environment. Mining requires the removal of all the vegetation atop of the ground which is crucial to soil. Mining in Chile has also been found to release toxins into the soil through excessive minerals leaching through the mine.

Fortunately, the government of Chile has recognized this environmental problem and is acting to prevent. The government is now urging farmers to adopt a rotational crops system (the movement of crops to different fields so one field may rest and replenish before being used again,) and a rotational grazing system (the movement of animals to different grazing areas to allow grasses to regrow.) The government is also beginning education programs teaching Chilean children the concept of constructing their own gardens and rotating their crops and animals so they can better preserve the future of their soil

Sources:
"Soil Erosion and Its Control in Chile - An Overview." Web. 31 Oct. 2010. .

"Chilean Journal of Agricultural Research - Materia Orgánica Reduce La Toxicidad Del Cobre Para La Lombriz Eiseniafetida En Suelos De Áreas Mineras En Chile Central." SciELO - Scientific Electronic Library Online. Web. 31 Oct. 2010. .

What Are the Main Concerns?

Much of the Central and South America area is undergoing soil issues. Over the years, Central and South Americans have caused damage to their soil through many devestating practices including (but not limited to,) overgrazing and over-mining. Both soil erosion and desertification are occuring because of these practices. The encroachment of the desert is also becoming a serious problem (the advancement of desert fringe towards arable lands.)