Soil

Soil s something we all take for granted.

I’m surprised, first of all, that I have not written about this before. Soil is the absolute foundation for farming and we exploit soil at our peril. It comes in many guises, from peat to clay and that in turn affects the vegetation that grows in that soil, including our food.

Soil erosion and loss is a huge factor affecting our world. Soil stores carbon. Bare soil is an absolute catastrophe for the planet, it simply bleeds CO2. This continues until all that is left is sand.

Historically (i.e. more than 150 years ago) Carbon Dioxide levels in out atmosphere were not really affected by either farming or wood and fossil fuel burning. Even so humans had already started destroying soils, the prime example being the massive expansion of the Sahara desert by grazing pressure from livestock.

Where did soil come from.

A great place to learn about this is by watching Earth with Chris Packham.