Skip to main content

Abstract

Wind erosion, also known as eolian erosion, is a dynamic process by which soil particles are detached and displaced by the erosive forces of the wind. Wind erosion occurs when the force of wind exceeds the threshold level of soil’s resistance to erosion. Geological, anthropogenic, and climatic processes control the rate and magnitude of wind erosion (Fig. 3.1). Abrupt fluctuations in weather patterns trigger severe wind storms. Wind erosion is the result of complex interactions among wind intensity, precipitation, surface roughness, soil texture and aggregation, agricultural activities, vegetation cover, and field size. Plowed soils with low organic matter content and those intensively grazed and trampled upon are the most susceptible to erosion. About 50% of the dust clouds result from deforestation and agricultural activities (Gomes et al., 2003).

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

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 299.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 379.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 379.99
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

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  • Bagnold RA (1941) The physics of blown sand and desert dunes. Chapman and Hall, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Bates CG (1934) The Plains shelterbelt project. J For 32:978–991

    Google Scholar 

  • Böhner J, Schafer W, Conrad O et al. (2003) The WEELS model: methods, results and limitations. Catena 52:289–308

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cantero-Martinez C, Westfall DG, Sherrod LA et al. (2006) Long-term crop residue dynamics in no-tilt cropping systems under semi-arid conditions. J Soil Water Conserv 61:84–95

    Google Scholar 

  • Chappell A, Warren A (2003) Spatial scales of Cs-137-derived soil flux by wind in a 25 km(2) arable area of eastern England. Catena 52:209–234

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Chepil WS (1959) Wind erodibility of farm fields. J Soil Water Conserv 14:214–219

    Google Scholar 

  • Feng G, Sharratt B (2005) Sensitivity analysis of soil and PM10 loss in WEPS using LHS-OAT method. Trans ASAE 48:1409–1420

    Google Scholar 

  • Fryrear DW, Bilbro JD (1998) Mechanics, modeling, and controlling soil erosion by wind. In: Pierce FJ, Frye WW (eds) Advances in soil and water conservation. Ann Arbor Press, Michigan

    Google Scholar 

  • Fryrear DW, Saleh A, Bilbro JD et al. (1998) Revised wind erosion equation (RWEQ). Wind Erosion and Water Conserv. Res. Unit, USDA-ARS, Southern Plains Area Cropping Syst. Res Lab Tech Bull No. 1

    Google Scholar 

  • Gomes L, Arrue JL, Lopez MV et al. (2003) Wind erosion in a semiarid agricultural area of Spain: the WELSONS project. Catena 52:235–256

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goossens D, Offer ZY (2000) Wind tunnel and field calibration of six aeolian dust samplers. Atmos Environ 34:1043–1057

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hagen L (2005) How far does dust travel during a wind erosion event? http://www.ars.usda.gov/News/News.htm?modecode=54-30-05-50. Cited 10 January 2008

  • Hagen LJ (1996) Wind erosion prediction systems (WEPS) documentation. http://www.weru.ksu.edu/weps/docs/weps_tech.pdf. Cited 10 Jan 2008

  • Landsberg JJ, James GB (1971) Wind profiles in plant canopies: Studies on an analytical model. J Appl Ecol 8:729–741

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Layton JB, Skidmore EL, Thompson CA (1993) Winter-associated changes in dry-soil aggregation as influenced by management. Soil Sci Soc Am J 57:1568–1572

    Google Scholar 

  • Li XY, Liu LY, Wang JH (2004) Wind tunnel simulation of aeolian sandy soil erodibility under human disturbance. Geomorphol 59:3–11

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lopez MV, Moret D, Gracia R et al. (2003) Tillage effects on barley residue cover during fallow in semiarid Aragon. Soil Tillage Res 72:53–64

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Merrill SD (1998) Comments on the chain method for measuring soil surface roughness: Use of the chain set. Soil Sci Soc Am J 52:1147–1149

    Google Scholar 

  • Nickling WG, McKenna Neuman C (1997) Wind tunnel evaluation of a wedge-shaped aeolian sediment trap. Geomorphol 18:333–345

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nordstrom KF, Hotta S (2004) Wind erosion from cropland solutions in the USA: a review of problems, and prospects. Geoderma 121:157–167

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pietersma D, Stetler LC, Saxton KE (1996) Design and aerodynamics of a portable wind tunnel for soil erosion and fugitive dust research. Trans ASAE 39:2075–2083

    Google Scholar 

  • Römkens MJM, Wang JY (1986) Effect of tillage on surface roughness. Trans ASAE 29: 429–433

    Google Scholar 

  • Schillinger WF, Bolton FE (1993) Fallow water storage in tilled vs untilled soils in the Pacific-Northwest. J Prod Agric 6:267–269

    Google Scholar 

  • Schwab GO, Fangmeier DD, Elliot WJ et al. (1993) Soil and water conservation engineering, 4th edn. Wiley, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Shao Y, Mctainsh GH, Leys JF et al. (1993) Efficiencies of sediment samplers for wind erosion measurement. Aust J Soil Res 31:519–532

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Steiner JL, Schomberg HH, Douglas CL Jr et al. (1994) Standing stem persistence in no-till smallgrain fields. Agron J 86:76–81

    Google Scholar 

  • Sterk G (2003) Causes, consequences and control of wind erosion in Sahelian Africa: A review. Land Degrad Develop 14:95–108

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Su YZ, Li YL, Cui HY et al. (2005) Influences of continuous grazing and livestock exclusion on soil properties in a degraded sandy grassland, Inner Mongolia, northern China. Catena 59: 267–278

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tanner CB, Pelton WL (1960) Potential evapotranspiration estimates by the approximate energy balance method of Penman. J Geophys Res 65:3391–3413

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Upadhyay BM, Young KL, Wang HH et al. (2002) How do farmers who adopt multiple conservation practices differ from their neighbors? J Agric Resour Econ 27:584–584

    Google Scholar 

  • Vigiak O, Sterk G, Warren A et al. (2003) Spatial modeling of wind speed around windbreaks. Catena 52:273–288

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang XB, Enema O, Hoogmed WB et al. (2006) Dust storm erosion and its impact on soil carbon and nitrogen losses in northern China. Catena 66:221–227

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • White RE (1997) Principles and practice of soil Science: The soil as a natural resource, 3rd edn. Blackwell, Oxford

    Google Scholar 

  • Woodruff NP, Zingg AW (1952) Wind-tunnel studies of fundamental problems related to windbreaks. USDA, SCS-TP-112

    Google Scholar 

  • Yan P, Dong GR, Zhang XB et al. (2000) Preliminary results of the study on wind erosion in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau using Cs-137 technique. Chinese Sci Bull 45:1019–1025

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang YG, Wu YQ, Lin BY et al. (2007) Characteristics and factors controlling the development of ephemeral gullies in cultivated catchments of black soil region, Northeast China. Soil Tillage Res 96:28–41

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zobeck TM (1991) Soil properties affecting wind erosion. J Soil Water Conserv 46:112–118

    Google Scholar 

  • Zobeck TM, Popham TW, Skidmore EL et al. (2003a) Aggregate-mean diameter and wind-erodible soil predictions using dry aggregate-size distributions. Soil Sci Soc Am J 67:425–436

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zobeck TM, Sterk G, Funk R et al. (2003b) Measurement and data analysis methods for field-scale wind erosion studies and model validation. Earth Surf Processes Landforms 28:1163–1188

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2010 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Blanco-Canqui, H., Lal, R. (2010). Wind Erosion. In: Principles of Soil Conservation and Management. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-8709-7_3

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics