Erosion in the Palouse - Steep III (Solutions To Environmental and ...

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14To reduceerosion...reducesummer fallow...and increase use ofconservation practices...from:14 tons per acrefrom:305,000 acresfrom:546,000 acresminimum tillagePresentconditionAlternative 1to:8 tons per acreto:246,000 acresto:1,221,000 acresminimum tillageAlternative 2to:4 tons per acreto:114,000 acresto:1,221,000 acresminimumtillage andstripcroppingwith terraces on517,000 ofthose acres
Productioncost and returnin millions of dollarsCost ReturnSummary of Findings156169829710683The chart (left)summarizes theconservationtreatment neededto reduce averageannual erosion inthe Palouse from14 ton/acre to 8and 4 ton/acre. Italso shows how thealternatives wouldaffect productioncosts and net farmincome. For adetailed discussionsee the PalouseRiver Basin StudyReport.The Palouse River Basin Study confirmswhat has long been suspected: Soilerosion threatens the future of farmingin the basin and the quality of waterflowing out of the basin. But it can becontrolled and reduced.• The basin’s cropland will continueto lose at least 17 million tons ofsoil each year—14 tons per acre—unless effective conservationmeasures are practiced.• Five million tons of sediment areproduced in the basin each yearby runoff— polluting water,silting in reservoirs, damagingfish habitat.• Over 90 percent of the soil lossresults from sheet and rill erosion.Over 50 percent occurs on thesteepest 25 percent of the basin’scropland.• Summer fallow, which leaves thesoil bare, is a major contributor toerosion.• Conservation practices can reduceerosion rates: minimum tillage, 35percent; field stripcropping, 15 to28 percent; terraces, 8 to 13percent.• Retiring steep, highly erodibleland to grass or other protectivecover would greatly reduceerosion and would benefitwildlife.• Proper combinations of variouspractices could reduce erosionrates 40 to 60 percent withoutadversely affecting farm income.Erosion rates can be reduced up to80 percent, but would result infarm income reduction.✩GPO 697-385
Page 2 and 3: 2Erosion in the Palouse:A Summary o
Page 4 and 5: 4The LandCalled PalouseWestern port
Page 6 and 7: 6Erosion in the Palouse:How Bad Is
Page 8 and 9: 8Effects of erosionThe millions of
Page 10 and 11: 10What CanConservation Do?Fall chis
Page 12 and 13: 12Stripcropping dividesa slope to r

Erosion in the Palouse - Steep III (Solutions To Environmental and ...

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