Soil properties affecting wind erosion

Abstract

Wind erosion is a dynamic process. During dry weather, blowing dust may appear in one section of a field but not in another section. Many factors contribute to the dynamic nature of the wind erosion process. For example, wind forces vary considerably both daily and throughout the year at any given location, and the distribution of vegetation and residue that cover and protect the soil from the forces of the wind changes seasonally. Several soil surface conditions that affect wind erosion also may change daily, seasonally, or yearly. Soils vary across the landscape and many soils react differently to tillage and other management practices to create varying conditions on the soil surface. This complex and dynamic nature of the wind erosion process presents a significant challenge to the science of wind erosion prediction. The wind erosion equation (WEQ) is the primary wind erosion prediction technology currently in use in the United States (23, 51). The WEQ is described by the general functional relationship E=function of (I, C, K, L, V), where E is the potential average annual soil loss in tons per acre per year; I is the soil erodibility in tons per acre per year, determined by …