Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Wind Erosion

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Soil Degradation, Conservation and Remediation

  • 4307 Accesses

Abstract

For environmental and pedogenic reasons, soils of the arid and semiarid regions are usually dry, loose, low organic matter containing sandy soils susceptible to severe damage by wind erosion. Human activities such as deforestation, overgrazing, over exploitation of vegetation, soil and water resources have accelerated wind erosion many fold. Wind erosion removes the lighter and less dense soil constituents like organic matter, nutrients, clays, and silts. It significantly reduces soil productivity and crop yield. Many soils have been abandoned, and desertification has advanced in many places as an ultimate result of wind erosion. Effective soil conservation methods have been used successfully for the reduction of wind erosion, restoration of crop production, and rehabilitation of soils to agriculture. These measures include stabilizing soil, ridging and roughening soil, cover crops, residue management, mulching, mechanical barriers, and windbreak. Some innovative measures have been employed in stabilization and rehabilitation of dunes, such as straw checkerboard barriers in Michigan, USA, and Mauritania in West Africa, for example.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 129.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Aase JK, Siddoway FH, Black AL (1976) Perennial grass barriers for wind erosion control, snow management and crop production. In: Tinus RW (ed) Shelterbelts on the Great Plains, proceedings of a symposium. Great Plains Agricultural Council, Denver

    Google Scholar 

  • Armbrust DV (1984) Wind and sandblast injury to field crops: effects of plant age. Agron J 76:991–993

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Armbrust DV, Dickerson JD (1971) Temporary wind erosion control: cost and effectiveness of 34 commercial materials. J Soil Water Conserv 26:154–157

    Google Scholar 

  • Armbrust DV, Lyles L (1975) Soil stabilizers to control wind erosion. In: Soil conditioners, Soil Science Society of America, special publication no. 7. Soil Science Society of America, Inc., Madison

    Google Scholar 

  • Armbrust DV, Chepil WS, Siddoway FH (1964) Effects of ridges on erosion of soil by wind. Soil Sci Soc Am Proc 28:557–560

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bagnold RA (1941) The physics of blown sand and desert dunes. Methuen, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Bates CG (1911) Windbreaks: their influence and value, USDA forest service bulletin 86. USDA, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Black AL, Siddoway FH (1971) Tall wheatgrass barriers for soil erosion control and water conservation. J Soil Water Conserv 26:107–110

    Google Scholar 

  • Budyko MI (1958) The heat balance of the Earth’s surface (trans: Stepanova NA). US Department of Commerce, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Carreker JR (1966) Wind erosion in the southeast. J Soil Water Conserv 21:86–88

    Google Scholar 

  • Chen GT (1991) Analyses of mechanical composition and resistance to wind erosion of soil in Beijing Plain. J Arid Land Resour Environ 5(1):103–113

    Google Scholar 

  • Chepil WS (1944) Utilization of crop residues for wind erosion control. Sci Agric 24:307–319

    Google Scholar 

  • Chepil WS (1945) Dynamics of wind erosion: I. Nature of movement of soil by wind. Soil Sci 60:305–320

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Chepil WS (1950) Properties of soil which influences wind erosion: II. Dry aggregate structure as an index of erodibility. Soil Sci 69:403–414

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chepil WS (1957a) Width of field strips to control wind erosion, Technical bulletin 92. Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station, Manhattan

    Google Scholar 

  • Chepil WS (1957b) Sedimentary characteristics of dust storms: III. Composition of suspended dust. Am J Sci 255:206–213

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chepil WS (1958) Soil conditions that influence wind erosion, Technical bulletin 1185. USDA, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Chepil WS (1960) Conversion of relative field erodibility to annual soil loss by wind. Soil Sci Soc Am Proc 24(2):143–145

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chepil WS, Milne RA (1941) Wind erosion of soil in relation to roughness of surface. Soil Sci 52:417–433

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chepil WS, Woodruff NP (1954) Estimations of wind erodibility of field surfaces. J Soil Water Conserv 9:257–265

    Google Scholar 

  • Chepil WS, Woodruff NP (1959) Estimations of wind erodibility of farm fields, Production research report no. 25. USDA, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Chepil WS, Siddoway FH, Armbrust DV (1962) Climatic factor for estimating wind erodibility of farm fields. J Soil Water Conserv 17:162–165

    Google Scholar 

  • Chepil WS, Woodruff NP, Siddoway FH, Fryrear DW, Armbrust DV (1963) Vegetative and non-vegetative materials to control wind and water erosion. Soil Sci Soc Am Proc 27:86–89

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Craig DG, Turelle WJ (1964) Guide for wind erosion control on cropland in the Great Plains states. USDA, SCS, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Dickerson JD, Woodruff NP, Banbury EE (1976) Techniques for improving survival and growth of trees in semiarid areas. J Soil Water Conserv 31:63–66

    Google Scholar 

  • Dong ZB (1994) Wind erosion loss model in a typical area in the desert/loess zone of North Shaanxi. Ph.D. dissertation, Institute of Desert Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Liuzhou

    Google Scholar 

  • Dong YX, Kang GD (1994) Study on the wind erosion climatic erosivity in arid and semi-arid areas in China. J Soil Water Conserv 8(3):1–7

    Google Scholar 

  • Dong ZB, Li ZS (1998) Wind erodibility of aeolian sand as influenced by grain size parameters. J Soil Eros Soil Water Conserv 4(4):1–5

    Google Scholar 

  • Dong GR, Li CZ, Jin J, Gao SY, Wu D (1987) Some results from wind erosion experiments by wind tunnel. Chin Sci Bull 32:297–301

    Google Scholar 

  • Dong ZB, Wang XM, Liu LY (2000) Wind erosion in arid and semiarid China: an overview. J Soil Water Conserv 55(4):439–444

    Google Scholar 

  • Englehorn CL, Zingg AW, Woodruff NP (1952) The effects of plant residue cover and clod structure on soil losses by wind. Soil Sci Soc Am Proc 16:29–33

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • FAO (1979) A provisional methodology for soil degradation assessment. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome

    Google Scholar 

  • Ferber AE (1969) Windbreaks for conservation, Agriculture information bulletin no. 339. USDA-SCS, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Fryrear DW (1969) Reducing wind erosion in the Southern Great Plains. Texas A and M University, College Station

    Google Scholar 

  • Fryrear DW (1984) Soil ridges-clods and wind erosion. Trans ASAE 27:445–448

    Google Scholar 

  • Fullen MA, Mitchell DJ (1994) Desertification and reclamation in north-central China. Ambio 23:131–135

    Google Scholar 

  • Gillette DA (1977) Fine-particle emissions due to wind erosion. Trans ASAE 20:890–897

    Google Scholar 

  • Gillette DA, Walker TR (1977) Characteristics of airborne particles produced by wind erosion of sandy soil, high plains of West Texas. Soil Sci 123:97–110

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gregory JM, Borrelli J (1986) The Texas Tech wind erosion equation. American Society of Agricultural Engineers, Washington, DC. Paper no. 86-2528

    Google Scholar 

  • Hagen LJ, Woodruff NP (1973) Air pollution from dust storms in the Great Plains. Atmos Environ 7:323–332

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hagen LJ, Skidmore EL, Dickerson JD (1972) Designing narrow strip barrier systems to control wind erosion. J Soil Water Conserv 27:269–270

    Google Scholar 

  • Hare FK (1983) Climate and desertification: a revised analysis, World climate program, report no. 44. World Meteorological Organization, Geneva

    Google Scholar 

  • Hayes WA (1966) Guide for wind erosion control in the Northeastern States. USDA, SCS, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Henning D, Flohn H (1977) Climate aridity index map, United Nations conference on desertification. FAO/WMO, Nairobi

    Google Scholar 

  • Horikawa K, Shen HW (1960) Sand movement by wind action, Corps of engineers technical memorandum no. 119. United States Beach Erosion Board, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Hu YD, Zhou J (1991) Studies on preservation of wheat straw used in checkerboard barrier. In: Shapotou Desert Research Experiment Station (ed) The control of mobile dunes in Shapotou Region of the Tengger Desert. Ningxia People’s Press, Yingchuan (in Chinese)

    Google Scholar 

  • Hu MC, Liu YZ, Wulan Yang ZT, Wu D, Wang GC (1991) An experimental study in wind tunnel on wind erosion of soil in Korqin Sandy Land. J Desert Res 11(1):22–29

    Google Scholar 

  • Li ZS (1999) Wind tunnel simulation of flow velocity on the windward slope. Res Soil Water Conserv 6(4):75–79

    Google Scholar 

  • Li XR, Zhang JG, Wang XP, Liu LC (2000) Study on soil microbiotic crust and its influences on sand fixing vegetation in arid desert region. Acta Bot Sin 42:965–970

    Google Scholar 

  • Li XR, Xiao HL, Zhang JG (2004) Long-term ecosystem effects of sand-binding vegetation in Shapotou region of Tengger Desert, Northern China. Restor Ecol 12:376–390

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Li XR, Xiao HL, He MZ, Zhang JG (2006) Sand barriers of straw checkerboards for habitat restoration in extremely arid desert regions. Ecol Eng 28:149–157

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Liu YZ, Dong GR, Li CZ (1992) Study on some factors influencing soil erosion by wind tunnel experiment. J Desert Res 12(4):41–49

    Google Scholar 

  • Lyles L (1975) Possible effects of wind erosion on soil productivity. J Soil Water Conserv 30:279–283

    Google Scholar 

  • Lyles L (1988) Basic wind erosion processes. Agric Ecosyst Environ 22/23:91–101

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lyles L, Tatarko J (1982) Emergency tillage to control wind erosion: influences on winter wheat yields. J Soil Water Conserv 37:344–347

    Google Scholar 

  • Lyles L, Schrandt RL, Schmeidler NF (1974) How aerodynamic roughness element control sand movement. Trans ASAE 17:134–139

    Google Scholar 

  • Lyles L, Hagen LJ, Skidmore EL (1983) Soil conservation: principles of erosion by wind. In: Dryland agriculture, Agronomy monograph no. 23. American Society of Agronomy, Madison, pp 177–188

    Google Scholar 

  • Mannering JV, Fenster CR (1983) What is conservation tillage? J Soil Water Conserv 38:141–143

    Google Scholar 

  • McCalla TM, Army TJ (1961) Stubble mulch farming. Adv Agron 13:125–196

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McEwan IK, Willetts BB, Rice MA (1992) The grain/bed collision in sand transport by wind. Sedimentology 39:971–981

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Michels K, Armbrust DV, Allison BE, Sivakumar MVK (1995) Wind and windblown sand damage to pearl millet. Agron J 87:620–626

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Read RA (1964) Tree windbreaks for the Central Great Plains, Agronomy handbook no. 250. USDA, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Rice MA, Willetts BB, McEwan IK (1995) An experimental study of multiple grain-size ejecta produced by collisions of saltating grains with a flat bed. Sedimentology 42:695–706

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Siddoway FH, Chepil WS, Armbrust DV (1965) Effect of kind, amount, and placement of residue on wind erosion control. Trans Am Soc Agric Eng 8:327–331

    Google Scholar 

  • Skidmore EL (1974) A wind erosion equation: development, application, and limitations. In: Atmosphere-surface exchange of particulate and gaseous pollutants, ERDA symposium series 38. Technical Information Center, Oak Ridge

    Google Scholar 

  • Skidmore EL (1986) Soil erosion by wind: an overview. In: El-Baz F, Hassan MHA (eds) Physics of desertification. Springer, Dordrecht

    Google Scholar 

  • Skidmore EL (1988) Wind erosion. In: Lal R (ed) Soil erosion research methods, 2nd edn. Soil and Water Conservation Society, Ankeny

    Google Scholar 

  • Sudmeyer R, Bicknell D, Coles N (2007) Tree windbreaks in the wheatbelt. Department of Agriculture and Food, Government of Western Australia, Perth

    Google Scholar 

  • United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and International Soil Research Information Center (ISRIC) (1990) World map of the status of human induced soil degradation. UNEP/ISRIC, Wageningen

    Google Scholar 

  • Wang T, Wu W (1999) Land use and sandy desertification in Northern China. J Nat Resour 14(4):355–358

    Google Scholar 

  • Whitford WG (2002) Ecology of desert systems. Academic, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Willetts BB, Rice MA (1989) Collisions of quartz grains with a sand bed: the influence of incident angle. Earth Surf Process Landforms 14:719–730

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Woodruff NP, Siddoway FH (1965) A wind erosion equation. Soil Sci Soc Am Proc 29:502–608

    Google Scholar 

  • Woodruff NP, Lyles L, Siddoway FH, Fryrear DW (1972) How to control wind erosion, Agricultural information bulletin 354. USDA-ARS, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Woodruff NP, Dickerson JD, Banbury EE, Erhart AB, Lundquist MC (1976) Selected trees and shrubs evaluated for single-row windbreaks in the Central Great Plains, ARS NC-37. USDA, ARS, Peoria

    Google Scholar 

  • Yan P (2000) Application of the caesium-137 technique on the wind erosion-a case study in Gonghe Basin, Qinghai Province. J Desert Res 20(1):102

    Google Scholar 

  • Zingg AW, Woodruff NP (1951) Calibration of a portable wind tunnel for the simple determination of roughness and drag on field surfaces. Agron J 43:191–193

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Soil Science, University of Chittagong, Chittagong, Bangladesh

    Khan Towhid Osman

Authors
  1. Khan Towhid Osman
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2014 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Osman, K.T. (2014). Wind Erosion. In: Soil Degradation, Conservation and Remediation. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-7590-9_4

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation